JFCS has been proud to host the presentation of the Jeff and Phyllis Osbourn Scholarship at our annual MOSAIC dinner. Because MOSAIC 2021 is in a virtual format, the award is being presented virtually.
The Jeff and Phyllis Osbourn Scholarship Fund at the Legacy Foundation of Kentuckiana (formerly Jewish Hospital & St. Mary’s Foundation) recognizes an immigrant or refugee pursuing a career in nursing or other high-demand healthcare fields. The Osbourn Scholarship fits well at MOSAIC and with Jewish Family & Career Services because of our regionally recognized work in recredentialing and career laddering for refugees and immigrants in Greater Louisville.
Queensly Pat-Enike is the 2021 Jeff and Phyllis Osbourn Scholarship recipient. Here is Queensly’s story in her own words.
My name is Queensly Pat-Enike. I am from Nigeria. I moved to the United States in August 2016 on an F1 visa to pursue a college education in Nursing. It has been a very tough journey as the exchange rate went up four hundred and sixty naira to one American dollar. But because my family is very supportive of my dreams and goals, they have been taking out loans to help me through. This I am very grateful for.
I have always wanted to build the most reliable hospital in my country since I was 13 years old. This goal became evident while I was in the hospital, after I had my appendix removed. There were serious complications which were caused by the hospital’s negligence. These complications left an ugly scar in my stomach, that does not only remind me of how painful it was, but the goal/plan I have to make a difference. In the same space of time, some people died from the same complications because they couldn’t afford to pay more medical bills to resolve the complications. This continues till today because of the high rate of poverty. The lack of good and affordable hospital in Nigeria is not considered an urgent need because it does not affect the wealthy, in the sense that they can afford to fly out of the country for medical treatments.
I want to be a life saver. The health of the Nigerian citizens is a priority to me especially the poor. I believe in the betterment of my country Nigeria, and I know I can make a change health wise. Health issues limit a lot of Nigerians to how much they can do. I grew up in a poor neighborhood amidst the poor people where sickness leads to starvation and to death, especially when the sick person is the bread winner of the house. Building an affordable hospital, will help to reduce the death rate among the poor.
Also, I want to be an employer of labor. The rate of crime in Nigeria increases by the day because of the rate of unemployment in the youth circle. Most of the Nigerian youths are involved in robbery, kidnapping, and internet fraud in order to make a living. And when it is talked about, they blame it on unemployment. Building a hospital in Nigeria, will create employment for some youths, which I believe will reduce the rate of crimes and corruptions.
Jewish Family & Career Services is dedicated to empowering refugees and immigrants to pursue their dreams. Our dedicated Career Services staff assist refugees, immigrants and their families in returning to their former careers through document evaluation, recredentialing and recertification. We also help individuals explore new career options and expand opportunities to build strong careers.
Jewish Family & Career Services is proud to honor our MOSAIC Award recipients. These five individuals who call Louisville home have made significant contributions in their professions and our community. To date, JFCS has recognized almost 70 refugees, immigrants and first-generation Americans who make our community richer and stronger for their work. We are excited to have Neeli Bendapudi, Di Tran, Berta Weyenberg, Kaveh Zamanian and Bapion Ziba join the ranks of these remarkable individuals.
This is Neeli Bendapudi’s story.
Neeli Bendapudi was born in Visakhapatnam, India and came to the United States in 1986 to pursue her doctorate in Marketing at the University of Kansas. After earning her PhD, she went on to teach at Texas A&M University and The Ohio State University before returning to the University of Kansas in 2011 as the School of Business dean and Professor of Business. While there, she was promoted to Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor.
With impressive academic credentials and noteworthy business and healthcare sector experiences, Neeli moved to Louisville in 2018 to take on the role of President at the University of Louisville. She is the University’s first permanent female President and person of color to hold the position.
As a well-regarded academic researcher and professor, her work has been published in the Harvard Business Review, Journal of Marketing and featured in multiple national media outlets including the New York Times. She has been recognized with both university-level and national honors and awards for her teaching and for her dedication to community.
She has sat on publicly held and non-profit boards and is a former Leadership Foundation Fellow of the International Women’s Forum, selected as one of 27 women representing 18 countries for this prestigious honor.
In her career, she has fought for equity and inclusion and in her time at UofL, has transformed the University’s culture, infusing a renewed passion in the city and community. Neeli continues to call on the university community and the Louisville community at large to celebrate diversity and foster equity in order to achieve inclusion.
Like Neeli, JFCS respects the undeniable humanity of each person. This sentiment is one of our guiding values, called Kavod. Every day our staff serve clients and their families with Kavod because we believe that to truly serve all in Greater Louisville, we must first understand their strength and their story.
Learn more about our other MOSAIC Award Winners and about the services and values JFCS provides to expand possibilities for each person and every family in Greater Louisville.
Jewish Family & Career Services is proud to honor our MOSAIC Award recipients. These five individuals who call Louisville home have made significant contributions in their professions and our community. To date, JFCS has recognized almost 70 refugees, immigrants and first-generation Americans who make our community richer and stronger for their work. We are excited to have Neeli Bendapudi, Di Tran, Berta Weyenberg, Kaveh Zamanian and Bapion Ziba join the ranks of these remarkable individuals.
This is Kaveh Zamanian’s story.
Kaveh Zamanian came to the United States from Iran with his family in the midst of the revolution in search of a better life. Still a teenager, Kaveh used sports and music to connect to other kids his age, adapting to his new life in America quickly. His family settled in California and Kaveh went on to pursue his education and began a successful career as a clinical psychologist and psychoanalyst.
Kaveh met and married and his wife, Heather, a native of Louisville. Together they decided to move closer to her family – who have been in the area for four generations – making their home here in Louisville eleven years ago. Once in Louisville, Kaveh fell in love again – this time with bourbon. This was his catalyst to launch his own distillery as it sparked his passion for learning more about the tradition held so closely in Kentucky.
As a proud immigrant and American, Kaveh was inspired by the opportunity to elevate a product so thoroughly entrenched in Kentucky heritage that he took his career down a different path – a rabbit hole –establishing Rabbit Hole Distillery in 2012. As a newcomer to the industry, he quickly became part of the bourbon renaissance and the Kentucky Bourbon Trail which brings visitors from around the world.
More than elevating and expanding the possibilities of the industry in which he leads, near and dear to Kaveh’s heart are volunteer opportunities with agencies focused on refugee resettlement and serving those that are vulnerable in the community. JFCS is similarly passionate about expanding possibilities Louisville and about serving those in our community who need support and assistance the most.
Learn more about our other MOSAIC Award Winners and about the services and values JFCS provides to expand possibilities for each person and every family in Greater Louisville.
Jewish Family & Career Services is proud to honor our MOSAIC Award recipients. These five individuals who call Louisville home have made significant contributions in their professions and our community. To date, JFCS has recognized almost 70 refugees, immigrants and first-generation Americans who make our community richer and stronger for their work. We are excited to have Neeli Bendapudi, Di Tran, Berta Weyenberg, Kaveh Zamanian and Bapion Ziba join the ranks of these remarkable individuals.
This is Berta Weyenberg’s story.
Berta Weyenberg came to Louisville in December of 1996 through the United States lottery visa seeking freedom from the Cuban regime. She has worked for Jefferson County Public Schools for 24 years as the English as a Second Language Intake Center Coordinator and is a leading advocate in bringing international communities together.
In her role at JCPS, Berta is recognized as an essential supporter of students and families. She ensures every ESL child and every family is aware of the many educational, extracurricular and professional choices available to them. With more than 150 languages represented in the JCPS school system, if English is your second language, your educational journey begins with Berta.
Berta also manages Spanish social media for JCPS and uses those platforms to share valuable information with the Latinx community. Her volunteer activities are vast, and she feels that giving back to the community is an important part of who she is. She is recognized as a visionary leader, outstanding human being and proud Cuban American.
Berta enjoys making connections between people and their community – something JFCS is guided to do every day through our work and our values, specifically Kehilah.
Kehilah, or the connections that strengthen individuals and build community, is more than an organizational value for JFCS – it is the way in which we serve our clients each and every day. We connect clients and their families to area resources, to other community members and to new possibilities in order to empower them, encouraging them to learn and leverage their own individual strengths and talents to succeed. Like Berta, we believe in the strength of individuals to forge their own path and make their own informed decisions.
Learn more about our other MOSAIC Award Winners and about the services and values JFCS provides to expand possibilities for each person and every family in Greater Louisville.