Jamaican Orphanages

About 15 percent of Jamaican children live in crippling poverty.  More than 60 percent of 9 to 17 year-olds report that they had a family member who has been killed.  About 73,000 children on the island are orphans who have either lost one or both their parents (UNICEF defines an orphan as a child who has lost one parent).  It is typical for children with one parent to be living with little or no support from their surviving parent, due to poverty or the parent having HIV/AIDS.  Deacon Kevin’s Circle of Friends is partnering with two grass-roots organizations in Jamaica to fund two orphanages—one for girls and one for boys.

Reid’s Home of Hope will support 40 boys, ages 6 to 18 in a rural region of Jamaica.  Hughan Reid is a native of Jamaica and now lives in Rochester and teaches at East High School.  He has carefully developed a plan to build and operate the orphanage, which will cost $35,000 U.S. dollars to build.  The orphanage will include a residence hall, kitchen, restrooms, assembly hall, and playfields.

Ivaline Nickie operates an orphanage for girls… the Annie Dawson Home for Children in Kingston.  Deacon Kevin met Ivaline and learned of the orphanage she runs in honor of her parents, Annie and Dawson Nickie.  They always opened their home to children in need, sharing meals and bedrooms.  Ivaline was deeply impacted by this and dedicated her life to children.

The home currently serves 30 girls, ages 5 to 18, some of whom have physical and mental disabilities.  Ivaline’s agency, which runs the home, does not own the building and is in danger of losing it without an estimated $35,000 in private funding to purchase it.

Naming opportunities for Reid’s Home orphanage is available starting at $20,000.