The Pact and Ways to Fulfill a Dream

The book I have chosen for the book analysis is “The Pact: Three Young Men Make A Promise And Fulfill A Dream” by Dr. Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, Rameck Hunt, and Lisa Frazier Page. This book is about three young African American doctors that grew up and faced many challenges in the city of Newark. Everyday they were surrounded with bad influences such drug dealers, drug addicts, robbers, and gang members who commited small-time crimes that cost them their lives. Living in a neighborhood like this does not promise you a chance to wake up every morning due to high levels of crime and violence. The three boys had a chaotic upbringing as each of them experienced many unfortunate family problems, unstable financial support, and constant hardships within the community. They would often get into trouble and would receive jail time. After realizing they wanted to change the way they lived, they all made a pact and promised to become doctors no matter what happens. Through adversity and perseverance, Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, and Rameck Hunt all made it out of ‘the hood’ together and are now living successful lives as doctors.

The Pact is an autobiography written by Dr. Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, and Rameck Hunt. Their positions in the book is very important because they portray their real life experiences in the book. Having the author of the book as the characters helps the reader fully comprehend what the character is really feeling in each chapter. In addition, this helps the reader develop a clear picture of what is happening in their minds. These are great ways the authors are communicating and telling their stories to their audience. The authors of the book is trying to inform us that anything is possible no matter how slim it may look. In the book, Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, and Rameck Hunt all had a troubled childhood involving many crimes in a violent infested neighborhood. As a group, they all pushed and motivated each other to change the way they are living and pursue a dream that seems nearly impossible. In the end, they accomplished their dream and became doctors.

George Sampson gained his dream for becoming a dentist when he was a child. At the age of 11, he had a set of crooked teeth and his mother decided to take him to the University of Medicine and Dentistry in Newark to get braces to help fix his smile. During his appointment, his curiosity aroused the dentist and as a result he started to explain the names and number of teeth and how to classify them. Also he told George all the tools he had and how to utilize them. This was when George started thinking of becoming a dentist.

George had a very hectic childhood. He was born in South Carolina and at the age of two his family moved to Newark. George was just a toddler when his parents divorced. He spent the first seven years of his life in the Stella Wright Housing Projects and moved out of the projects into the High Park Gardens after his mother saved enough money. Four years later, his mother married his brothers father, Heyward Mack. Throughout this marriage, George and his brother did not form a real bond with his father as the father-son relationship never developed. After six years, his stepfather packed up all of his belongings and left. George loved school as he always had his work done and joined any extracurricular activities his school had to offer. He attended Louis A. Spencer Elementary.

Sam was born at Beth Israel Hospital in Newark on January 19, 1973. He lived in the Dayton Street projects with his parents and four older siblings Kenneth, Junior, Roselene, and Fellease. Three years after, his younger brother was born. The steady pressure of trying to raise six children on blue-collar wages often created a household full of tension between his father and mother. The constant arguments and altercations between them eventually led to a divorce when Sam turned eleven. Even though his dad did not completely walk out of their lives, his familys’ situation became very difficult. His mother was never educated or worked so they had to go to welfare. Sam was doing things an eleven year old today would never do such as reading his mothers mail, making deposits at the bank, and helping to write money orders to pay for their bills. His older siblings moved out and started new families, but often had problems of their own. His mother had an open-door policy that allowed his cousins, uncles, and siblings to move in with them at different times when they had nowhere to go.

Throughout his childhood, Rameck lived with his mother and grandmother in which he calls Ma. Ma and Rameck became very close and would always give each other advice whenever he needs help. His mother, Arlene Hunt, was just seventeen, a junior in high school, when Rameck was born. Rameck was outstanding in school who always achieved good grades without much effort. In the second grade, he scored high enough on a placement test to be accepted into the Plainfield public-school system’s “gifted and talented” program. His father spent a lot of his years in jail, while his mom eventually fell to drugs.

Sam, George, and Rameck all met each other at University High. Throughout their years at University High, they all took the same Advanced Placement courses together. Rameck was fairly new to the school, as he was one of the new AP students who did not attend University High in seventh or eighth grade. At the time, George and Sam were already friends and Rameck started talking to them even though he was still closer to his friends from Plainfield. They became really close friends at the start of their junior year.

This whole pact started when their teacher told them about a recruiter from Seton Hall University making a presentation about the school and their programs. Their choices were to either attend the presentation or go to class. Neither of these options suited them so instead they skipped class and snuck into the gym. After a few minutes, a teacher caught them sneaking into the gym and they ended up in the presentation for Seton Hall University. During the presentation, George was intrigued by the information that the recruiter was telling them. The recruiter informed them about Seton Hall being more committed to training more minority students to help them introduce them to medicine as doctors. This would be done through a program that implemented free counseling and tutoring. The Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Plus Program was one of many initiatives under the Educational Opportunity Program created at Seton Hall in 1968. The EOP was intended to make higher education possible for poor students who are capable to succeed in college but are not prepared. The state included the Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Plus Program under the EOP in 1980 because a lack of minority students were becoming doctors. This program opened Georges eyes and realized this was an amazing opportunity that could not be passed off. After the presentation, he talked about the program to Sam and Rameck and eventually persuaded them to join. No hands were locked or shaken, the three boys just took each others word and continued on.

The road to college and the years after was a difficult one for all three of them. In high school they all got into ‘a ton’ of trouble and almost pursued a different career choice. Rameck received charges of attempted murder, while Sam got arrested for robbery and involvement of a gun. Fortunately, Rameck had his charges thrown out by the judge and Sam would stay out of jail as long as he did not get into anymore trouble and followed the terms of his probation. Rameck almost went for a career in rapping, but that was cut short after realizing it was going to take him nowhere.

The summer before their senior year, Rameck and Sam were the first Seton Hall students accepted into a new program designed to help minority students excel in medical school. Access Med was a joint program between the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Rutgers University. They decided to transfer to Rutgers for their senior year to be closer to the medical school as they spent day and night in those colleges. The beneficial thing about taking the medical-school courses early is that if they pass, Rameck and Sam would get into Robert Wood Johnson Medical School without having to complete the MCAT. The MCAT is a standardized test that medical schools use to determine who will get accepted. The qualifications for Access Med is maintaining a GPA of 3.2 on a 4.0 system over three years. Sam graduated with a GPA of 3.6, Rameck graduated with a 3.4, while George graduated with a 3.0. George became did not get accepted into Access Med and had to sign a letter of intent to enter dental school at the University of Medicine and Dentistry in Newark after graduation. This was the first time in years George was going to be alone, but Rameck and Sam constantly supported and helped George in his new school.

In the end, Rameck, Sam, and George all graduated medical school and went onto become successful and hard working doctors. Rameck and Sam both graduated from Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine, while George graduated from the University of Medicine and Dentistry in New Jersey. Sam, Rameck, and George all came from the crime infested city of Newark where drug dealers, drug addicts, robbers, and gang members roamed the streets causing trouble. There was countless obstacles and challenges they faced growing up, but with many helpful mentors and family members, the three boys grew up and fulfilled their dream.Their friendship together helped motivated and challenged them into becoming the successful doctors they now are today.