JAMAICA
DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AND MANAGEMENT
Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment (VCA) and Community Disaster Response Team (CDRT) trainings were held in six communities as part of the DIPECHO V Community Based Disaster Preparedness (CBDP) project. Over 100 community members were trained in VCA and about 90 as CDRT members. The teams are expected to apply the skills learnt in practical situations and will also be equipped with supplies for emergency preparedness and response. The DIPECHO V project is funded by the European Commission Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO).
YOUTH
A “Power Peer” workshop was held for over 20 students from five schools as part of the Jamaica Red Cross’ Power Peer programme. The workshop which was one of many in the programme, focused on sexual and reproductive health and allowed each school to select a main project on issues surrounding the topic and identified strategies to implement them. The students are expected to go back to their schools and apply the strategies to the issues identified. The Power Peer Project is funded by UNICEF.
FUNDRAISING
The St Catherine branch of the Jamaica Red Cross began operating a canteen at the Linstead Hospital in August to help with income generation. The canteen offers snacks and cooked meals for sale on a daily basis to the staff, patients and visitors of the hospital. The Kingston, St Andrew and St Ann’s branches also offer canteen facilities. Canteen and concessionaire facilities are just one of the many corporate services the Jamaica Red Cross offers to the public. The Kingston and St Andrew branches held a dinner and costume dance dubbed “Buccaneer Bash” as one of their annual fundraisers. The event which was a huge success saw guests parading as pirates and wrenches. The event included a silent auction and prizes for best costumes. The Jamaica Red Cross also held their annual fundraising lapathon titled “Lapping for Humanity” on October 7 at the Emancipation Park in New Kingston. The event featured structured exercises and a concert featuring local popular artistes as well as laps around the park throughout the day. The events was highly publicized and also had an outside broadcast by one of Jamaica’s most popular radio stations hosted by popular radio personalities. There were also exhibitions by the Jamaica Red Cross outlining the work of the Red Cross a well as exhibitions by sponsors and partners such as the National Housing Trust and Jamaica AIDS Support for Life.
SCHOOL BOOK PROJECT
Jamaica Red Cross embarked on a school book project for children who went back to school in September. The project benefited children whose parents found it difficult to secure funds to send their children back to school with the required supplies. The children came from the communities of Big Lane, Compound, Shelter Rock and Cavalier.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Jamaica Red Cross hosted its biennial general assembly this year under the international Red Cross theme “Universal Assistance through Volunteering.” The assembly as held at the Jamaica Conference Centre on October 28. The keynote speaker for the event was the United States Ambassador to Jamaica Mrs Brenda LaGrange Johnson.