Submitted by Felicia Browne – Press Release
Castries – St. Lucia – The Caribbean Mentorship Institute has donated much needed school supplies to the children whose homes were inundated during the Christmas trough. The CMI has partnered with a number of local and regional organizations to make this outreach program a success. School supplies such as notebooks, pencils, crayons, drawing books and story books were delivered to schools across the island.
The President of CMI, Ms. Felicia Browne says the Organization is always willing, able and happy to provide help to youth and youth clubs across the Caribbean. She says that once the help of the CMI is requested, the Organization goes into action by contacting a number of organizations and volunteers for their assistance. We felt that something had to be done urgently to assist these students so we acted as quickly as possible, she says.
The Jericho Project in Trinidad, the Universal Federation for Peace-St. Lucia Chapter, and the Women in Action group in St. Lucia, British Airways, and community volunteers provided much needed assistance, Ms. Browne says. Everyone was willing to assist and we are extremely grateful for their efforts.
Ms. Browne says that the CMI Trinidad volunteers worked tirelessly with businesses and volunteer associations within their communities to ensure that every student in St. Lucia who was affected by the trough received a small school package. “We believe in making a difference in a child’s life no matter how small, she adds, “it can change that student’s perception of life and of the world.”
Browne adds believes that community disaster management and preparation should be taught and implemented in schools to increase student’s awareness of such natural disasters and how to prepare for such natural disasters. The CMI President says that having such knowledge can allow students to make critical and practical decisions during disasters. She observes that “one of the victims lost her two brothers who were returning home during the flood, and that could have been avoided. The student’s quick thinking saved her life. Ms. Browne says that these are the types of life–skills training that the CMI has been implementing in our mentoring programs.”
As a result of this life changing experience, in the summer 2014, the institute will conduct an intensive Disaster Management training course for youth across St. Lucia. The areas which will be addressed are disaster management and preparedness, flooding and rescue, First Aid and CPR, climate change and resource security. Additionally, the institute is gearing up to complete its regional Anti-Bullying Pilot Training in communities in across the region. St. Lucia and Barbados have already received training while Barbados has fully implemented the programme in some of its schools.
