September 21, 2009

Both Jammie Thomas and Adetutu Arowolo feel they’ve received important opportunities to make a commitment to healthcare. They’ll be supported in their heartfelt endeavors by the Friends of Dr. W.F. Willoughby, who throw their legendary Garden Party each year in order to fund scholarships for promising young healthcare students.

The Garden Party, now in its 56th year, has been raising scholarship money for African and African American students in training programs at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center since 1986. This year, both a nursing student and a radiology student will receive scholarships. Englewood’s commitment to the community is strengthened by its centers for teaching and learning, which help ensure that every aspect of the Medical Center is at the cutting edge of medicine. Award-winning nursing sets the standards for nursing students and radiology students are trained at the highest level of technology.  

Jammie Thomas, 24, is in her second and final year of radiology school at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center’s School of Radiography. Ranked among the best in the region, the program provides hands-on experience throughout the entire course of the student’s study.  Jammie, who grew up in Englewood, returned to the area after doing her undergraduate studies at the High Tech Institute in Florida. 

Jammie was always interested in the medical field.  “Even as a child,” she said, “I wanted to be a pediatrician, and then a pediatric nurse.” While Jammie was completing her externship as a medical assistant at a doctor’s office, several patients, noting Jammie’s interest in continuing her medical education, brought to her attention the current need for x-ray technicians. Her first year was a struggle. “Clinically, hands-on, I had it – I really got it. But academically, I wasn’t focused,” Jammie explains. “But when I was given a second chance I really worked hard academically as well, and it’s paying off.  The experience has allowed me to become completely focused on what I want to do – I eat, breathe, and sleep radiology.  I can’t see myself anywhere else.”
 
After graduation, Jammie, who works part time at Englewood Hospital as an EKG technician, would like to continue to work at the hospital as an x-ray technician, perhaps getting into a specialty with interventional radiology or mammography. She is joined in her medical pursuits by members of her family, including her mother, who is in school for nursing, and her sister, who is studying forensics. 

Adetutu Arowolo came from Nigeria specifically to get the best medical education possible. Knowing, she said, that she would be able to have access to the best professors and the best equipment, she followed in the footsteps of her brother, who also studied at Ramapo College. Adetutu is in her third year of nursing school at Ramapo and begins her clinical training this fall.

“Growing up in Nigeria, I passed through some things in life that made me wish I could have helped, made me wish I had medical training,” shared Adetutu. “The healthcare in Nigeria is very bad – even just a few months ago, I lost someone close to me just to malaria.” The chance to study in the U.S. means everything to her, she says, and she is incredibly grateful to have been given the opportunity to be here. She is on full scholarship, and so the Friends’ scholarship means a lot to her because it will go back to the college, perhaps allowing another student to receive a scholarship. “I do community service to try and give something back to this country,” Adetutu says, “and when I am old, I hope to fund others for scholarships, God willing.”

She plans to specialize in pediatrics because of her love for children. After completing her studies, she plans to gain more field experience before eventually returning to Lagos to open a clinic. 

For more than fifty years, the Friends of Dr. W.F. Willoughby have dedicated themselves upholding the memory and legacy of Dr. Willoughby, a physician remembered not only for his skill, but for his big heart and his commitment to inclusive, humanitarian care. The highlight of the Friends’ service each year is the Garden Party, known for its stylish, committed, and giving crowd.

“Englewood is a community hospital, and we’re proud to bring this full circle. This is a community that truly enjoys giving back,” said Jeanne Hopewell, who succeeded Maria C. Davis, founder of the Friends, as president of the association in 1983.

The Garden Party will be held in the auditorium of the Learning Center at the Medical Center on Sunday, October 11 at 4 pm. Guests will be treated to a concert from legendary tenor saxophonist Houston Person, who will perform with the Houston Person Quartet. The world-renowned musician, heralded for his spectacular command of tone, has become synonymous with the Garden Party and draws a truly joyous crowd every year.

For more information about the Garden Party and to reserve a seat, call 201-567-3961.  Advance reservations are requested, preferably by September 25. The mailing address for reservations and donations is: 56th Annual Garden Party, Friends of Dr. W.F. Willoughby, 335 Shepard Avenue, Englewood, NJ 07631. The cost per person is $50 (Sponsor), $45 (Patron), $35 (Friend), $20 (Performance Only), $5 (Student). All checks should be made payable to the Friends of Dr. W.F. Willoughby.
The Learning Center is located at the north end of the campus of Englewood Hospital and Medical Center, 350 Engle St, Englewood, NJ. Complimentary parking will be available in the employee garage. Directions to the Medical Center are available at www.englewoodhospital.com or by calling 201-894-3000 and asking for the directions line.