Vincentian student receives bursary from Humber College in honour of Doris Tallon

Vincentian student Jason Gonsalves never met Doris Tallon, the lady known as the first lady of Humber College, but Jason will always remember Doris’s name.

The Humber College Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning in Toronto Canada decided to honour Tallon’s memory by setting up a bursary fund for Caribbean students in her name.

Tallon, who died at the age of 87 in July 2009 has been described by the College as the major

architect of Humber’s culture and commitment to helping international students.

Gonsalves, who leaves St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) for Humber on August 23 is the fifth local recipient of this $5000 bursary. The bursary is controlled locally by the Humber College Alumni Association.

On Monday, August 14, President of the Humber College Alumni Association Keith Boyea and Committee Member Willis Williams, in the presence of Michelle Gonsalves, Jason’s mother, handed over the cheque to Jason at the Joshua Centre in Arnos Vale.

According to Boyea, the Humber College Alumni Association seeks to assist students who are accepted at Humber, “as long as you are in line with progress and your records are good”. He added that the association has been “trying to assist accepted students wherever possible”.

Boyea added, “Doris was like a mother to a number of us when we were at the school; she had a lot of love for Vincentians and one thing she wanted to do was make sure that we were alright”.

Accepting the cheque, Jason said that he was extremely grateful to the committee for the assistance and promised to keep in touch with reports on his progress. The bursary is intended for use on things related to school including books”. Jason plans to pursue studies in Finance.

Committee member Williams described the bursary as, “something we are doing just to show support and chart the course forward for local students”. He added, “We all benefited from Humber College and we want to pass on some of that special ‘Tallon love and goodness’ to future generations”.

There are at present over 150 Vincentian graduates of The Humber College Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning.