Local organization raising funds for Hurricane Melissa relief

The Saskatchewan Jamaican Association is collecting food, clothing, and supplies to help Hurricane Melissa victims. Jacob Carr reports.

Mavis Ashbourne-Palmer, president of the Saskatchewan Jamaican Association of Regina, is hoping Regina residents will band together in support of disaster relief for Jamaicans affected by the devastation of Hurricane Melissa, which ravaged parts of southwestern Jamaica last week.

“People are hungry, there are three hospitals that are destroyed in the western part of the islands, people have nowhere to live, children have nothing to eat and it’s just devastating,” she said.

Mike Thomas, executive director of Football Saskatchewan, whose parents both currently reside in Jamaica, and whose mother Lucille is a founding member of the Saskatchewan Jamaican Association of Regina, said he has never seen a hurricane of Melissa’s magnitude in his lifetime.

“I was very young when the last major hurricane hit Jamaica in 1988 with Hurricane Gilbert. And at that time, it was quite the scene there. So, to see the current state of what the island used to look like and then what it currently does is unbelievable that that was done by a hurricane,” he explained.

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The Saskatchewan Jamaican Association of Regina is looking for donations of all kinds in order to help out the thousands of displaced Jamaicans due to the disaster.

“You can still see that there is a large part of that island that is without power, still without potable water, and still without the ability to communicate with loved ones wherever they may be in the world, so every little bit counts,” Thomas said.

Along with monetary donations, they are looking for non-perishable food items, lightly used clothing, and toiletries.

The association said the donations will be pooled and sent to a reputable organization in Jamaica.

“We know that we are a resilient people and we’re strong, but without your help, we won’t be able to accomplish what we want to accomplish for the Jamaican people,” Ashbourne-Palmer said.

As part of the fundraising efforts, the association will be hosting a lunch on Nov. 14 at the Shiloh Assembly Apostolic Church.