Clarendon Family Gets New Home Through Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration

Thanks to the collaborative efforts of Food For the Poor, the Fergus Simpson Foundation, and Carpenters Union Local 27, a family that has faced challenges now has a comfortable place to call home.

Situated in the community of Summerfield in Chapleton, Clarendon, the loft style structure has solar lighting and comprises two bedrooms, a living area, kitchenette with solid sink and cupboards, a bathroom outfitted with a shower, a pedestal basin, and toilet.

It is also equipped with a tank to accommodate water harvesting.

The unit was handed over to the family on October 27.

Partners in the initiative, Canada-based nonprofit entity, Carpenters Union Local 27, worked with local contractors to build the unit and donated funds towards the initiative.

Charity organisation, the Fergus Simpson Foundation, which operates out of the United States and Chapleton, provided the land on which the house was built.

Recipient of the unit, 72-year-old Radcliffe Kerr, tells JIS News that he is grateful for the home, which he will share with the mother of his 19-year-old daughter who will also live there with her eight-month-old daughter.

He says the new home will provide a safe environment for his family.

“I want to say thanks to all of you who have contributed your time, your energy, your resources, and all your natural skills… from the depths of my heart and to the living God. I want to say you have made my life a little better. I have always been low, but I have never been at zero. And now you are here to help me in the most important way that I needed. I needed this help,” he emphasises.

Prior to this, Mr. Kerr was living in a severely dilapidated structure, which was deemed unfit for habitation.

“I want to say thanks to all the various entities that are here today to make my life better… . God bless you for putting in your resources and your time and your energy to help me and my family,” he says.

Through the efforts of his Community Liaison, Annette Newman, Food For the Poor was alerted to the family’s plight and coordinated aid efforts.

“Food For the Poor is a saving grace for many of these needy persons. If the need is furniture, I call Food For the Poor; if it is food, I call Food For the Poor. I can always call on them,” she shares.

Member of Parliament for Clarendon North Central, Hon. Robert Morgan, who visited the site on October 27 where work was under way, said the stakeholders’ collaborative efforts made the construction of the unit possible.

“We just want to thank Food For the Poor for coming in, stepping in where there is a need. We are really thankful for Food For the Poor, not just [for this] but the hundreds of lives that they have impacted,” he says.

Mr. Morgan, who is Minister without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Information, praised the stakeholders for their selfless efforts, in coming to the aid of a family in need.

“We are very thankful that persons from all the way from Canada have come to this small community and identified [this] vulnerable family, with the help of their donors, to put a roof over their heads. I really want to thank them,” he adds.

Outlining the role of the Fergus Simpson Foundation in the project, Board Member, Carrol Madden, says the Jamaica Railway Corporation (JRC) provided the land on which the house now sits.

“We got in touch with Ms. Newman, who we know is very influential in the community, and through her influence we were able to make contact with [the JRC]. The land that they decided to give us had a large lease outstanding on it. The Foundation paid that lease to release the land [and] we got the necessary paperwork [for the land],” she explains.

Director of Projects and Social Intervention, Food For the Poor, Suzanne Moore, says the team effort made execution of the philanthropic project possible.

“Building a house is never a one-entity effort; it is always combined. So, it is important for us to acknowledge all the community partners who work on the ground to ensure that they assist the persons to get them to the point where the documentation is OK, as well as to highlight the donors.

Without their contribution, we would never be able to assist persons like Mr. Kerr, who is now going to be living in an environment that is totally relaxing and comfortable. He will no longer be living in an area where he will have to be concerned, thanks to the donors,” she says.

“In particular, for this building, we are very grateful to have the donors out of Canada. Many of these persons would have come from Jamaica or have a connection out of Jamaica. Not only did they fundraise for it but they also decided to come here because they have unique skillsets in carpentry and wanted to be a part of the entire process,” Ms. Moore adds.

The involvement of this group was made possible through the Food For the Poor Canada office.

Leader of the 14-member team participating in the project, Clifton Donegal, who has Jamaican roots, says he was happy to help someone from his own country.

“We understand that within any community, there will be issues of inequity. What we want to do, in our own way, is to contribute to making this environment a little more equitable. Even if it is for one family, we can rest assured that Mr. Kerr and his daughter and his granddaughter can live safely,” he says.