PRCC club honors memory of fellow student

The Forrest County Center Science Club donated $500 to the Pearl River Community College Development Foundation recently in memory of Jessica House, a student who passed away in 2010.The money will go to a fund established by her family to provide a half-tuition scholarship for a Forrest County Center student studying in a health-care field.The club also donated a flowering crab apple tree and a rock with her name on it to be placed under the tree near the Allied Health Center.Jessica died right under a tree on campus, so this is most fitting, said her fianc Rob Benfer of Hattiesburg. When you go by that rock, look at it and think of the things you havent done and dont put them off.House, 28, was a general studies student with plans to become a nurse when she passed away.Jessica had made quite a mark on our campus, said biology instructor Jana Causey, who mentored House. Jessica sat on the front row. She answered every question I asked. After her death, there was a silence in my class.Jessica represented many community college students. This was Jessica second college chance. Today, I remember Jessica as a bright student who deserved a second chance.The remarks about his daughter brought John House of Hattiesburg to tears but he deflected the emotion with humor.This is amazing, he said. I thought it appropriate I drove Jessica car to campus today. There were no parking spaces so Ill probably get a ticket like Jessica did.The Science Club made the presentation April 19 in recognition of Earth Day and after Causey presentation as part of the Forrest County Center Interdisciplinary Lecture Series. She spoke on The Great Debate: Evolution vs Creation – A Scholarly Approach to Bridging the Gap