BURCHELL WHITEMAN, the Minister of Information, commended the Grace & Staff Community Development Foundation (Grace & Staff) for "its programme of corporate sponsorship." Minister Whiteman was speaking at the launch of a series of three parenting workshops entitled 'One Small Move' which took place recently at the Grace and Staff's Homework Centre on Tower Street in downtown Kingston.
The Minister said that he had been very happy to accept Grace & Staff's offer to partner with the Ministry in its Values and Attitudes Programme. He went on to note that he was pleased that the company's focus was to be on parenting and family life.
"I have always believed that our young people provide the best opportunity for positive change but this can only happen if the adults in their lives can give them the support that they require. Too often children succeed in spite of us adults," Minister Whiteman said.
ONE SMALL MOVE
He explained that an important aspect of the partnership between Grace & Staff and the Ministry is the potential these workshops had to become a blueprint for similar programmes in other inner-city communities. 'One Small Move' is expected to generate educational videos, handbooks and workshop guides which can be used by schools and other non-government organisations across the island.
The workshops will be led by Winston 'Bello' Bell and Owen 'Blacka' Ellis, who drew up the programme. They describe the objective of the workshops as "exploring concerns and strategies for effective parenting, and the impact of individual values, attitudes and actions on family and community life." Ellis, who made a brief presentation on behalf of the workshop facilitators used the metaphor of the Emmanuel Road folk song which describes early 20th century Jamaican women who played an integral role in the road works programme by moving mountains of stones by a method in which a chain of women, each moving the stones for a short distance, accomplished what seemed an insurmountable task. "In this same way," Mr. Ellis explained, "we can make an impact if each of us makes an effort to improve our situation."
The participants will be drawn from Parade Gardens, which includes Rae Town, 'Southside' and 'Tel Aviv'. The first workshop will be implemented in Southside with the Parents of Inner-City Kids (PICK). Established in 1983, PICK consists of over 200 parents ranging in age from 17 to 50 years.
