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12/21/2009 2:52:58 PM
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Living the dream
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Pharmacy Business of the Year Award 2009
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John Goes came to England with only five dollars in his pocket. Last month he was crowned the Pharmacy Business of the Year at the prestigious Pharmacy Business awards. Sarwar Alam spoke to him about his award winning pharmacy…
John Goes came to England from Kenya as a 17-year-old with worries about what the future held. A lifetime of hard work culminated in John standing on the stage at the Pharmacy Business Awards taking in the adulation of the audience as he was crowned Pharmacy Business of the Year.
It was1969 and Kenya was still trying to establish itself after gaining independence from Britain six years earlier. John and his family had to choose between taking up Kenyan or British citizenship. He reveals that although it was a very important choice to make, it became pretty obvious what his family had to do.
John, whose family is of Indian decent, could see that non-Kenyans would struggle in the county if they decided to stay on and take up Kenyan citizenship.
“We had to look at somewhere other than Kenya. Even though I had done well at my OLevels I knew there was no chance I could go to university as if you weren’t Kenyan citizens then we weren’t allowed to go to university. So I decided to take up British citizenship,” said John.
John’s parents could see there was no future for their teenage son in Kenya and fully supported his decision to move to England.
“My story is no different to a lot of Kenyans who came to the UK in those days,” says John. “A lot of Indians came as we had little choice and we had to separate from our families. There were no issues about doing it as families thought their children were going to better themselves. And there would be some benefits in the future.
“But to be honest with you I really didn’t know where I was going to go once I got to England. It really depended on admission to school or places in higher education. I managed to get into Bolton County Grammar School.”
The cost of living was in the 1960s and 70s was high and struggling families often took in lodgers to help them get by.
It was a difficult time for John when he came to the country as he practically had no money in his pockets. But, luckily for him, he had an older brother in England, who had come to the country a couple of years earlier and was lodging with an Indian family in Bolton and it was he who managed to take John in.
“The Patel family took in strays like us who had come into the country,” says John. “They were actually really good to us and became like family. We paid them, but it was minuscule compared to how they took care of us.”
John studied at Bolton County Grammar School, but found it tough going as the style of teaching was very different to what he had experienced in Kenya. But he was still thankful for the support he received from the school.
“One of my biology teachers would ask me to go and talk to her as she could see the difficulties of a 17-year-old having no parents or anyone to guide them,” reveals John.
Despite having the ambition to go to university, John couldn’t afford the fees and wasn’t eligible for a grant from the local council as he hadn’t been in the country for three years. Luckily for him the school came to his rescue.
“The school were extremely helpful as it was through their foresight that I ended up going to university. They managed to speak to the council and got me a discretionary grant.”
FACT FILE
Name: John Goes
Pharmacy: Goes Pharmacy
Opened: 1983
Years in Pharmacy: 32 years
Staff: Four
Lives: Burbage, Leicestershire
Family: Wife and two kids
Hobbies: Golf
Football team: Leicester City
Motto: If you can come to work and make
one person smile then your day is fulfilled.
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