March 28, 2024

INFO 10

THE TRUTH IN BLACK AND WHITE

After years of rejection

Javon Rose now on the road to realising his dream of becoming a Forensic Technician

By Naomi Marshall

Javon Rose



“Yes, sometimes you may have difficulties but difficulties are there to make you stronger.” Those are the encouraging words of Javon Rose, a youth striving to break the chain of poverty in his family.
Rose was born in Kwakwani, Upper Demerara/Berbice in 1994. However, when his parents got divorced in 2003, he moved to Linden with his mother and two younger siblings.
There he attended the Watooka Day Primary School and enjoyed swimming, playing cricket, outdoor games, board games and watching animations. He also studied at the Christianburg Wismar Secondary School. From a young age, Rose’s main passion was to become a medical personnel.
After completing his secondary education in 2010, Rose was accepted into the Social Impact Amelioration Program (SIMAP), a structural adjustment programme which allowed him to do a six-month laboratory technician training at the Linden Hospital Complex.
Upon completing the programme, Rose continuously sent applications to the hospital seeking to be permanently employed as a lab assistant, unfortunately, vacancy never existed.
From 2013 to 2018, the young man applied for the Clinical and Technical Training Programme carried out by the Government of Guyana, which offers training for persons hoping to become Medical Laboratory Technician, Pharmacy Assistant, Environmental Health Assistant and X-Ray Technician, amongst others, but he never got a response.
During this period Rose had to find alternative ways to earn money to support is single parent mother, as such he would do work in the community such as mowing land, and guarding.
Though challenging, the youth, who describes himself as a reserved, plain spoken and principled, kept pushing and remained hopeful.
In 2019, he would apply again to be a part of the Clinical and Technical Training Programme to become a Medical Laboratory Technician. This time, he received a call informing him that his application was misplaced, however, there was a spot for him to become a Pharmacy Assistant.
The Lindener instantly grabbed the opportunity and has been looking forward to having a stable job since then.
“Pharmacy was a whole new settings and learning experience for me because I never did chemistry. At times I use to find myself just sailing through class because I did not have that foundation but I would go home and do my research. I overcome it with the help of friends,” he expressed.
When asked about what motivates him, the 27-year-old told this newspaper that although he gets frustrated at times, the thought of making a better life for his mother, younger siblings and nephew inspires him to keep “striving for greatness.”
“It was very hard growing up and looking at my mom motivates me because I am tired of seeing her struggling. I’m tired of seeing her struggle and I also have a nephew with mild Autism spectrum disorder. So just looking at them I know that I have to make life better for them so that is why I keep pushing,” the youth shared.
In November 2021, Rose will graduate from the Clinical and Technical Training Programme, becoming a certified Pharmacy Assistant and will serve the government.
“I am happy for the job right now so that I can begin to make life easy for myself and family because I do not want my nephew to grow up and have to punish like we did. This government job is a big dream for me,” he said.
Nevertheless, Rose noted that he will not stop at being a Pharmacy Assistant but will use it as a stepping stone for greater dreams of elevating his self in the medical arena. Rose has his mind set on becoming a Forensic Technician to help solve crimes in Guyana.
Rose’s advice to youths is: “From you have ambition you can make it. Whatever your goal is, go for it and do not let anybody try to discourage you from doing what you love. Yes, sometimes you might have difficulties but difficulties are there to make you stronger. Also I would advise them to say a little prayer before anything that you do and you must be humble.”