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Jamaica National Building Society Foundation NEWSLETTER issue 2
leading with
INNOVATING INSPIRING IMPACTING
MEMBERS LEADING WITH ACTION BRANCH ADVISORY COUNCIL PROJECTS CREATIVIT Y DRIVES JNBS MEMBERS AS THEY SUPPORT THEIR LOCAL COMMUNITIES With varying regional themes guiding the selection of the 2008-2009 Branch Advisory Council Initiative, our members, through the JNBS branch network, have identified and signed off on some innovative and inspiring community projects.
PAPINE: New sight for basic school children Under the Healthy Lifestyle theme, The Foundation for International Self Help (FISH) Medical Clinic received funding of $500,000.00 to correct the vision of 120 local students diagnosed earlier this year with sight problems. The announcement was made at this lorem ipsum met set years’ JNBS Annualdolor General Meeting. The project will see students from quam nunc parumMiracle and Sandhurst, Chevannes, Hope SDA 2007 Basic schools in the communities of Tavern, Kintyre and its environs (representing an alarming 38% of those tested) being provided with
spectacles and medication as required, at no cost to their families.
MONTEGO BAY: The sound of Jonkanoo in Granville The first outing of the revived Granville Jonkunnu Band - sponsored by the Jamaica National Foundation and initiated by the Granville Peace, Justice and Resource Development Foundation (a community based non-governmental organization) - was on Christmas eve in keeping with a community tradition. This activity is a component of the Youth at Risk Project of the Granville Peace, Justice and Resource Development Foundation, in response to the unacceptable level of violent crime that has impacted the volatile Montego Bay community in recent years. This traditional “go-round-street” was well received by a spontaneous outpouring of community support, which rekindled hopes for a peaceful, secure, stable and a prosperous Granville as the Jonkunnu meandered through the streets of Granville, climaxing in the wee hours of Christmas Morning.
in this issue: branch advisory council projects 1 branch advisory council projects 2 JNBS Foundation aids agricultural sector
2
the source, maverly
3
the source, treasure beach
3
registration of blind persons
4
auto skills
4
preserving jamaica’s history
4
Jamaica National Building Society Foundation 32 1/2 Duke Street Kingston CSO Phone: 876 922 4931 Fax: 876 922 4452 E mail: foundation@jnbs.com Website: www.jnbs.com
Jamaica National Building Society FOUNDATION NEWSLETTER, January 2009
FALMOUTH: Basket-making for the tourism market A new cruise ship pier is slated to open in Falmouth in 2010, and the long established Trelawny Basket & Things Association is eager to get persons in the parish equipped to seize the opportunities that this will bring. So, in keeping with the regional theme of Community Tourism & Community Entrepreneurship, the Association will be embarking on training across the parish in basket-making and other straw products so that local crafts people will be able to meet the expected demand for such products when the new pier opens.
JUNCTION: Putting stop lights at the Top Hill Black Spot In keeping with our desire to keep children safe and promote safe driving, the Junction BAC will be placing stop lights and signs on the road in front of Top Hill Primary School, St. Elizabeth – an accident black spot. This project shall fall under the Crime and Safety theme of the Junction JNBS branch.
SAVANNA-LA-MAR: Healthy Bag Juice Bag juice is the number one thirst quencher for school children of all ages across Jamaica. The market in Savanna-la-Mar is set to get a healthy dose of this sugar and water mix as seasonal fruits will now be used to make bag juice. This enterprising venture by the Grotto Community Development Council has the residents excited and rearing to go! They have already started planting garden cherries and other fruit trees to ensure that a steady supply of fresh fruits will come from within their community. This project is in keeping with the region’s community entrepreneurship and healthy lifestyle themes.
RESOLUTION PROJECT Ready, Aim, Inspire
COMING IN 2009
Look out for more information in our next issue.
JNBS FOUNDATION AIDS AGRICULTURAL SECTOR
RECOVERING
Tropical Storm Gustav struck the island of Jamaica on the 28th August 2008, and pounded the island with heavy rains and wind for 48 hours. The areas most severely affected by the storm were the parishes of St. Mary, Portland, St. Thomas and rural St. Andrew. Heavy rains caused the most damage, with low-lying areas severely affected by flooding. Outside of Kingston and St. Andrew, rural farming communities were devastated, with initial reports claiming that as much as 75% of the crops in St. Mary alone were damaged. Communities were blocked off as a result of road and bridge damage, and the reconstruction of lives and communities is expected to be lengthy and expensive. In an attempt to alleviate many of the effects of such a disaster for local farmers and their families, the JN Foundation approved funding in the amount of $11m to support relief efforts in the eastern parishes of St. Mary, Portland and St. Thomas (to be disbursed through the Jamaica Red Cross). $5m was allocated to mobilising ongoing disaster relief efforts for citizens displaced or marooned due to the storm and to meet the immediate living needs of subsistent farmers in the targeted parishes. To date, over 700 families of small farmers have received assistance from the Foundation. The Foundation also established a re-start grant for small farmers in the three parishes in the form of seedlings, fertilizers, water tanks and water irrigation hoses. In the meantime, the Foundation is planning to implement an initiative to facilitate Green House Projects as well as environmental awareness campaigns in each of the parishes as we aim to move from disaster recovery, to disaster prevention. While recovery efforts are essential, it is critical to underscore the role good environmental stewardship plays in averting the negative impacts of natural disasters.
Jamaica National Building Society FOUNDATION NEWSLETTER, January 2009
The Source, Maverly
A journey to transformation The Vision Initiating any sort of change involving people is never an easy task. First people have to be convinced that the change is possible and then there is the issue of winning their trust. The Source Maverly began its journey this way... a series of consultations to get community buy-in, participation and ultimately, ownership. The vision was to create a state-ofthe-art community resource facility built around the idea that social enterprises must create opportunities and development for communities while remaining sustainable.
Community Involvement The Source was not without its community champions. One of the first characters you will meet if you visit The Source is “Goosey”. Goosey, who operates a radiator shop just opposite the main gate, has been the onsite volunteer contractor for the last four months. Contractors, labourers and workmen have all needed Goosey to grant them access to the site and to close up once work is finished. Community equity was never a problem, as soon as the community was engaged in consultations members expressed their interest not only by giving suggestions about the direction of the project but by participating in the Clean Up Weekend organized at The Source in November 2008. This brought
back familiar memories of the good old days when women were busy cooking in the yard and men were close by working hard and building up a hearty appetite... the scenes were no different in Maverly that day. Community stalwarts like Vivienne Martin led the way for the cleanup weekend and also the cleanup of the park in which The Source is located.
“After the battle the reward: a dream realised.” The Source Maverly opened its doors quietly on Monday January 12, 2009… or so we thought. Offering an internet café, office and conference rooms, phone top-up and recreation facilities. The Source Maverly became packed with residents from 3:30pm until 8:00pm when it was closing time. Surprisingly, some of the customers included four street boys who ply their window washing trade at the busy intersection of Molynes Road and Washington Boulevard. They were most animated about the facility and that they were allowed access. They stayed until 8:00pm and were there as some of the first customers the next morning. “After the battle the reward”: a quote by Monique Dixon, a student of the Maverly Primary and Junior High is proudly displayed with eleven others on The Source Wall of Quotes: an inspirational feature of the facility. This seems to echo the story of the Source Maverly.
THE SOURCE TREASURE BEACH: EMBRACING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT Treasure Beach in St. Elizabeth is well known for the Reggae Marathon, Little Ochie and its world famous fish festival. Now, it’ll also be known for another innovation: The Source Treasure Beach. The JNBS Foundation has formed a partnership with the Treasure Beach Foundation also known as BREDS, a nonprofit community organization focused on the development of Treasure Beach and its tourist trade. The Source Community Resource Center in Treasure Beach will be a continuation of the pilot in August Town and Maverly and cater to some of the major social needs identified in the community. A state of the art internet café, wireless audiovisual training room and a community business office that offers internet, copier and fax services are some of the notable amenities that will be part of The Source Treasure Beach. The centre will truly live up to its name as a resource facility serving locals in the community as well as tourists who regularly visit the area. The Source Treasure Beach will be the only facility of its kind that will directly interface with community members and visitors in this way. The JNBS Foundation believes in community as well as national development and stands behind The Source CRC in Treasure Beach as we embrace the future of sustainable development through community tourism and entrepreneurship. We look forward to serving the Treasure Beach community in 2009.
Jamaica National Building Society FOUNDATION NEWSLETTER, January 2009
REGISTRATION OF BLIND PERSONS PROJECT
AUTO SKILLS: ensuring that our children have a solid foundation for life
Saffrey Brown presents a cheque to Major Desmon Brown of the Lions Club of Kingston
Funded by the JNBS Foundation and the Chase Fund, the Lions Clubs of Jamaica’s Registration of Blind Persons in Jamaica Project has been lauded by the Ministry of Health & Environment as a tool that will serve to broaden the job opportunities for Jamaicans who are blind and/ or visually impaired. At the launch of the project, the Acting Chief Medical Officer in the Ministry of Health & Environment, Dr. Earl Wright said “being blind does not mean not being able to function... (but) many blind persons remain unemployed because of discrimination. Even those with tertiary education have difficulty being gainfully employed.” However, Dr. Wright said the Registration of Blind Persons Project should serve to improve the quality of life for the island’s blind and visually impaired as it is expected to provide statistics and demographic data on a sector of the society which has not been readily available up to now. This lack of information, he said, has prevented prospective meaningful projects that would benefit the blind and visually impaired from gaining adequate funding. This project will serve as a tool to not only broaden job opportunities and basic services for blind and/ or visually impaired Jamaicans, but will also act as an essential database, so the government may know better the needs of the blind community. The benefits of this project are broad, and through our contribution, the JN Foundation has created a vital sustainable resource for the nation to use for generations to come. The Lions Clubs in Jamaica set up registration desks at 47 health centers in the 14 parishes manned by members of the Lions and Leo Clubs and began the process of data collection on Saturday, October 25.
JNBS Foundation: Preserving Jamaica’s History Did you know that the hurricane of 1790 and the great tidal wave that followed which destroyed most of Savanna-la-Mar in Westmoreland are recorded in Lady Nugent’s diary? We associate Captain Henry Morgan with Port Royal but did you know that
Oshane Walters, resident of Water House and student of the Violence Prevention Alliance’s (VPA) Learning for Life Programme shows his lesson for the day to Saffrey Brown, General Manager, Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS) Foundation. The JNBS Foundation, in its continued drive to support literacy and crime reduction amongst Jamaica’s at-risk youth, donated $1.4 million to the Violence Prevention Alliance for the purchase of a license to operate the Auto Skills literacy and numeracy programme. Auto Skills Academy of Reading is a computer software programme that provides an individualized and highly effective and scalable literacy intervention solution, designed to help struggling students of all ages, skills and abilities master the fundamental skills of reading. The Auto Skills products use a research-based approach that is proven to generate significant and sustainable gains for at-risk students of all ages. The Auto Skills programme has made significant gains both at the international and local levels. Encouraged by the resounding success of this programme along with the ease at which it can be utilized, the Ministry of Health as part of its ongoing campaign to promote healthy life styles is implementing the Auto Skills programme within established computer training centers in violence-torn communities. The programme targets, but is not exclusive to, high-risk male youth. The aim is to improve their literacy skills, which will consequently enhance their learning abilities and later facilitate the opportunity for skills training and employment opportunities. To find out more about how your community center can access this software, please contact the JN Foundation on 922-4931 or email foundation@jnbs.com
he owned several properties in St Mary including Llandovery?
collaboration with well-known historian and writer Marguerite R. Curtin.
This unique, colourful and vibrant historical data of each parish in Jamaica will soon be available in comprehensively written and well illustrated Parish History books and DVDs.
Ms. Curtin, who in 2007 published “The Story of Hanover, a Jamaican Parish”, a 244 page book with over 116 photographs and illustrations, is well underway in putting together the first parish book of this project: “The History of Westmoreland”, will be launched in the third quarter of 2009. This will be followed by “The History of St. Mary”, with all Parishes following suit.
This timely Parish History Project is being undertaken by Jamaica National Building Society Foundation in