The Pact: Three Young Men Make a Promise and Fulfill a Dream

Jenkins, George; Davis, Sampson; Hunt, Rameck

3.94

3,443 ratings by Goodreads

9781565116511: The Pact: Three Young Men Make a Promise and Fulfill a Dream

ISBN 10: 1565116518 ISBN 13: 9781565116511

Publisher: HighBridge Audio, 2002

George Jenkins, Sampson Davis and Rameck Hunt were three African American kids living in the inner city of Newark, all from broken homes, all living amid poverty, crime, and drug abuse. Two served time in juvenile detention centers. They met in high school and together they made a pact: they would support each other for as long as it would take for them to become doctors. Through an affirmative action program, they enrolled at Seton Hall University's premed program, from which they graduated in 1995. In May 1999, they graduated with degrees in medicine and dentistry. The Pact is an extraordinary testament to the power of male friendship. Friendships among young men often revolved around taking risks, often unnecessary or even dangerous risks. This remarkable story teaches the power of friendship and proves the wisdom of Dr. Martin Luther King's proposition that amazing things happen when we "stand on the solid rock of brotherhood." The three supported each other through high school, college, and medical school. Their success, which was due to unwavering, mutual support, shows that young men can help each other avoid trouble and fulfill their dreams by using their strong friendship as a powerful antidote to the temptations and pitfalls of inner-city life.

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Review:

As teenagers from a rough part of Newark, New Jersey, Sampson Davis, Rameck Hunt, and George Jenkins had nothing special going for them except loving mothers (one of whom was a drug user) and above-average intelligence. Their first stroke of luck was testing into University High, one of Newark's three magnet high schools, and their second was finding each other. They were busy staying out of trouble (most of the time), and discovering the usual ways to skip class and do as little schoolwork as possible, when a recruitment presentation on Seton Hall University reignited George's childhood dream of becoming a dentist. The college was offering a tempting assistance package for minorities in its Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Plus Program. George convinced his two friends to go to college with him. They would help each other through. None of them would be allowed to drop out and be reabsorbed by the Newark streets.

Although this inspiring and easy-to-read book would be enjoyed by any teenager or educator, it seems perfect for minority youth, especially young men of junior high and high school age, who may lack more immediate role models. If the ordinary boys who made this pact could survive college and medical school by sticking together, then so can others. --Regina Marler

From the Back Cover:

Chosen by Essence to be among the forty most influential African Americans, the three doctors grew up in the streets of Newark, facing city life's temptations, pitfalls, even jail. But one day these three young men made a pact. They promised each other they would all become doctors, and stick it out together through the long, difficult journey to attaining that dream. Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, and Rameck Hunt are not only friends to this day - they are all doctors.

This is a story about the power of friendship. Of joining forces and beating the odds. A story about changing your life, and the lives of those you love the most...together.

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