Dr. Sue and You Foundation Partners with JIS to Support Mount Olivet Boys’ Home Roadway Repairs

The Dr. Sue and You Charitable Foundation has partnered with the Jamaica Information Service (JIS) to donate funds for the Mount Olivet Boys’ Home roadway repair project.

The funds will support the Home’s initiative to resurface the roadway leading to the State-run facility, which houses an average of 30 boys.

The roadway has deteriorated over time and now requires rehabilitation.

The donation of more than $100,000 was provided by Baldwin and Dr. Susan Davis of the Dr. Sue and You Charitable Foundation, after being engaged by the JIS Special Projects Department.

Speaking during the handover at the JIS’s head office in Kingston on April 17, Director, Corporate Services, Errol Gardner, shared how the partnership and donation were initiated.

“We are always seeking ways in which we can enrich the lives of the residents and bring joy to the Home. So the JIS has been partnering with the Davis family on serval initiatives in order to assist the Mount Olivet Boys’ Home over the years. The cause is near and dear to them, and it is noteworthy that their uncle was one of the Home’s early Superintendents; so they grew up around the Home and the boys there at that time. Bringing the Davis family on to help raise funds for the paving of the Home’s driveway was an easy connection,” Mr. Gardner shared.

In reflecting on his boyhood days, playing sports with and completing homework alongside the Home’s residents, Baldwin Davis shared that the months spent living at the institution with his uncle, the late Reverend James Davis, significantly shaped his future.

“The humility of my upbringing allowed me the empathy and deep sense of care to engage with all the boys as brothers…; these boys were all family. I often reflect on how that early life experience has shaped my career in the human services field, working tirelessly, advocating for and empowering children and families, both on the ground and at leadership levels. I give thanks for the opportunity to serve and look forward to playing a bigger role with the JIS to support, improve and maintain the dignity of the boys while expressing gratitude for the perseverance of the patient, caring and often overlooked staff members,” Mr. Davis stated.

For her part, Director of the Home, Sophia Morgan, expressed gratitude on behalf of the institution for the donation.

“This donation is very heart-warming, and the fact that Mr. Davis’ relative was a member of the Board makes it even more impactful. So on behalf of the United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, the Board of Governors, the residents and staff of the Mount Olivet Boys’ Home, I just want to say thanks to the JIS, the Dr. Sue Foundation and the Davis family. This donation will do exactly what it is intended for – to repair the roadway to make it more comfortable for our visitors, residents and staff,” she said.

The Home created a GoFundMe account to raise funds towards the roadway’s resurfacing, which can be accessed at https://gofund.me/d64d6f29.

The Mount Olivet Boys’ Home was adopted by the JIS in 2009, and remains the agency’s main corporate social responsibility project.

Situated in Walderston, Manchester, the institution is home to approximately 30 boys.

It is a private residential facility owned by the United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.