Health & Environment

Student Lands Scholarship From His Hospital Bed

Texas A&M University student Steven Brooke pursued an opportunity to serve, even though he was hospitalized at the time.
By Lesley Henton, Texas A&M Marketing & Communications September 8, 2016

Scholarship winner Steven Brooke
Scholarship winner Steven Brooke

Providing clean water to those in need is so important to Texas A&M University student Steven Brooke that he pursued an opportunity to serve, even though he was hospitalized at the time.

That opportunity was provided by SSC Services for Education, the university’s facilities services provider and a division of Compass Group, Weathermatic, the university’s irrigation system provider, and Living Water International, a Christian non-profit organization.

The scholarship they provided will allow Brooke to travel to León, Nicaragua to participate in a project to bring fresh water to a nearby village.

Brooke, a senior international studies major from Austin had nearly completed his application, due April 30, but on April 28 he was in a car accident, suffering serious injuries and landing in the intensive care unit.

“I fractured both my skull and jaw, and as a result of the trauma, had to undergo surgery to relieve an epidural and subdural hematoma,” he explains.

But in spite of his injuries and the fact he’d missed the deadline, Brooke was determined to fulfill his goal.

“While I was still in the ICU, I remembered that I had missed the deadline and my family members encouraged me to write an email explaining my situation. Fortunately, I was given an extension given my circumstances, and was able to put the finishing touches on my application.”

Brooke spent two weeks in the hospital and rehabilitation, and recovered at home for the rest of the summer. “I am happy to say that I am in very good health and feel grateful for all of the progress I have made over the past few months,” he notes.

(L-R) SSC President Seth Ferriell, Steven Brooke and Weathermatic Executive Vice President Brodie Bruner
(L-R) SSC President Seth Ferriell, Steven Brooke and Weathermatic Executive Vice President Brodie Bruner

SSC officials say they received over 80 applications and based on their set criteria, chose Brooke. Come October, Brooke will join Weathermatic professionals and Compass Group executives in travelling to Nicaragua to witness and assist in drilling a fresh-water well.

“The center of the partnership between SSC and Texas A&M is the student,” says SSC President Seth Ferriell. “We are glad to have opportunities through the work we do in facilities to support the mission of scholarship and student achievement while simultaneously improving the sustainability and appearance levels of the university.”

The trip opportunity, paid for by SSC, came about through the campus-wide landscape water conservation program which includes upgrading the irrigation timers to a cloud-based control system. “This system is weather-based and scheduled to save an incredible amount of water every year. Beyond making the campus more sustainable, the savings will be shared by giving clean water to the people of León,” notes Ferriell.

The scholarship was officially presented to Brooke at the SSC Facilities building in College Station. There Brooke told attendees, “I’m really beyond excited and humble to be able to participate in this program, especially given the circumstances it took to get here. I think this will be a really good learning opportunity for me. To be able to collaborate with Weathermatic and build relationships with the people of Nicaragua will be an amazing thing.”

Media contact: Lesley Henton, Texas A&M Division of Marketing & Communications.

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