Young People Benefit from Life Skills Training

Thirty unattached young people from Corporate Area communities have benefited from a training session aimed at empowering them to make responsible life and career choices.

The life skills training, held on June 6 at the College of Insurance and Professional Studies in Kingston, was organised by the Citizen Security and Justice Programme (CSJP) III under its pre-vocational training initiative.

Two members of the CSJP III’s Men with a Message, a group of reformed gang members and former inmates who have graduated from the CSJP III’s crime-prevention services, engaged the participants.

One of the speakers, Lynden Champagnie, who was imprisoned for 24 years on a murder charge, told the young people that the choices they make have consequences.

“I was on the death row twice while in prison and being able to have the gift of life has made me know that the path of crime is not one that I want to go down because violence destroys what we intend to create,” he said.

He advised the youngsters to take advantage of education and training offered through the CSJP in order to better their lives.

“Education is the means through which society must advance,” he said, noting that “with the second chance given to me through programmes such as the CSJP, I decided to use the (tailoring) skill I got in prison to become a designer”.

Mr. Champagnie further encouraged the participants “to believe in yourself, because that is what will help to move you forward and help to create a model society, which is one where young men and women can live and realise their dreams and aspirations”.

The participants at the life skills session are part of a group of 60 persons who are benefiting from pre-vocational training aimed at improving their numeracy and literacy skills and preparing them to apply for various HEART Trust/NTA programmes.

One of the participants, Latoya Campbell, said the session motivated her to be more disciplined.

The pre-vocational training programme, which begun in April this year, will last for nine months.

It involves partnership between the CSJP III and Encounter Ministries.