September 25, 2023
Students in East Texas Baptist University’s Teague School of Nursing recently received the prestigious Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarship, generously awarded by the Jerry and Jack Cargill family in partnership with East Texas Baptist University. The ETBU nursing program represents 12 of the 18 local students who were honored in a ceremony at the Marshall Grand on Thursday.
ETBU students Alison Carrion, Brittany Denton, Ta’Lena Johnson, Meleni Luviano, Bailey Munch, Noah Pecory, Abigail Powell, Meredith Salazar, Angela Sanchez, Kennedy Tucker, and Brianna Younger were each awarded a Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarship. A shared aspiration drives the students who were honored: to make a profound impact on the healthcare industry through their nursing careers.
“Since we began the Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarship initiative in 2002, we have given away 106 scholarships,” philanthropist and scholarship donor Jerry Cargill said. “Each year we’ll have more scholarships, and our hope is that in five years we’ll hit our 200th scholarship. I hope all you future nurses will think about the nurses that came before you and the ones that will come after you, and I hope that gives you the confidence and courage to build on their determination, kindness, and professionalism.”
Jerry and his brother Jack were deeply moved by the exceptional care provided to their mother, Polly Cargill, by the dedicated nurses at Good Shepherd Marshall Hospital. In her memory and to express their gratitude for the support their family received during that challenging period, the Cargill brothers established the Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarship fund. The initiative is designed to empower students in East Texas, fostering their growth into skilled and compassionate nurses while honoring their mother's enduring legacy.
This year commemorates the 21st anniversary of the Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarship, an initiative that has extended financial support to now more than 100 nursing students hailing from various schools within the East Texas region. In recent years, these scholarship awardees have come together to receive recognition from both their educational institutions and the gracious founders of the scholarship.
Jerry and Jack awarded a special scholarship this year to ETBU junior nursing major Joseph Maique in honor of former nurse and a longtime friend of the Cargill Family, the late Patty Smith. Patty’s husband Gerry and the rest of the Smith family were able to view the ceremony virtually and celebrate her legacy with the awarding of the scholarship to Maique.
“I feel so humbled and grateful,” Maique said. “This will be a huge blessing and I’m honored to have received this scholarship. There’s so much ahead of me, but I know that God has given me this mission, this calling to the nursing profession, and I’m excited to take it on.”
During the ceremony, ETBU Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Thomas Sanders offered a charge to the scholarship recipients and shared the story of the ten lepers healed by Jesus in Luke 17.
“Jesus did not heal people just to make them well,” Dr. Sanders said. “He healed them because it was the Father’s will. Whatever difficult thing God calls you to do in a hospital setting, or in a mission setting, or wherever He calls you to serve—in those difficult times I hope you’ll think about your calling and remember that you’re in God’s hands and He is in control.”