Good Samaritans 5K Run/Walk to Aid Children with Special Needs

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr. is appealing to members of the public to support the Good Samaritan 5K Run/Walk, geared at raising funds to procure a bus to support children with special needs.

The bus, valued at over $6 million, will be used to transport Community-Based Rehabilitation Jamaica (CBRJ) staff as they visit various communities to provide services for special needs children and their families.

Speaking at the recent media launch of the 5K event at CBRJ’s offices at 14 Monk Street in Spanish Town, St. Catherine, Minister Charles Jr. said that by empowering organisations like CBRJ, children with special needs get an opportunity to access resources that can help them to thrive.

“Our goal must be to create more avenues for access to education, therapy, access to healthcare, access to opportunity, to dignity, to independence. It’s about moving the barriers that we have created so people can get an opportunity to do what they can do,” he added.

The Minister said that the collaboration between the Good Samaritan and CBRJ provides a blueprint for how the Government can better partner with similar organisations to reach more people in need.

“The Government must better utilise the church network in reaching the people, in defining the initiatives, in creating the impact, in ensuring that we extend across the communities and that we give access to all children, particularly our rural children who have a significant disadvantage,” he said.

Minister Charles further lauded the work of both organisations in providing critical support to disadvantaged children, adding that their efforts serve as a living example of the principles that underpin our Christian society and the belief that all people are children of God.

Minister Charles Jr. said plans are also being put in place to help parents with disabled children with capacity training to develop coping skills and strategies.

“We’re starting out with 250 parents and caregivers to train them in the care and development of their children with disabilities. We’re also going to enhance specialised support by engaging specialised personnel, and we’re getting some support from overseas to help with that,” he shared.

Project Manager of CBRJ, Sandrea Long White, welcomed the support from the Good Samaritan 5K Run/Walk, noting that the bus is a critical resource for conducting outreach exercises.

She noted that not having a vehicle for the past three years has negatively impacted the organisation’s ability to reach children within the various communities.

“We need to take the staff within the communities to have oral assessment and intervention clinics. We need to take the staff within the rural communities to be able to go into the homes and see the children [to] take the children to, say, a clinic, provide the therapy, whatever is needed to support the children and their families,” she said.

Mrs. Long White also encouraged others to come on board in supporting the organisation’s efforts to improve the lives of the nation’s children with disabilities.

The 5K Run/Walk will he held on Sunday, August 30 at 29 Hope Road starting at 6:00 a.m.

Persons interested in participating can register by visiting https://my.raceresult.com/362610/.

The CBRJ is a non-governmental community-based organisation that provides early-childhood education and therapeutic intervention for more than 600 students with disabilities in five centres across three parishes.

The Good Samaritan 5K Health Run/Walk is an annual charity event hosted by the Andrews Memorial Seventh-day Adventist Church to raise funds to support vulnerable populations, special-needs children, and community health initiatives across Jamaica.