SOS Children in Jamaica

The island state of Jamaica is in the West Indies. Its political stability, beautiful scenery and rich culture - best known for its reggae music - contrast sharply with widespread crime and poverty. Children account for 39 per cent of Jamaica's population of 2.6 million and 43 per cent of all poor, most which live in rural areas.

The charity began working in Jamaica in 1972 when the first community was built about 15 km from the city of Montego Bay, the island's leading tourist centre on Jamaica's northern coast. SOS Children Barrett Town has thirteen family houses providing a new home for up to 117 orphaned or abandoned children. A large plot of land provides the village with fresh fruit and vegetables. A community centre in the village provides a space for SOS mothers and co-workers to regularly attend training and workshops to update their skills and share their experiences. Two youth houses were opened in the nearby city of Montego Bay in 1988. Here, young people who have outgrown the SOS Children's Village are able to gain experience of living independently with the support of qualified youth workers. An SOS Nursery was established in the village in 1995. The nursery has the capacity for up to 90 children. It is open to both children from the SOS Village as well as local children, helping the children to integrate into the surrounding community. It offers extra-curricular activities such as speech lessons, drama and sports.

SOS Children opened the second Jamaican village in Stony Hill in 1984 on the outskirts of the capital, Kingston. The fourteen family houses provide a home for up to 126 children. They are located on a hill and have stunning views over the city and the harbour. The homes are built around a large, old building which is now used as a community centre for families to meet and enjoy leisure activities together. Youth houses for the older boys and girls were added later, as well as a nursery providing day-care for up to 80 little children

With the population of Stony Hill increasing rapidly, many local schools were becoming chronically overcrowded, often with more than 50 pupils in a class. Therefore, in 2002 SOS Children decided to build a school alongside the village here, providing places for 200 children from the village and the local community. The school here has six classrooms, a multi-purpose hall and a computer lab.

At present there are two SOS Children's Villages in Jamaica, two SOS Youth Homes, two SOS Nurseries and one SOS School.

Suzette Crawford was taken in at SOS Children's Village Barrett Town in Jamaica when she was just two months old. There she grew up with her nine SOS Children's Village brothers and sisters in the care of an SOS Children's Village mother. That is the only family she has ever known and is naturally the place she calls "home", a place she associates with security and wellbeing.

After leaving school, where she was a model pupil, Suzette wanted to do something useful in the SOS Children's Village to show her gratitude. She started work in Barrett Town helping in the office but later, having demonstrated her abilities in various school projects and remedial coaching for some of the younger pupils, she joined the educational staff there. In that position Suzette, with her wide-ranging interests, quickly showed that she had potential for a higher education herself.

With the help of the Hermann Gmeiner Memorial Fund established by Norwegian sponsors, Suzette received a grant for a university degree course and enrolled as a student at the Shaw University of North Carolina in the USA, where she graduated with a B.Sc. in Economics at the age of 23.

As the first university graduate at SOS Children's Village Barrett Town, Suzette is of course the pride of her family and friends. But she is still the kind young lady she always was and a fine example to her younger brothers and sisters.

SOS Children in Jamaica
SOS Children's Village of Jamaica Foundation
P.O. Box 654
Montego Bay 2,
St. James
Jamaica

Tel +1/876/95 26 215, +1/876/97 95 850
Fax +1/876/97 95 855

e-mail: sos.jamaica@cwjamaica.com
http://www.sos-jamaica.org

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