John Chamberlin Refugee Education Fund
Over the past ten years 30 refugees, from
14 countries, received over $82,000 in scholarships from the John Chamberlin
Refugee Education Fund. In spring 2010 the Fund made its final awards. This
year’s recipients included refugees from Burma, Colombia, Nicaragua, and
Ethiopia.
This education fund was established in memory of John
Chamberlin, a former English professor at Wilfrid
Laurier University, who died in 1999. John was passionate about helping refugees pursue training or education that would lead
to meaningful and fulfilling work in Canada.
Mennonite Foundation of Canada administered the fund while a
local committee (which included some refugees) interviewed and selected the
recipients. Since 2001, scholarships
have gone to Waterloo Region residents for studies and qualifying
exams in nursing, human resources, social work, respiratory therapy, radiation
technology, dentistry, medicine, community justice, architecture, and other
areas.
The fund was supported by an initial grant
from Anna Hemmendinger, the widow of John Chamberlin, and received gifts from many
other generous donors in the Kitchener-Waterloo community. Initially the plan
was to offer awards for only five years, but—due to generous giving—the awards were
offered for an additional five years.
The John Chamberlin Refugee Education Fund offered its final awards in 2010. Applications are no longer accepted for scholarships.