A Legacy Takes Root at Cave Hill
August 26, 2026
Caption (L-R): Linton Arneaud lecturer at UWI, Roseanna Tudor Operations Manager of the BCD, Kerryann Ifill Human Rights Commissioner, Linnell Nurse mother of Kregg Nurse, Patricia Padmore-Blackman BCD President, Gaylene Mohammed, BCD Finance Officer and Ricky Nurse brother of Kregg Nurse with the planted Shaddock tree.
Nearly three decades after Kregg Nurse’s fighting spirit challenged perceptions of disability, his legacy is being memorialised with the planting of a shaddock tree on the grounds of The University of the West Indies (The UWI) Cave Hill Campus.
It was planted by the Barbados Council for the Disabled (BCD) near the Faculty of Medical Sciences, as part of the organisation’s 50th anniversary celebrations under the theme, “BCD 50: Honouring the Struggle, Igniting the Future.”
Kregg, who lived with muscular dystrophy, rose above adversity and graduated from Cave Hill in 1997 with honours in accounting. He subsequently worked at Ernst & Young and died in 2004 at the age of 27.
For those who knew him, however, Kregg’s story extended beyond his academic and professional achievements.
The Most Honourable Kerryann Ifill, Human Rights Commissioner and a close friend and schoolmate, recalled his resilience as a defining part of his character. The two attended school together from Second Form through Sixth Form.
“Kregg’s strength, his resilience was an everyday thing for me,” Ifill said. “We were friends not because of our disability but because of Kregg’s beautiful…spirit,” said Ifill who lost her sight at the age of four and later became the first blind person to graduate from The UWI, Cave Hill.
She added that Kregg did not allow perceived limitations to determine how he lived.
Kregg’s brother Ricky Nurse recalled his sibling’s resolve to participate fully in life despite the barriers he faced. He remembered Kregg travelling to England for the Cricket World Cup semi-final and final, attending Trinidad Carnival and returning home from a fete on the back of a pickup truck.
“So, there was that social balance,” Nurse said. “[In addition] there was the academic side, the academic pursuit. He was always very passionate about that whether it be primary school level, secondary school, or university.”
Nurse reflected on the attitudes towards disability during his brother’s lifetime, when people with disabilities were often shunted to the margins. He noted Barbados has since made progress towards greater inclusion.
Kregg’s legacy continues through the Kregg Nurse Memorial Scholarship, which provides assistance and encouragement to persons with disabilities pursuing educational advancement.
BCD President Patricia Padmore-Blackman said the scholarship and the tree were reminders of the importance of inclusion.
“Today we recognise him for who he was. Though he left us at a young age, his memory still lives on with us,” she said, adding that his life offered an example for others to follow.
Lecturer in the Department of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Dr. Linton Arneaud commenting on the significance of the shaddock, or Citrus maxima, said it was an ancestor of the grapefruit and described it as a symbol of resilience.
He said the tree’s ability to endure and thrive despite challenges mirrors the experiences of many people with disabilities who continue to overcome barriers through perseverance, courage and determination.
