Support for Honors Scholars ENDOWED SCHOLARSHIPS
DR. CAROLINE HONCULADA AND HER HUSBAND, DR. ALLAN HONCULADA, fund scholarships in the USF Honors College because they know first-hand the true value of philanthropy and the life-changing power of education. From early on as a child in the Philippines, Caroline Honculada always had a passion for medicine. But as one of seven children, she knew that funding her way through medical school would not be easy. “My father encouraged me to consider nursing because it would be more realistic to afford that schooling,” says Honculada, “but I truly had a calling to be a doctor.” She worked hard and pursued scholarships that allowed her to graduate with her Doctor of Medicine degree. She and her husband migrated to America to pursue their careers in healthcare. “It was difficult at first,” she says. “When we initially got to the United States we were lucky to have relatives in Chicago who let us stay with them. We worked in factories and grocery stores while we waited to be accepted into a program here. We know how it feels to be poor and the strength that kept us going was our education.” Now both successful doctors in Winter Haven, FL (Caroline Honculada is a Gastroenterologist and Allan Honculada is a Pain Management specialist) the couple funds the Honculada Family Endowed Scholarship in the USF Honors College. This scholarship helps motivated students in the Honors College who need financial support. “We want to help motivated students who have big dreams of success and who take education seriously,” says Honculada. “It brings us great joy as donors to see these scholars pursue and live out their dreams.” The Honculadas have two sons, one currently in the USF Honors College and one who recently
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graduated. “It is important in our culture to support a close-knit community,” says Honculada. “We’ve found through our children’s experiences that the USF Honors College is such a place, where talented students have vast opportunities to learn and grow and the faculty and staff go the extra mile to make sure that their students succeed.” She and her husband regularly receive thank you letters from their recipients, and Honculada specifically remembers one meeting with a student who put into words why it is so important to give back. “We were at a lunch seated next to a young man who was a recipient of our scholarship,” she says. “He is in medical school now and told me that someday he’s going to be successful like me and donate back to those pursuing their education. That really felt good.”
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We want to help motivated students who have big dreams of success and who take education seriously.” – Dr. Caroline Honculada, MD