Jamaica-born entrepreneur Phillip Wong, founder and CEO of South Florida’s Deltana Enterprises, will be the guest speaker at the second staging of St George’s College’s lecture series, ‘Pioneers of Tomorrow: A Knight’s Dialogue’, which takes place next Tuesday (September 25).

Wong continues to be very generous to his alma mater, donating school buses, erecting buildings, laying tennis courts, granting scholarships and donating the sign at the entrance that reads ‘The Entry to Excellence’.

He graduated from St George’s in 1959, and his classmates include Professor Trevor Munroe, media boss Stephen Hill, and broadcaster Ronnie Thwaites.

The importance of education in personal development is dear to his heart, and at any given opportunity, he will attribute any success he has had to the grounding St George’s gave him as a boy. This, in part, explains his benevolence to St George’s College and the pleasure it gives to see its graduates go on to achieve good things and contribute to the betterment of Jamaica. 

Before granting scholarships, Phillip Wong likes to sit down and talk with students and their parents, get to know them, and gain an insight into their character.

A student he is particularly proud of is Jezeel Martin, who went on to become a notable and successful lawyer. Wong’s scholarship saw a thirteen-year-old Jezeel from a single-parent home in a crime-ridden neighbourhood go on to complete his studies at St. George’s. He then went on to study law at UWI, having been accepted to study at Columbia University, but couldn’t afford the fees there at the time. After graduating from UWI, he passed the bar and then worked at the Jamaican law firm Nunes, Schofield, De Leon. where he was mentored by Trevor De Leon. Martin moved on to join Myers, Fletcher & Gordon and later became one of its leading negotiators with international clients. He is looking to enter the corporate world in the United States after working with Tony Wong of General Foods.

Phillip keeps a close eye on Jezeel Martin’s career development and is immensely proud of his accomplishments.

Speaking with Our Today from Florida, Wong said of St George’s College, “It gave so much to me, and I cherish my school days there. I am very impressed by the principal of St George’s, Margaret Campbell, and what she has built there. Besides being a tremendous teacher, she is a very smart and good person. She is a role model for youngsters.”

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Phillip Wong makes donations to St George’s regularly and is a significant contributor to the Endowment Fund.

“There are five areas that I would like to help St George’s with, and they are : 

1. Upgrade the salaries of the principal and the 78 teachers 

2. A fifth of the sum of my monetary contributions should go to the maintenance of the school buildings.

3. Computers and tech for the students

4. Sports equipment and training

5. Help new incoming students who are needy and bright. Grant scholarships to existing students as well.“

Of Phillip Wong, Jezeel Martin said: “He has been driven by a spirit of philanthropy, making a difference in the lives of those who have not known good fortune.”