Why We Didn't Need to Go to Africa!

Recall our original assignment had been to Sub-Saharan Africa. Initially we were both let down when the Dark Continent became Jamaica. I couldn’t imagine their needs could be greater than that of Africans. Similarly, I was disappointed when we got our Chapelton (dead center of the island) assignment instead of more exotic sites like Ocho Rios, Treasure Beach, or Negril posts. I’ve finally come to realize that I was meant to be here, if for no other reason than to work for those who are in such great need. There was no necessity to travel halfway around the world; we only had to fly 75 minutes south of Miami for the experience.

On Saturday the second Football/Netball Funday Fundraiser was held. We helped with the effort to raise $$$ for the teams to get uniforms so they can qualify to play in Parish contests. If I haven’t already mentioned it, there haven’t been teams in our district for fifteen years. With NOTHING to do for the youths one dedicated citizen took up the task of leading the fundraising effort.

Now, fundraising in rural Jamaica has no semblance of what we’re accustomed to in the US; a donation of $ 2.00 US is considered reasonable and $20 is very generous. After months of planning, 80 man-hours of work on Saturday with 10 volunteers we raised $2,300 JA or $26, about enough to buy three shirts for the team. It will take a lot more fundraising to get 15 shirts each for the football and netball teams. In the meantime, players share shirts during a game. As a player comes out he/she takes off the shirt and gives it to his teammate to wear.

Uniforms are nothing, though, to what I experienced at the food booth where we worked that day. The major way to raise the necessary money is to sell food and drinks during the games. We sold traditional Jamaican fare; chicken, goat head soup, slaw, and rice & peas (red beans to us) along with beer, juice and water. At the end of the day the players were hanging around the food booth to see if there might be any leftovers for them. They couldn’t afford the J$250 (~$ 3.00 US) to buy the food. Finally, I was able to dole out to the girls’ net ball team the one chicken back left with a large serving of rice & peas. Ten of them carefully split it up and shared equitably without complaints or groans. A little later I was able to serve up the soup but there were only six cups remaining with perhaps 50 servings left in the pot. These hungry kids (perhaps 25-30) stood in line, got a cup, ate it and handed the cup off to a friend. They tried to use plastic soda bottles found on the field that had the top ripped off, but when I realized the bottles had been lying on the ground, ants crawling all over them, and who knows drinking from it I said no to that (not that the shared cups were any more sanitary). Only until the pot got low did a few kids get pushy about getting some soup.

But then I began to serve out the remaining rice and peas and that was the most telling incident of all. It was in half of a five gallon pot that had cooked all day and was dry and burnt. No matter, they were hungry and needed it. We had many more plates than cups and no utensils so only a few had to share plates but all had to eat with their hands. Fortunately, the rice was dried out so that I could spoon it out in large chunks, so eating it was easier than if it had been moist and separated. Needless to say there wasn’t a grain of rice, a drop of soup or even a chicken bone left to clean up. No food was thrown away. As I was serving the soup and rice & peas I couldn’t stop thinking of how fortunate our American children are. Even under bad financial times like these I can’t imagine many, if any, asking to eat what we would consider inedible food under quasi-sanitary conditions.

On the upside, we had a joyous First Annual Sacred Concert and Community Unity Fundraiser on Good Friday night. Our purpose was to raise money to buy computers and secure them in our local Community Center. Christianity and their churches are very important to large numbers of Jamaicans so a sacred concert was appealing particularly when there’s nothing much else to do. Many of the area churches sent “items” (an act) for the performance: choral groups, soloists, musicians, children singing, skits, and readings. We invited a director from the Social Development Commission and two ministers to speak about community unity. The new president of the Citizen’s Association was the chairperson (emcee) and she was a pistol, a veritable one woman show. Eighty people paid JA$200 admission and another 40 stood outside the gate to watch and listen. We didn’t know what to expect; but it was intended to run from 4-6 PM and went on until 8:30 with moaning that it should have gone on longer (It was outdoors and we only had one fluorescent light once the sun went down). We haven’t totaled the earnings because some money is still coming in from churches but I expect we made $16,000 or about $170 US. That’s enough to get a good start toward the computer room security and voltage regulation installed plus do some other small things for the Center.

Mango season is coming and the anticipation is much like that for Christmas. Citizens have been talking about it for months. Apparently you eat nothing but mango in all its permutations for two months.

More good news, we think we’ll be getting a high speed internet hook-up at our house next week (Jamaican next week could mean within the month). If that’s the case we may be able to produce more blogs and certainly spend more time communicating with all of you who email us.

If you’re not already doing it, count all your blessings,... the Jamaican’s do it each day!!!!

Blessa, Margaret