Man wants help for ailing grandmother

Devoted grandson Jeffrey Graham is seeking help for his visually impaired grandmother, who lives with him in Islington, St Mary.

Graham, a 36-year-old baker and welder, said that his grandmother has been taking care of him for as long as he can remember and now it is his turn to take care of her.

Graham's 78-year-old grandmother, Muriel Shand, known to most as Ma B, suffers from arthritis alongside hearing and sight issues.

"I not doing well, not doing well at all. Is bare pain on my left side. Everyday a just pain, pain and rash all up on my side and my back.," Ma B said. "Only thing me can do is be grateful fi life. Is my grandson come help me and one and two time mi neighbour will come cross and help me out with any likkle ting, so me just grateful."

SHADOW OF FORMER SELF

Graham said that his grandmother used to be the life of the community, but now is a shadow of her former self.

"Everybody can tell you bout her. She just used to nice and helpful. She make her roots and do her likkle farming and anything you need a she dat."

Graham told THE WEEKEND STAR that his inability to be of greater help to his grandmother weighs heavily on his heart.

"A she me grow wid enuh. She used to sell har roots, cause everybody know har as roots woman, and send me go school. She used to do likkle farming too, but a mainly the roots," Graham said.

"But from di sight start go and she get the arthritis she cyah really do nothing, so a just me."

He said that he can't provide for her the way he would like because he does not have a steady job.

"Mi a baker so me do that whenever me get a chance. Mi do baking under contract ... but you know that anuh all the time. Mi did a do a likkle welding too, until mi machine broke, and me cyah fix it miself, and it too expensive fi mi send it guh fix, so me just lowe that."

INSUFFICIENT

Graham said he has been successful in getting his grandmother on the poor relief programme, PATH, but the amount she gets is insufficient to meet her needs.

"Nuh too long she did take sick and after we guh doctor dem a say a bad gas she have [and it is] 'cause more while she nah eat nuh cook food cause we nuh really have it. More while a just likkle hot water we haffi drink and wull it."

Graham is desperate for help so he can change his grandmother's situation.

"Mi just want a job, a steady job and a home fi har weh me naffi worry since the one weh she inna blow down inah the last storm. A just me affi kotch it up fi it cover har, so me really just want a place fi she live and work so me can take care a har."

He said that they were lucky to have been spared the wrath of Tropical Storm Grace on Tuesday.

"Other than a just likkle breeze blow up the zinc and so on, when the rain ease up we put it back," Graham said. "We did mostly dry cause we set pan fi di leaks and when it ease up we empty them."

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Jeffrey Graham may be contacted via telephone at (876) 257-7682