News On The Go

Newly appointed President of the Rotary Club, Downtown Kingston, Robert Scott, has given his commitment that some 50 beds will be provided for the Marie Atkins Shelter, located on Hanover Street, in Kingston.

Scott made the announcement during the installation ceremony for the election of the Rotarians' executive body, last Saturday.

He added that his decision to lend support to the shelter, was born out of discussions with the Town Clerk, Robert Hill, and a visit to the site concretised the initiative.

Several fundraising events have been planned, he outlined, including an application for a grant to the District 7020, Grants Committee of Rotary International.

The Jamaican Diaspora in Canada through the Helping Hands Jamaica Foundation (HHJF), working closely with the Jamaican Consul General in Toronto and Food for the Poor Canada will be constructing the Wakefield Infant School in Trelawny and the Mount Pleasant Basic School in St Margaret's Bay in Portland.

Members from HHJF and the Toronto Carpenter's Union, some of whom are Jamaicans, have been in Trelawny since July 1, executing these projects.

"Over 4,000 children's lives have been touched by the generosity of our donors and supporters", says Karl Hale, president, HHJF. "This Trelawny build is the first of two this year. The second build is also in July (10-15) and will be in Portland."

Along with classrooms, kitchens and washrooms, the schools will include water catchment systems, fences and playgrounds.

The facility will be opened on Friday at the infirmary in Santa Cruz. The USAID-funded Jamaica Rural Economy and Ecosystems Adapting to Climate Change II (Ja REEACH II) project has been supporting the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development (MLGCD) to strengthen local capacity for climate and disaster risk management.

Ja REEACH II has boosted the water storage capacity of the infirmary through the provision of ten 1000-gallon water tanks. The newly installed facilities at the infirmaries are designed to capture rain water which will be stored and treated by the Municipal Corporation and gravity fed to the different buildings on premises. The additional storage capacity will improve the accessibility of water to the residents while reducing the costs associated with purchasing water from the National Water Commission.

Members of the public are invited to participate in the Caribbean Community's (CARICOM) 13th annual Road Race scheduled to take place on Saturday beginning at 6 a.m. at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St James.

The event is being held in conjunction with the 39th CARICOM Heads of Government Conference from July 4 to 6 at the Convention Centre.

The race, which will have a 5 km and 10 km component, will see runners heading west towards downtown Montego Bay, making the first left turn at Ironshore and returning to the Convention Centre.

Participants in the 5 km option of the race will take the same route, turning at the 2.5km mark and returning to the start.

Interested persons are required to register online at www.runningeventja.com or call Ricky Wisdom at (876) 967-4903 to request an entry form. There is no cost to participate.

The National Water Commission is advising customers in some sections of St Thomas who are served by the Easington Filter Plant, that they will experience a disruption in their service today.

The company will be carrying out necessary repairs on the network. The disruption will be between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Areas to be affected are Easington, Norris, Red Hills, Raywood and surrounding areas.