Capt. Daley Receives Badge of Honour for Dedicated Service to Boys’ Brigade

For Outstanding, Faithful and Dedicated Service to the Boys’ Brigade in Jamaica, Captain Easton Michael Daley was awarded the Badge of Honour at the National Honours and Awards ceremony, held at King’s House on National Heroes Day (October 16).

Captain Daley received the insignia in his capacity as Programme Director/Training Officer, with more than 1,300 boys under his overall supervision.

Even though he has obtained a number of other awards, Captain Daley rates this one as the best, to date.

“It’s good to be honoured by your country. I give God the glory,” says Captain Daley to JIS News.

The Brigade celebrated the achievement in the hall on Camp Road shortly after the national ceremony. They had a ‘surprise’ dinner, talent show, and the boys gave speeches about his work.

“I knew they were planning something, as they kept coming up with all kinds of excuses to get me out of the office,” Captain Daley says.

The refreshment was delicious and the entertainment wonderful, but the encouraging words from the boys had the greatest impact on the Captain.

“It brought tears to my eyes when they spoke of the ways in which they had benefited from the Brigade. I didn’t realise how grateful they were. It gave me the energy to find an extra gear to do more,” Captain Daley says.

The journey to this prestigious honour began when Captain Daley joined the Boys’ Brigade in 1972. His rise through the ranks was meteoric.

“I became known for breaking all the records. In less than one year, I was a Lance Corporal and within eight years, I was Lieutenant; and by age 20, I was acting Captain. At 25, I was the youngest person to sit on the National Executive. It was unusual for someone to become Captain before 30,” he says.

Captain Daley explains that serving the Brigade is his passion, so it does not feel like work.

When asked about the reason for his good rapport with the boys, the Captain points out that to work with the youth, you need to understand them. “You have to listen to them, and try to get to know their world,” he says.

His philosophy is that the boys should strive to be more advanced than him and others they admire. Hence, whenever they express a desire to be like him, he takes it to another level by telling them, “you need to be better than me and other icons”.

The Captain believes the key to the success of the Brigade is discipline. This has enabled the production of numerous professionals, including at least 10 police officers, six soldiers and several pastors in the last seven years.

“The work of the Brigade has taken me to all 14 parishes and overseas. I have represented the Brigade in the Cayman Islands and The Bahamas. The latter has offered me a salary, house and car more than once, but I don’t believe in leaving the boys of Jamaica. My first responsibility is to the youth of my country,” he underscores.

Captain Daley plans to continue serving the Brigade. This is quite understandable, given his motto: ‘Sure and Steadfast to Help Our Youth’.