Tucked away in the lower level of the VCU Health Sciences Library, past darkened rows of medical textbooks and leather-bound journals, the collaboration room is cozy and familiar to Evelyn Gomez.  

The library, located on 12th Street in the heart of the MCV Campus, is Evelyn’s home away from home, and this quiet room in the basement, with its pops of fuchsia on the walls and comfortable chairs, is her sanctuary. 

It’s here that Evelyn, 33, finds moments to decompress or focus, often after a full day of clinical rotations around the campus and before her commute home to Northern Virginia — two hours on a good day. 

Evelyn is a Friends of VCU Libraries Scholarship recipient, one of two recipients for the 2024-25 school year and the second student from the MCV Campus. Established in 2018 and first awarded in 2021, the endowment provides two scholarships to students on the MCV and Monroe Park campuses.

At roughly $150,000 now, library organizers hope to grow the endowed fund to at least $200,000 so those gifts can continue — and even grow.  

Stephanie L. Holt, past president of Friends of VCU Libraries and one of the original donors to the scholarship fund, explained that the scholarship’s intrinsic value lies in its accessibility. 

“When you give to the library, you’re giving to all VCU students, not just those at a certain school or college or degree program,” she said. “Scholarships are so important because we know many students work extra jobs and many of them are first-generation college students.” 

“The libraries are places that all students can utilize, not just to study but to find comradery or just decompress,” Holt added. “Gifts to the library help the entire student body and that’s so important for the VCU community.” 

Fulltime student, fulltime Mom

Last month, as the library’s main floor hummed with health sciences students in various colored scrubs looking for a comfortable spot to eat lunch or open their laptops, Evelyn, 33, chatted easily about her journey.  

Warm and friendly, she has an infectious laugh that accentuates stories about life with her boyfriend, their sports-loving son, 7, and their sweet and sassy 2-year-old daughter.

An Alexandria resident, Evelyn commutes to the MCV Campus three days each week, usually leaving her house around 5:30 a.m. After a full day, if all goes well, she’s home by 7 p.m. in time to help with nightly baths and bedtime stories.

After graduating from high school in 2010, Evelyn put college on hold to take care of her mother, who was diagnosed with the first of two bouts of breast cancer. As the oldest of five children, Evelyn’s life pivoted. She became a caregiver to not just her mother, but her younger siblings. She made sure they got to school in the mornings. She drove her mother to doctors’ appointments and served as her interpreter, navigating unfamiliar medical territory that neither had ever experienced.  

“It was hard — being a young adult, I wanted to party and have some fun, but I had to take care of responsibilities and help my mom,” Evelyn said. 

But during those doctors’ visits, Evelyn observed the health care professionals caring for her mother. She had once entertained the idea of becoming a nurse — even took a high school LPN course — but ultimately became fascinated with radiology as it pertained to treating breast cancer. The professionals in her mother’s case were caring and genuine, she said, and suddenly she found a calling.   

“When I went with my mom, I got to witness what radiography was really like, especially in the mammography field and I knew that’s what I wanted to do,” Evelyn said.   

She enrolled in a local community college. For the next decade, Evelyn juggled being a student and a caregiver to her siblings and her mother, who was diagnosed with breast cancer a second time. 

She didn’t give up, even when she could only take one course at a time because it was all she could afford.

Upon earning her associate degree, Evelyn sought out VCU as a next step because it offers a bachelor’s degree in clinical radiation sciences within the VCU College of Health Professions.

Now, she’s looking toward the future. She wants to work in Northern Virginia and help women like her mother. 

“It’s a way for me to give back to my mom and my community,” she said.  

The scholarship, she added, was a surprise. The funds helped pay for coursework as well as a unique radiography study abroad opportunity. Evelyn said she learned of the scholarship while searching the RAMS Scholarship Hub, an online collection of scholarships available to VCU students. She applied, noting in her application that utilizing the library nearly every day during a challenging sophomore year was a “major influence” on her studies.

Though she was shocked to be named a recipient, “I was very thankful,” she said. “It helped with my financial burden and alleviated some of that pressure because I’m paying for school myself.”

Her commute days are long. But pulling into her driveway at night and seeing happy little faces peering out from her front door makes it all worthwhile. 

“My kids are helping me push through,” she said, grinning. “Education is a priority and I keep telling myself that in the end, it’s going to be worth it.” 

If you are interested in supporting the Friends of VCU Libraries scholarship, contact Kelly Gotschalk, senior director of development, at kjgotschalk@vcu.edu or 804-827-1163 

Article originally published by the MCV Foundation.