Non-profit organization RayAsta Foundation recently handed over science materials and laboratory experiments to the St. Marys Primary School (SMP) in memory of the late Raymond Astaphan.
The Foundation was founded in 2021 in memory of Raymond Jonathon Astaphan, the third son of Jennifer L. and Reginald A. Astaphan.
Raymond was a young medical student, who was eighteen months away from graduation with the intention to specialize in neurology. He had completed his first degree in Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Toronto in 2012. Unfortunately, his life was taken in a vehicular collision in Miami on May 28, 2015, at a time when he was finalizing electives to begin his rotation at St. John’s Hospital in New York.
With a strong desire to leave a legacy in Raymond’s name, his mother started the RayAsta Foundation. A foundation, registered in Dominica that will focus on a specific area of neuroscience and neurology, by providing state-of-the-art, high-quality ancillary services for stroke patients in Dominica and the region.
The Foundation offers support through care, rehabilitation services, training, and education for persons in the community affected by stroke by delivering hope through compassion, transparency, and generosity.
On Monday, January 9, Jennifer Astaphan said at the ceremony that the foundation will focus on the subject of science in schools previously attended by Raymond.
“In his memory we have set up this foundation. It’s primarily focused on persons with stroke but what we hope to encourage in the schools that he attended both SMP and St. Marys Academy (SMA) is to encourage your interest in science and I hope several of you will go on to become…young scientists because he did neuroscience and he wanted to be a neurologist,” she said
She hopes students will be motivated and think about what they are going to be when they grow up and that this contribution will begin to stimulate their interest in science.
“I wish you all the best but the foundation will continue to partner with the two schools that Raymond attended to assist all the little boys who come here. Our contribution is not to one person but to ensure that it benefits a wide cross-section of this population,” Astaphan expressed.
A dedication of the St. Mary’s Primary School’s Science Lab was also conducted at the ceremony.
According to their website, the foundation stated that Dominica does not offer formal programs specifically targeted to serve those affected by sudden stroke and the outcomes of patients are therefore limited, and full recovery is usually marginal. They noted that often, patients travel to other facilities regionally and internationally for medical services, creating significant outflows of foreign currency from Dominica.
The guiding vision is to create a center of excellence and deliver quality services for stroke patients—The RayAsta Stroke & Rehabilitation Center–that will be renowned locally and regionally for its superior medical service.
Great job wishing them all the success and hope students will participate. For the good of the future.