NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Fifty years ago, the PACE program evolved when support was offered to an 11-year-old who, against her own choice, had moved from childhood to motherhood.
Andrea Archer, one of the founders and a former social worker and former deputy permanent secretary at the Ministry of Health, said: “No longer able to continue her education in regular school, the PACE program was there to help support her.
The PACE program offers teen mothers an important second chance. PACE (Providing Access to Continued Education) worked with social services, community clinics, volunteers and others to provide life skills and instruction to these teen mothers with the aim for them to finish their high school education.
A significant contributor to the program and the PACE Foundation was the late Alelia Adderley, fondly called “Leila”, who for the past two decades was instrumental in strengthening the PACE program. Adderley also helped to establish the PACE Foundation in 2017 with charter president Sonia Brown, an engineer by profession and member of Zonta.
According to Archer, “Alelia was a nurse in the office of Dr David Sands and had joined the school welfare program as a social worker. She was a coordinator with the PACE program and she took pride in what she did.
“She loved children and there was nothing she wouldn’t teach the girls. She also worked with the adolescent clinic with Dr [Merceline] Regis-Dahl and Dr Timothy McCartney at the psychology clinic.”
On October 24, 2021, Adderley passed away after a two-year illness. She is being remembered as an ardent advocate and champion for humanity and social justice who was respected for her ability to obtain resources — people and finances — with integrity.
Dr Mildred Hall-Watson, also a founding member of the PACE Foundation who had served as vice-president for many years, knew Adderley well.
“Alelia was the nurse and social service coordinator for the program. As the nurse director, she was a force to reckon with but her care and concern for her young pregnant females were palpable,” said Hall-Watson.
“It was evident that she wanted the best for them. She got respect but always showed respect, something many of her young charges didn’t get in many other places.”
Rotarian, businessman and board member Felix N Stubbs said: “Alelia was one of the most gentle and caring persons I’ve met. I was inspired by her devotion to the PACE Foundation and her willingness to do all she possibly could to enhance the lives of the young girls who passed through the program. More importantly, she continued to follow their progress long after they moved on, even as her failing health made it more difficult to do so.”
Brown added: “What made her most impactful was the fact that she was multidimensional. The most endearing of her qualities was her sharp wit and sharp tongue, doling out many of her ‘Alelia-isms’ with an infectious smile.”
Some of her memorable ‘ism’s included “You don’t need to be in the papers or be on TV to be a celebrity” and “Never take no for an answer”.
Hall-Watson said: “When Alelia was no longer a director but a founding member and treasurer/ treasurer emeritus of the board, her energy and commitment did not change and her contributions are lasting.
“Her dedication and spirit will always be with us and I feel privileged to have worked with her.”
Brown stated: “In some ways, your success in life is revealed by the number of people that line up to thank you when you die. It is revealed by the overflowing of gratitude and love, expressed by the people whose lives you have touched, in ways that even you may not understand.”
For more information on the PACE Foundation, please visit www.pacebahamas.com.
To view its 50th Anniversary video clip, visit https://bit.ly/3pxlqIh.
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