St. Elizabeth is better known for its farming. The parish is dubbed the “bread basket parish” of Jamaica, as it supplies the island with more fruits and vegetables than any other parish. But what many do not know is that just a few chains down south is a wonderful treasure, fittingly named Treasure Beach.
More than just a fishing village, Treasure Beach is a
combination of Billy’s Bay, Frenchman’s Bay, Calabash Bay, Great Pedro Bay and
other communities. The beaches display a variety of coral-coloured or black
sand, depending on where you are. Famous for Jakes Hotel and Floyd’s Pelican
Bar, the community of Treasure Beach has much more to brag about these days as
it has become one of the South Coast’s more popular tourist destinations.
Lignum Vitae Tree
Cactus as seen in Treasure Beach
– Google Images
Tanio items found in Treasure Beach
While it is considered a semi-desert due to the low levels
of rainfall it receives, its flora are part of its many attractions. Jamaica’s
national tree, the Lignum Vitae, can only be found in a few places across the
globe. In Jamaica, it is only found on the South Coast on the island and Treasure Beach is one of these locations.
Additionally, a popular site while travelling on this route is the variety of
cacti strewn across the landscape.
Treasure Beach is believed to have been a massive Taino
settlement before the Spanish colonized the island. To date, one can still find
bits and pieces of Taino pottery strewn across the ground especially after a
heavy rainfall. A few Taino words that you may be familiar with are canoe,
hammock, hurricane and tobacco.
Fishing, Farming and now Tourism are the main industries of
the community. Each year, there are two major events held in Treasure Beach
that attract both local and international visitors. The community buzzes with
activity with the world’s longest running marathon, the Jakes Off Road
Triathlon, which, in more recent times, have been joined by Likkle Jakes a
triathlon for children. In the past, Calabash Literary Festival was another
major event held there.
Treasure Beach offers accommodation, food and attractions
for adults and children alike. This peaceful community has become a home away
from home for many tourists, most of whom are Europeans, who prefer the
peaceful laid back atmosphere that the community offers. Go off the beaten path
today to Treasure Beach.
Kelly does some light yard work around the CUMI Day Shelter where he spends his days
Early one morning in
2002, Frederick Kelly left home in St. James and set out to work on a
construction site in St. Ann, as he did many mornings before. This morning,
however, was different. He suffered a mental breakdown and for weeks, or
possibly months, he roamed the streets, eventually making his way to St. James.
To this day, he has never returned home.
This is the theory posited by Nurse Joy Crooks, Mental
Health Nurse and one of the founding members of the Committee for the Upliftment
of the Mentally Ill (CUMI), having treated Kelly for the past 15 years. CUMI is
one of the few organizations in the country which tend to the needs of mentally
ill persons who have been displaced, or whose families simply cannot afford to
care for them.
Kelly’s story began in 2002, after a concerned citizen saw
his state and made contact with the Cornwall Regional Hospital (CRH). A
dehydrated, confused and mute Kelly was then picked up, his head, bound with
barbed wire, during episodes where he tried to silence the voices he was
hearing in his head. His feet were swollen from walking hundreds of miles to
St. James; and his lips were white from lack of water and food. Kelly remained
on the psychiatric ward at the CRH for two years before he was handed over to
CUMI to continue his treatment, as no family members could be located.
Crooks said, “When [Kelly] came [to CUMI], he was not
coherent or able to give rational answers. It took many years to regain his
speech. He put wires really tight around his head and those wires stared to
grow into the skin and the skull; and it took a long time to heal after slowly
removing the foreign bodies. He had many years of therapy to understand why he
needed to take his medication. He can’t remember everything from his past but
now he can express himself…and we can trust him to do daily errands for us such
as paying utility bills, and taxes.”
FIFTEEN YEARS
LATER
Today, 15 years later, Kelly is now CUMI’s bearer and
gardener. After months of therapy, Kelly began to speak again, and after a few
years, began to read and write. He remembers that he has two children, but
cannot recall as yet, their names.
“I like CUMI a lot,” Kelly says, “I clean up the yard and I
pay the bills downtown and I like to work with Miss Joy.”
“Frederick is quite bright. He plays quiz, bingo and he can
read and write. All these things have come back since he has been stable,”
Crooks added.
Kelly is one of the lucky ones; he sleeps at the Refuge of
Hope Night Shelter and attends CUMI daily. Other mentally ill persons, however,
are left to roam the streets, without help. CUMI intervenes when it can, but
today struggles to keep its doors open, as its operating costs continue to
rise.
To provide food, clothing, medication, therapy, and the
general operational costs for the organization to stay open is about
approximately $6 million each year, and they receive very little support from
the government.
Each year, CUMI hosts its major fundraiser, the CUMI Come
Run with the support of Running Events, the Tryall Club, and a host of
corporate sponsors.
On September 21, the 11th CUMI Come Run will be held at the
Tryall Club starting at 6:30am. This year, CUMI is hoping to raise $4 million
to bolster its trust and looks forward to the support of as many persons to
help to reach this goal. Registration is now open for persons to sign up online
at runningeventsja.com.
Evan and Sheryl share a hug in Sam Sharpe Square, showing that they are still in love after all these years
Michael Nattoo/Alan Lewin
Often, the stories of people falling in love are littered with clichés – seeing someone across the room, or all of a sudden seeing an old friend in a new light, etc. They are many, as they are forgetful. But not the story of the Sheryl Johnson and Evan Tavares. Before the two found the love that would see them being married for over 7 years now, they were both roaming the streets of Montego Bay as homeless persons, unaware that the February of 2012 would see them tying the knot and living on their own, off the streets of the Western City.
Evan revealed to the Western Mirror that he had been homeless on the streets of Montego Bay for 10 years – a stint which fortunately ended in 2008, after he decisively went to get help. Just how did he end up on the streets? Life wasn’t always like that for Evan. Prior to living a whole decade without a place to call home, he was, at points, comfortably living with a woman in a community in St. James. But that situation became unbearable for Evan, who opted to live as a vagrant instead, rather than under the conditions he was in that relationship.
With ten years of unimaginable hardships behind him, Evan sought help and got it from the St. James Municipal Corporation, specifically through the assistance of a Mr. Duhaney, who accommodated his request to land him a space at the Open Heart Charitable Mission Night Shelter. That move seemed predestined, as it was there that Evan met and fell in love with Sheryl Johnson, who had been living at the shelter for a while.
Evan Tavares hugs his wife Sheryl after they tied the knot at the Calvary Baptist Church in 2012
Johnson is originally from Kingston. After moving to Montego
Bay in search of a better life, she too fell on hard times, and for a while
lived on the streets of Montego Bay. She was not long after admitted into the
shelter. Some years later, an almost always smiling fellow caught her attention
at the shelter. She later married him – becoming Mr. and Mrs. Tavares in the
process.
NEW LIFE
The two now live together in a house in the Glendevon area,
and are members of the Calvary Baptist Church in St. James – the same church at
which they got married back in 2012. And it was quite the ceremony. It was
attended by Evan’s 7 children – all adults, among others, and had Reverend
Everton Jackson presiding over the proceedings. Since then, life has been good,
but far from perfect.
Evan suffered a minor stroke while he was out selling at a
football match at the Catherine Hall Stadium, which has significantly set him
back. And despite being broke as a result, Evan has not suffered, primarily
because of his sister, Cynthia Tavares, who has ensured that he gets grocery
every week.
“I want to thank my sister, Cynthia Tavares, who continues
to assist me with groceries on a weekly basis. If it wasn’t for her, I don’t
know how I would survive,” Evan shared. No help, however, is too much. Evan and
his wife remain grateful for any assistance the public may be willing to give,
cash or kind.
Though life is a far cry now from the days of him working as
a security guard at the Holiday Inn, or even his days doing construction or
factory work, Evan has kept a positive mindset on life. Though we caught up
with the couple on their way from church, Sheryl remains her shy self, and
seemed to be comfortable with her husband entertaining our questions. We were,
however, privy to some exciting inside scoop: they plan to have an anniversary
celebration next year, and are confident it will keep their flames for each
other burning. It’s clear: when no roof was over their heads, love became their
home.
St. James councillors
are in one accord that the Montego Bay Cultural Centre should not be used as
venue to promote homosexual propaganda.
Senior member Charles Sinclair, a former mayor of the city
and Government Senator, who is also an Attorney-at-Law, cites that as a
government body, the municipal corporation could not go against the Jamaican
constitution by appearing to be facilitating the promotion of homosexuality.
Leading the argument at yesterday’s regular monthly meeting
of the St James Municipal Corporation, Senator Sinclair drew reference to an
advertisement identifying the Montego Bay Cultural Centre as venue for a number
of activities in a week of events from October 13 to 20, this year, being
promoted by the organization, Montego Bay Pride, which he identified as a LGBTQ
(lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) group.
While speaking to the freedom and right and anyone “to enjoy
what they want to enjoy whilst they abide by the law,” Sinclair noted that one
of the functions advertised by Montego Bay Pride is a public forum entitled “Is
Jamaica ready for same-sex marriage?” Sinclair said he was concerned that this
and other events were advertised to be held at Sam Sharpe Square, declaring, “I
am not opposed if Montego Bay Pride is to have an event to promote same-sex
marriage, they can have it, but it should not be held at the Montego Bay
Cultural Centre.”
With other councillors banging in unison, Sinclair said if
the group wished to have such an event, they should go and rent a hotel or
church meeting hall. He said he was opposed to the use of the Cultural Centre
because it was under the management of the municipal corporation, which is a
government agency and “the Jamaica Constitution and in particular Section 18
says, and I’m going to quote, ‘No form of marriage or other relationship other
than the voluntary unions of one man and one woman may be contracted or legally
recognized in Jamaica’.”
He said it was the same Constitution that speaks to freedom
of expression and as a government entity the corporation “must ensure that we
uphold the Constitution of Jamaica.” Sinclair questioned why then would they
allow a government building to be used promote gay marriage, or same-sex
marriage. “It is not consistent with the mandate that we have and I stand in
opposition to it,” he declared.
GAY PARTY
With other councillors chiming in, Senator Sinclair also
strongly rejected the Cultural Centre being used by the Montego Bay Pride as a
place of amusement, questioning whether the plan was for “a gay party; is that
what we’re talking about, in the Montego Bay Cultural Centre?”
Senator Sinclair is also opposed to Montego Bay Pride being
granted police permission for its advertised “Walk or Ride event” on October
20, recalling that last year, the same group of people, dressed up in skimpy
outfits, blocked off Sunset Boulevard (now Godfrey Dyer Blvd) with no notice
being given and businesses and commuters inconvenienced. He lamented that at
that same time last year, a women’s organization was refused a permit to stage
a sensitization march against abuse of women.
Sinclair asked that the police be informed that the
municipal corporation will not support any roadway being obstructed for this
event as there was nothing to gain from it.
Both the Chairman of the municipal corporation, Mayor Homer
Davis and Chairman of the Civic and Community Affairs, Dwight Crawford, said
they were unaware of the intention to use the cultural centre as indicated.
Mayor Davis said nothing must be done to disturb the sacredness
and purpose of why the Cultural Centre building is in Sam Sharpe Square. He
acknowledged that the corporation stood in solidarity with the position taken
by Senator Sinclair and denied rumours that last year it was he who gave
permission, asserting, “Well, I can speak now that I will not give no
permission.”
“No
first-time entrepreneur has the business network of contacts needed to succeed.
An incubator should be well integrated into the local business community and
have a steady source of contacts and introductions”. Jay Samit
Greets again my fellow readers…
At some point in time, you’ve likely seen a statistic or statement by a
politician or economist stating the importance of small business to local
communities.
However, they quote these things as hollow statistics, but you and I, who have the luxury of living in real communities, not the static structured gated community but real ones, you might call it scheme or garrison, or lane or whatever, but you know the space to which I refer. The homes and environs and ends that are alive with colourful characters, rich with the textures of life that define and typify Jamaica and our lifestyle. The businesses that come along with our living and inhabiting a space are a valuable asset to the local community. It should come as no surprise then that there are many ways that small businesses make a profound local impact.
COMMUNITY IDENTITY
Take a strut down the main street where you are based and you’ll likely
notice that your community has its own unique character and charm. From the
cook shop, the tuck shop and dog grooming business, to a Chinese emporium,
haberdashery, bar, games’ room, and beyond, small businesses contribute to a
community’s identity. Many municipalities and tourism boards across the world
have prioritized preserving the unique character a vibrant small business
community creates– transforming that character into an advantage. It is time
the St. James Municipal Corporatio puts more interest and finances into the
preservation of community businesses, as these businesses are more crucial than
any political policy to the breaking of intergenerational poverty and creating
wealth pools in communities.
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
Small business owners are an integral part of the communities in which
they live and work. Thus, they tend to be cognizant of how their decisions may
impact their neighbours. In addition, local small business entrepreneurs tend
to be involved in the community. For instance, they may sponsor local
six-a-side teams, donate to the city’s homeless shelter, join the residents’
associations and community based organizations, participate in community
charity events like back-to-school treats, help kids attend school and
crucially provide employment. It’s also not unheard of for successful business
owners to guest lecture at the local community college, technical institute, or
small business centre. Venise Samuels, the Paradise Youth Club Manager, a
hairdresser and entrepreneur does it all the time. Paradise, where I am based,
is characterized by its long standing businesses. Businesses like Lee’s Gas,
Chino’s SweetSop Tree Shop, Miss Elaine’s (Paradise Grocery), Touch of Klass
(Lauraine’s Bar) and Tash’s Enterprise. In some way, these businesses are
intimately and intricately connected to the life blood of the community.
COMMUNITY HEALTH
In addition to contributing to the local community’s unique identity
and being involved locally, small business owners help to build a sense of
community. Their businesses tend to be people businesses. Small business owners
are more likely to build personal relationships with their customers, knowing
many of them by name. When was the last time you walked into a large chain
store and were greeted by name? But I bet from time to time the shop keeper has
the item you came for in hand as he sees you coming to the shop.
What I wish is that our small business owners band together, forming
casual or formal relationships, such as a merchant’s associations or one-on-one
counseling and mentoring relationships. These relationships leverage the
expertise of the participants to contribute to the business community’s
long-term success. They are also often a key tool for generating goodwill
between business owners, so that as foot traffic to one business increases,
other nearby businesses benefit through increased exposure and word-of-mouth
referrals.
INCREASING THE TAX BASE
When local residents shop at small businesses within their communities,
their tax dollars stay within the local economy, helping to improve their
community as a result. Likewise, local small businesses tend to buy locally as
well, pumping more of their profits back into the community than their chain
store counterparts, helping with economic development. And if there is one
thing I know politicians respond where they see the money is. So if we wish to
commandeer the attention of politicians and get them to respond to the needs,
wishes and desires of the community, we need to be communities of wealth
generators, and small business is how we start.
LOCAL JOBS
Small businesses are job creators, and most of those jobs are local
jobs. In an age where employment is an issue for government, I think this is a
massive point that the municipal corporations in every parish ought to
investigate. Rather than having to commute to another town, community or
parish, employees work closer to home. Supporting local businesses also helps
your fellow community members who work at them. When a community has a vibrant
commercial centre, it also creates ample opportunities for these workers to
shop at other local small businesses. They grab lunch or dinner from local
restaurants, run errands on their break, and grab drinks from local bars. This
keeps money local and further creates a tight-knit community vibe. This has to
be GOOD!
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Small businesses are the product of the business owner’s
entrepreneurial spirit. By starting a small business, the business owner is
taking charge of his or her future. Entrepreneurship fuels Jamaica’s economic
innovation and prosperity and serves as a key means for families to move out of
low-wage jobs and into the middle class. Believe me, I am the son of an
entrepreneur, and my grandmother, Dorothy Thompson, was an entrepreneur,
running a Tuck Shop at the Cornwall Regional Hospital for all my life as long
as she was alive and I know how that small business helped to preserve and even
elevate a family, not a business chain or an empire – one shop, which sent
children and grandchildren to schools and universities. So… never ever
underestimate the power of the entrepreneurial spirit, and when one is doing
business in your community support them, and definitely don’t devalue or
undervalue their work, and don’t let them crumble under unjustified badmind.
About
the author: Yannick Nesta Pessoa B.A. is Jamaica’s first blogger, a Community
Activist, an Artist and Entrepreneur. Follow Yannick on Twitter at @yahnyk |
yannickpessoa@yahoo.com
OH YEAH! Green Pond High’s Kevon Lewis (finger on lips) salutes fans as he celebrates with teammates following his equalizing goal in the ISSA/WATA da’Costa Cup Zone ‘A’ match played at Cornwall on Wednesday. Green Pond rallied to earn a 1-1 draw.
NLR photos
Noelita Lawrence-Ricketts
Early impressionists
Manning’s are among eight schools gunning for three straight wins tomorrow
(Saturday, Sept 14) in the ISSA/WATA da’Costa Cup Schoolboy Football
Competition.
Impressive to date, Manning’s early pacesetters in Zone ‘D’,
are expected to face their first real test when they come face-to-face with
Petersfield at the school grounds.
Manning’s sit atop the standings with a perfect 6 points
from two games, while Petersfield have garnered just one.
Munro College, who failed to advance from the first round
last year, Manchester, Mile Gully, Oracabessa, Annotto Bay, Seaforth and Paul
Bogle are the other teams down to hunt a third straight victory.
Meanwhile, the 11-times champions Rusea’s will be aiming to
join Frome Technical as leaders of Zone ‘B’ when they challenge Hopewell High
in the local derby.
The ‘Russians’ have won their sole game played and three
points would see them joining Frome Tech on 6 from two games. Hopewell too can
claim second spot should they manage to snag a win.
It will be the clash of the winless two when Green Island
and Merlene Ottey battle.
Merelene Ottey has been winless in five games dating back to
last season.
In Zone ‘C’, early
leaders Herbert Morrison Technical High go in search of back-to-back wins in a
hope to maintain the lead when they line-up against William Knibb.
‘Compre’ scored their first win in midweek and will be after
a second, which would move them to seven points. Cedric Titus, yet to tick off
a win, play at home to Spot Valley, who will also be searching for their second
win.
The lead could change hands over in Zone ‘A’, where leaders
Green Pond High and Cornwall College, last year’s beaten finalists, will both
be at home.
Cornwall are set to be involved in a second successive city
derby when they face off with bitter rivals St. James High, oozing confidence
after returning to winning ways.
Victory would lift CC to seven points, while a win for St.
James High could see them kick-starting their campaign and move to six points.
Green Pond, on the other hand, can assume sole leadership of
the zone should they claim three points outright against a tricky Anchovy, if
CC lose.
The Gregory Daley-coached Green Pond have scored six goals
in their two games, conceding just once.
Maldon and Irwin are both yet to win a game clash in the
Zone’s other match.
All games are scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m.
An overall 40 games are scheduled to be contested on the
day, ten (10) involving western schools.
Work teams remove the bricks from a crosswalk in Falmouth after it was determined that they were no longer serving their purpose.
In what has come as a surprise to many, the town of Falmouth is set to remove the crosswalk feature that was introduced to certain sections of roads in the town, which was done in a bid to enhance the aesthetics of the town.
Since last Friday, work teams have been in the town removing the paved stones that had made up much of the crosswalk. According to a representative from the Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ) based in Trelawny, they received a request for the removal from the Trelawny Municipal Corporation (TMC) because it seems that the bricks are not holding up.
Several of the bricks have come loose in places due to heavy units traversing that section of the roadway. The representative related that the exercise is being done under the terms of the contractors’ defect and the end product will be that they will be using asphalt in those spaces going forward. He related that it is up to the municipal corporation to decide what to do with those sections of the roadway after the remedial work has been done.
The work on the crosswalk and some other areas forms part of a larger project set to cost in the billions to develop the tourism product of the town that is being funded by the PAJ. Since the inception of cruise ship tourism Falmouth, there have been complaints that much has not been done to bolster its image. Sections of the town have been pedestrianized to meet the changes, however, it is determined that the crosswalks are not working out.
Senior Advisor and Strategist, Ministry of Tourism, Delano Seiveright (left), is pictured with Chairman of the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) Godfrey Dyer (centre); and Sandals Resort Senior Director, Wayne Cummings, at a cocktail reception for tourism stakeholders at the Jamaica Product Exchange (JAPEX) Trade Show, Montego Bay Convention Centre, St. James, on September 9.
The Ministry of Tourism is reporting an increase in arrivals from Russia. Senior Advisor and Strategist, Delano Seiveright, said that just under 3,000 Russian tourists visited the island between January and the end of June compared to roughly 630 for the same period in 2018.
“Much of this is attributable to new, regular nonstop flights between Moscow, Russia and Montego Bay by PegasTouristik/Nordwind, which commenced service on October 26 last year,” he noted.
Mr. Seiveright was speaking to JIS News following a meeting with Russian and other European tourism stakeholders at the Jamaica Product Exchange (JAPEX) trade show at the Montego Bay Convention Centre, St. James, on September 10.
He noted that the Ministry has made a conscious effort to target the Eastern European market.
“There was a time when our marketing was restricted to just the United Kingdom (UK) and a few other countries in Western Europe. The Eastern bloc was basically ignored and appeared impossible and off limits,” he said.
He noted that in September of 2018, the Governments of Jamaica and Russia signed a reciprocal agreement to waive the visa requirement for travel to their respective countries, spending up to 90 days per year for tourism, cultural exchange or business purposes.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Kamina Johnson Smith; and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Sergei Lavrov, signed the agreement on the margins of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
“This was a major step in the right direction,” Mr. Seiveright noted. In the meantime, Chilean Tour Operator, Teo Perez, told JIS News that Jamaica continues to be a prime destination for tourists from Latin American countries.
“We have been selling Jamaica for the past 10 years and every day we see the numbers going up,” he noted.
“We have clients flying out from Santiago to Panama and then into Montego Bay daily, plus other flights going through Miami into Kingston. This trend is showing no signs of slowing down and Jamaica’s arrival figures will only continue to increase,” he said.
“Without Miss Lou, my natural talents in the arts as a writer and poet would not be recognized today. I would not be able to create a career out of them. I also would not have been considered a cultural ambassador.” –Raul Blaze What was once discriminated against is now how many talented Jamaicans are making a living. Miss Lou ignored the negatives, some of which came from her parents, who referred to the language as ‘loose talk’ ‘careless speech’ and ‘a sign of low breeding,’ and turned Patois into a career.
Patois, in turn, made her famous and a cultural ambassador of Jamaica. Because of her defiance, she has laid the foundation for future comedians. After Miss Lou, there was Miss Zella, Johnny, Oliver, Titus and so many others. Now, a new generation of comedians have been birthed – the Social Media Vloggers, and Raul Blaze is one of the newest on the block.
A graduate of the Glenmuir High School and a son of the soil of Clarendon, Raul holds a degree in Spanish with a minor in International Relations from the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus. He also has a Law Degree and was a Cultural Ambassador for Jamaica in the country of Japan where he lived for five years. While in Japan, he organized several Jamaican cultural events, which have further propelled Jamaica’s culture in that country. He is now an Honary Goodwill Friendly Envoy of the City of Toyaman in Japan.
Raul has been writing dialect poetry since the age of 15. However, he has never performed for the public until now. He has written for others who have performed his work during several competitions. Raul was also a member of the Taylor Hall Drama Society at the UWI, where he first performed on stage, but never his own material.
VLOGGING CAREER He first performed his own work on his Instagram page in the year 2017, when he kicked off his Vlogging career. “I had so many things to say and if I kept them inside, they would suffocate me. This was my way to let it all out,” he stated, in response to his reason for starting this career. His four main characters are Jacqui Duphraetees, the uptowner, Clicka Speng, the gangsta, Tanisha Goodas, the ghetto fabulous one and Maas Winchell, the old country man.
Ignoring his fears which included self-doubt, and discouraging words from the ‘negative nancies’, he pushed through and hosted his first show in New York City in July of 2019. That triggered a call from his followers for him to come to other locations. Since New York, he has hosted shows in Florida and his most recent one in Jamaica, his island home, all within the space of two months, July and August 2019.
After his show he was invited to headline Johnny’s Comedy Bar Live which would be his first time performing stand-up comedy out of character. The reviews were excellent, with Johnny saying that not many can transition from online to live performance, further stating that he did well.
He currently has his eyes on London and Toronto for upcoming shows, but is hard at work organizing his next show, which will be in Washing DC.
Taking the route of Miss Lou once more, he is also working on a Jamaican Labrish Book, his collection of Jamaican Dialect Poetry, which he is hoping will be used as literature books in Jamaican schools. The journey continues.
Director of Alternative Care Services at the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA), Eunice Scott-Shaw (right), interacts with children at the CPFSA’s Western Region back-to-school treat and health fair held recently at the Holly Hill Infant and Primary School in Darliston, Westmoreland.
The Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA), through its parenting workshops, is empowering parents in Western Jamaica to build stronger bonds with their children.
Director for Alternative Care Services at the CPFSA, Eunice Scott-Shaw, says that the workshops aim to provide parents with critical child-rearing skills.
Among the objectives are to instill a greater sense of care and responsibility among parents; improve communication between parents and children; and address behaviourial problems at home in order to prevent children from entering State care.
“We have a lot of children who are really in need of care and protection, and we want parents to be more responsible for their children. We would not have so many children in State care if parents had taken the responsibility to care more for their children,” Mrs. Scott-Shaw said.
She noted that during the 20-hour training sessions, parents are equipped “with some parenting skills, so that they can work with the children. Sometimes, we ask the judges that when parents come to court with their children who are uncontrollable or in need of care, that they would allow them to come and take this course”.
Mrs. Scott-Shaw, who was speaking to JIS News at a back-to-school treat and health fair held recently at the Holly Hill Infant and Primary School in Darliston, said that parents are receptive to the training. “Sometimes, the parents are so young; some are children themselves, and they did not get that level of training or they have no skill sets to work with the children that they have. So, for the services that we offer, the parents are very happy for it,” she said.
‘CAN I TRY AGAIN?’ “I can recall a situation where we had a child who came in to care. The child was picked up by the police, and the mother went to the CPFSA office to see if she could get any information about her child. While she was waiting on the social worker, a parenting training was going on and the officer asked her to go sit in and see what is happening. She went and sat in there, and when the session was over, she said, ‘Can I take back my child and try again?’” Mrs. Scott-Shaw related.
Maureen Mullings of Burnt Savanna in Westmoreland, who has been receiving support through the CPFSA for her teenage grandson for more than two years, relates that the agency has not only aided her with parental training but finances, counselling and more.
She said that the CPFSA office in Savanna-lar-Mar is currently assisting with getting her grandson enrolled in the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH).
“They have been of good help; they took him in and counselled him. They keep checking up on him,” she added.
Darliston resident, Ervin Reid, who attended the back-to-school fair, said that the agency’s services are very important “because they help a whole heap of people”.
“A lot of younger mothers do not have the resources to help their children and the services provided by the CPFSA are very important,” he noted.
