SUNDAY 1 JULY, 2018 – UWI TODAY
9
SOCIAL OUTREACH
The Invitation
The project coordinators are careful when they
discuss Farm Road. As social workers their focus is
on building people and the communities. They are
laser-like in intercepting anything that could be seen
as disempowering.
Dr Boodram points out, “A big part of the process
is using shared values of mutual respect and validation
of community knowledge”.
“In our profession we recognise that people are the
experts of their communities.They are the architects of
their future,” says Dr Boodram. “So the community’s
invitation to partner with them is important. We want
to support and enhance, but not take over.”
The team went into Farm Road, house by house,
meeting people.They asked residents what theywanted
for themselves.
“They were very excited and enthusiastic,” recalls
Mendoza. “They were really willing to share. One of
the things I remember them saying was: ‘You know
a lot of people come and go. Will you stay?’ We were
always guided by that.”
Based on these meetings they decided that helping
the children to complete high school was an achievable
goal with great benefit to the community.
Community work
During the 2017mid-year vacation, the clubhouse
of UWI’s Sports and Physical Education Centre
(SPEC) was filled with the sound of laughter and play.
Twenty-five children from Farm Road took part in a
week-long, all-expenses-paid, vacation camp courtesy
of the collaborative project.
“We focused on a lot of the issues raised by the
community,” Mendoza says, “things like conflict
management, etiquette, diligence and empathy.”
To the children and their families, it was much
more than an exercise in behavioural improvement.
“They really bought in. Thanks to the support of
the Deputy Principal we were able to send a shuttle to
pick them up. Every day the children would be well-
dressed, well-groomed and waiting with their family.”
With little dedicated funds for the project, the
UWI team had to be extremely resourceful in putting
the camp together. The project relied on support from
individuals, community-based organisations and
businesses who were seeking to make a difference
in communities. They asked family members for
assistance. They reached out to companies like
Sunshine Snacks, Vemco, Nestle, Prestige Holdings,
Mario’s Pizzeria and UWI staff, friends and family.
The support they received was enormous.
“We delivered a quality camp and sports day, and
had a field trip to the zoo,” says Mendoza.
Dr Boodram adds, “Everybody was able to give
what they could. It wasn’t a huge amount but when
you put it all together we were able to have a camp for
a week for 25 children that did not lack for anything.”
One week before the camp, the project held a
drapery and linen sewing skills training course at the
request of the women of FarmRoad under the auspices
of the School of Education.
Consistency
The centrepiece of the collaboration is the White
Tent Project. Every Friday, from 4 pm to 6 pm, the
social work team sets up a white tent at the edge of the
savannah in Farm Road. They help the children with
homework, play games with themand administer short
15- to 30-minute life skills sessions.
“One of the keys to our success is consistency,”
says Dr Boodram. “We have to be there all the time.
So we have basically dedicated our Friday evenings to
the project. The community does not have a central
area or community centre. So we put up the tent and
invite the children to come.”
There’s a resolute power in both Dr Boodram
and Mendoza, matched by their genuine concern for
people. Both see social work as their life’s calling.
“Social work chose me,” Mendoza laughs. “I grew
up in deep South, Palo Seco. We were a small village
but there was always a sense of community. We learned
that if the neighbour doesn’t have something, you
share.”
It’s the kind of commitment necessary to venture
deep into a community like Farm Road that faces
many challenges.
Dr Boodram says: “Every Friday people in the
community come and help us put up the tent. And at
six o’clock when they see us wrapping up, they come
and take down the tent.”
The members of the UWI project team say that
the people of Farm Road are good people, who like
everyone else have legitimate goals and ambitions,
love their family and want their community to prosper.
“When we went into Farm Road we met people
who genuinely wanted to do well. We saw people who
got up every morning and worked. We met people
who coped. We saw parents genuinely interested in
children’s school performance but not being able to
guide the child through homework,” Dr Boodram said.
Now that the project has been established, they
are looking ahead towards its expansion. The team
has identified three areas of focus – health equity,
education and life skills. The team wants to support
voluntarism and in-service learning from other
Faculties such as Food and Agriculture, Medicine and
Education.
The objective, they say, is for “young people to
have better life chances so the community becomes
more resilient.”
Homework and reading help is
all part of the ongoing UWI-Farm
Road Collaborative Project.
This hula hoop game was one of several trust-building games at
the Farm Road social work project on the afternoon of June 8.
PHOTO: ANN ALI
