Community Outreach in Roxanne Burnham Gardens

The Ministry of Social Protection’s Probation and Social Services Department held an outreach for youths in the community of Roxanne Burnham Gardens today. This is the third community outreach of this nature that the department has held for the year 2017.

Present from the Ministry of Social Protection was Senior Probation Officer, Debra Joseph and Probation and Social Services Officer, Joel Gibson and Probation and Social Services Officer, Pamela Atwell. While, representatives from the community clubs, Assistant Coach Elijah Newton from the Roxanne Burnham Football Team and Coach Samson Gilbert from the Tavel Foundation Youth Academy Club collected the footballs.

Based on the community structure and youth make up, various issues are dealt with through short pep-talks before the official handing over of sport gears to the youths of the various communities through sport clubs.

For the community of Roxanne Burnham, the sport is football. The prevalence of this sport was expressed by the number of youth dressed in football clothing and gathered to listen to what the Ministry of Social Protection’s Probation and Social Service Department had to say.

For this venue held on the play field of Roxanne Burnham, Pamela Atwell dealt with the focus topic of Peer Pressure. She adamantly encouraged the youth to hold fast to their religious morals and stated that “If you remember your religious values and morals, whether through family, church, mosque or temple it helps with your development and when you remember these values you will not easily bow to peer pressure.” Atwell also encouraged the youths to foster an appetite to attain a good education and to stay focused on their dreams. To the parents present at the gathering she asked that they be good role models to their children. Meanwhile Debra Joseph in her address, admonished the youths to “keep good company and drop negative friends like a bad habit.”

Most people have a story to tell about how they came about their passion in life and there is no difference when it comes to Coach Samson Gilbert on how his football club got started. He explained that Tavel Foundation was started in 2016 and named after his son who met with a fatal Motor accident on the East Ruimveldt main road or Backroad as commonly known.

He shared his success as a coach in being able to produce a player that travelled to the United States in an under 17 tournament capacity and another who was able to attend another tournament in the Virgin Islands in just a few months span after the club’s opening. Children in his club are predominantly from the East Ruimveldt and Roxanne Burnham area but are not limited to those areas. The club is described by the Coach as one with a player centered approach with a frame work for development. “It is a medium to reach out to young people and develop their life skill… to discipline them in areas that will help them to contribute meaningfully to themselves and to the development of this country”

In his response to the ceremonial handing over of footballs, he expressed warmhearted thanks to the Ministry of Social Protection on receiving the football on behalf of his club and stated that he hopes a relationship between the Ministry of Social Protection and the children in the community can be built to aid in facilitating their life skills and their social development to society.

The aim of Ministry of Social Protection’s Probation and Social Services Community Outreach Program is to encourage youths to develop healthy social lives through social aid and support through established community system and framework.