Michelle Wilson-Reynolds, Capital and Credit Financial Group senior vice-president of group marketing and corporate affairs, has her hands full with scholarship awardees Tanto Campbell (left) and Shacurie Wilson. - Contributed

Shacurie Wilson and Tanto Campbell have got game. Though the two budding sportsmen have faced different challenges, their worlds converge in a tale of sheer will and unflappable courage. Wilson and Campbell, recipients of Capital and Credit Financial Group's (CCFG) scholarship awards, said corporate sponsorship and a combination of guts and grit have transformed their lives.

"I benefited significantly from the sponsors, as well as their mentorship, and I think I am a more rounded individual today," said Wilson in an interview at the institution's St Lucia Avenue, New Kingston, office on Friday.

"My mother, who was a single parent, was only a vendor, so she didn't have it to finance me and my two sisters," lamented Wilson.

Grounded in humility

He was among three members of the St George's College cricket team who qualified for sponsorship. His experiences have been defined by challenges but his philosophy - grounded in humility - has helped him redefine his own boundaries. He passed eight CXC subjects but said he could have done better had he not faced financial and health woes.

"I was diagnosed with anxiety neurosis, which set me back a little and my mother didn't have it to finance me, so my results weren't as expected. But because I was dedicated, I managed to pull through," Wilson told The Gleaner.

In order to balance the game with his studies, his nights were punctuated by short naps.

"What determines success in school is results, so I spent quality time preparing for my exams so that I could reap the benefits at the end," he declared.

The scholarship funded a four-year first degree at the University of Technology, Jamaica, where he was awarded second-class honours. He is now the assistant manager at Chang's Trading Company.

Struggle and triumph

Campbell, too, got the boost he needed when CCFG came on board. He was awarded a scholarship because of his achievements in wheelchair basketball. Reared at the Sir John Golding Rehabilitation Centre from age five, his is a story of struggle and triumph.

"I had it hard because while I was at the institution, I used to see persons taking their children for a walk and buying goodies, which I didn't have because my mother was a single parent who is also disabled," lamented Campbell.

He said he tries to balance the three sports he plays - athletics, cricket and wheelchair basketball - with academics by studying at night for hours.

"It's hectic to be balancing both school and sports but because I want good, I am fighting it," Campbell said.

The Papine High graduate has three CXC passes and a certificate in information technology.

The Special Olympian, who has won eight medals - including four gold in athletics, is now focusing more on the books, hoping to garner more academic accolades to add more professional polish to an already impressive résumé.

"Not until I get my bachelor's degree will I feel like I am trying and I will do whatever it takes to reach that level," he stated.

Campbell, whose dream of becoming a pilot was dashed because of a hand disability, now has his sights set on winning the numbers game as an accountant.

Life's still fulfilling

"When I see others who are disabled as well, I know that I am not by myself and life can still be what I want it to be," he stated.

Other persons aged 11 to 24 will also benefit from Capital and Credit's sponsorship, which is ongoing, said Michelle Wilson-Reynolds, senior vice-president of group marketing and corporate affairs. She also noted that serious financial need was one of the criteria.

"Our plan to help students is as far as managing the academic performance of the current students so that when they graduate, we replace them with new people," Wilson-Reynolds informed The Gleaner. "We could have the scholarship and give it to students who have excel academically, even though they are not in need, but we don't do it like that, we make sure the persons need help."

Since 1996, Capital and Credit has sought to promote excellence in education through its scholarship programmes, which provide assistance to Jamaican students to pursue studies at the secondary and tertiary levels. Thirty-four scholarships valued at more than $2.6 million were awarded for the 2008-2009 academic year.

nadisha.hunter@gleanerjm.com