US charity building classroom at Salt Spring Primary School
TWESTERN BUREAU:
HE SALT Spring Primary School in St James will soon have an additional classroom to facilitate social distancing, thanks to the generosity of the United States-based Children of the Caribbean Foundation.
Rosie Hodge-Adams, co-founder and executive director of the California-based Children of the Caribbean Foundation, told The Gleaner on Monday that discussions were held with the school’s administration on the project, which is expected to cost approximately J$514,000.
“We decided to make an addition to the Salt Spring school because we learned that the classrooms are too small to accommodate the number of children attending school there. So we decided to add an extra classroom to the building, and we started that on the weekend. I believe the workers are going to start putting up the blocks today (Monday),” said Hodge-Adams.
“The way the charity works, we try to involve the community members, and in this case, they would come out and volunteer to do the work themselves, so that saves us money on labour. I was having a conversation with the school’s principal, and we are trying to negotiate whether we should tip the workers or if the school would cover the cost of the labour.” The construction project is only the most recent effort put forward for Salt Spring Primary by the Children of the Caribbean Foundation, which has done outreach work across various Caribbean countries since its founding in 2010. The school received two new flush toilets and washbasins in 2013.
The building of the new classroom space was twinned with an outreach initiative that the charity carried out on Monday to deliver face masks, face shields, infrared thermometers, and hand sanitiser stations to six schools in St James to help protect against the COVID-19 pandemic.
The charity bought the protective equipment, valued at US$6,500 (J$929,713), and distributed it to Salt Spring Primary School, Hartfield Basic School, Farm Primary and Junior High School, Green Pond Infant School, Green Pond Primary School, and Green Pond High School.
Norman Brydson, principal of Salt Spring Primary, voiced appreciation for the outreach efforts on the school’s behalf. “I feel really blessed and appreciative, and I am so happy for the foundation because with this initiative, our students will be impacted positively. They will be able to sit in a comfortable environment conducive to learning,” said Brydson.