Asked about the philosophy behind his decision to pay the tuition of students from his native Jamaica, Ethelred Carter, MD, describes it as "No good kid left behind, so to speak." But there's more to it than his modesty reveals.

Born and reared in impoverished Scarborough, Jamaica, Dr. Carter encountered a missionary while he was a boy who changed his life for the better. Now a gastroenterologist and chief of the Department of Medicine at White Memorial Medical Center, he does his best to help kids growing up in the same conditions to make the most of their lives, too. Without access to any scholarships or grants, students are otherwise hard-pressed to pay their ways through Northern Caribbean University, his alma mater in Mandeville, and so he sponsors a few. At the same time, of course, Dr. Carter continues to put in the time and effort to bring good healthcare to his mostly Hispanic patients at White Memorial in East Los Angeles.

Dr. Carter has sponsored three students who have graduated, and another three are currently earning degrees with his assistance. His philanthropy is all his own, rather than part of an organization's larger effort. Friends and family in Jamaica, as well as his alumni association, provide some input.

"The arrangement is [that] I identify students through different people, like [former] classmates who refer kids to me because they know of my philanthropy, and then I choose one or two or three depending on my financial situation," Dr. Carter says. He then takes a look at each young person's grades, proposed major and financial need, and makes his choice. "I give them scholarships through to a bachelor's degree."

At the moment, Dr. Carter is helping a young woman named Andrene Barrett earn a degree in mass communication, and he's helping a young man named Leonard Turner on his way to a degree in education. It wasn't intentional, but he might also be giving back to the medical profession. Turner is thinking about going the pre-med route. Dr. Carter is already sponsoring one budding doctor, Cynthia Barillas, who is in medical school in Nicaragua, with help from his medical school friend, Glendale-based family physician Luis Albert.

A Seventh Day Adventist missionary Dr. Carter met at 12 years old sparked his drive toward education, a career in medicine and philanthropy. "I credit the church with any successes I've had in life, mainly because I grew up in a very poor, impoverished section of the island without much access to anything," he says.

The missionary from nearby Brownstown brought more than Adventism to little Scarborough--he brought exposure to the world outside, as Dr. Carter tells it. "It was not only religion, but also education and just the human spirit ... what exactly you're about and where you're going," he says. "Being isolated, we were not exposed to a lot of outside people, so somebody who comes in and starts reading and doing different things--that's quite exciting for a youngster." He converted soon afterward to become an Adventist himself.

That experience has stayed with him throughout his life. After graduating from Northern Caribbean University with a degree in chemistry and biology in 1960, he earned an MD at the Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara, Mexico, then took an internship at Jewish General Hospital in Montreal.

After residencies at George Washington University and Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Dr. Carter worked at Johns Hopkins University Baltimore City Hospital, the University of Maryland Hospital in Baltimore and Howard County Hospital in Columbia, Md. In 1976, he visited White Memorial. "I wanted to work in a Seventh Day Adventist hospital," he explains. "I liked it immediately, because the majority of patients that it served were Hispanic, and since I'd acquired this new culture in Mexico, I thought it would be a good thing for me. About 85 percent of my day, I'm speaking Spanish."

Those Adventist roots also keep him and his former classmates in touch with each other and actively serving their old school. "Like we say, we wouldn't be where we are today if it wasn't for that university," Dr. Carter says. "Everybody is involved. We have strong alumni in the West Coast chapter, New York, Canada, everywhere--we have a great network."

That loyalty has brought back many returns. From a student body of a couple hundred in Dr. Carter's day, the university now has 5,700 students. He traveled to a homecoming celebration in November, and by his count, as many as 200 other alumni attended the reflective, spiritual event, which included an update on the school's status and needs. Together, the alumni figure out how to help. "The president might say we need a gym, and then we decide amongst us how we're going to raise money to help," he says. "Whenever there are opportunities ... I'm on the first list to call for help."

Dr. Carter may answer yet another call for help. He is currently evaluating sponsorship for an additional medical student. "Financially, my wife and I were talking, and we're probably going to stretch a little bit, and maybe accommodate her, too."