Proud of her achievements

JOSETTE RICKETTS is passionate about life, her dreams and her commitment to ensuring that she achieves her goals. It was difficult for her mother to care for her and her siblings following her father’s passing; however, Josette persevered and with the assistance of the Grace & Staff Community Development Foundation today she is proud of her achievements.

“When my dad passed, we moved to St Ann. I later matriculated to Wolmer’s High School for Girls. I could be described as ‘country come to town’. When I started high school, my mother did her best to get us through, but it was difficult,” Ricketts said.

With the assistance of Grace & Staff Community Development Foundation, her tuition and school-related expenses were paid, and she was able to access the resources from the Learning Institute of Central Kingston.

At an early age, Ricketts recognised that she had a passion for writing and decided to pursue a career in the field of communications. From her first job experience at Grace Foods, her employers were so impressed with her tenacity and determination that she was offered a spot on the promotions team. “I was able to save and ensure that I had resources for school and to help with my family as well,” she said.

Ricketts is passionate about nation-building, and prior to her tertiary studies, she made the decision to defer a full scholarship to the North Carolina University, which offered her a full scholarship, in order to attend the University of the West Indies, Mona.

“When

I made the decision, I saw the state of poverty I was living in. At the time I was living in a one-bedroom with my mother and siblings, and I decided that I wanted to live on campus. In my mind, I would rather be on campus without food and be able to access classes than to be struggling with everyday expenses,” Ricketts said.

After a tumultuous start to university life, Ricketts’ light at the end of the tunnel came when she received employment opportunities, in which she worked and attended school full-time. At the end of her studies, Ricketts graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Journalism, with an emphasis on heritage studies.

Since then, she has honed her craft at different mediahouses and private organisations. She continues to give back to students by volunteering with the Grace & Staff Community Development Foundation.

She credits much of her success to the Foundation, which, she said, has invested so much in her development. Counselling psychologist Dr Curtis Sweeney, “was a father figure to me, since I didn’t have a father while growing up,” shared Ricketts.