Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dr. the Hon. Dana Morris Dixon, says despite the “very difficult time” caused by Hurricane Melissa, community spirit is evident in many areas.
She said as Jamaicans, community persons are taking care of each other, and she saw it best while in St. Elizabeth, recently.
The Minister, who was reacting to efforts being made by a teacher of St. Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) to reach students who have not been heard from since the hurricane impacted the island on October 28, said although her family has been affected, she is out finding children and carrying care packages from the school.
“Our teachers, our school community, are just exceptional. You know, we don’t ask them, we don’t pay you for that, and you just do it, and you are doing your fundraising, and you are putting together your packages, and going out and searching for the students that the school has not heard from. That is what the Jamaican spirit is, where we take care of each other,” she said, during her recent visit to the school, which was damaged badly by the hurricane.
Teacher, Dania Allen Isaacs, who is a student welfare coordinator at STETHS, said the institution is grateful for the support that it has been receiving, and “we have gotten some donations, and we will start our second round of care packages since the disaster this week”.
“We also had the opportunity to go into some communities to really see what the disaster looks like on the outskirts of Santa Cruz. We have been able to get in contact with some students who have really been ravaged by this storm. One thing that I think is very important is that we have to look at not only just focusing on the food and the shelter but also the mental health of our students,” the teacher said.
“The mental health of our students is of utmost importance, because we don’t really know what we, as teachers, will be walking into when we actually get back into school,” she added.
