Mentorship Update: Jamaica Day!!

May, 2022

Earlier this year, YMM hosted a festive “Jamaica Day” event for our mentees. The themed day was focused on creating greater cultural awareness for our youth- giving them an opportunity to not just learn more about their Jamaican traditions, but also partake in them.

The day began with a traditional Jamaican snack consisting of “chocolate tea” and crackers, providing extra energy for a vibrant round of good ol’ fashioned Jamaican singing and Bible discussions.

Mentors covered a brief history of the motto and the National Pledge, and explained exactly what it means to be a citizen of Jamaica, and how this role should be viewed and treated.

Jamaican proverb trivia, story time and other fun activities led into a delicious jerk chicken lunch which was followed by a round of Ring Ding and traditional games like Farmer in the Dell.

As the day drew to a close, the children had yet another treat in store-a table with classic Jamaican desserts-coconut drops and pink pon top (Jamaican grater cake). The day ended in style with a concert and fashion show featuring Jamaican themed clothing from the YMM thrift store-beautifully modeled by our very own mentee models.

The takeaway for the event was that as Jamaicans, “we likkle but we tallawah”, which means that although we are a small island nation, we are present and well regarded on the world stage. So it is with us as individuals, we may be young, or small in stature, and not appear to have much to offer, but each of us has greatness inside, and with God as our Saviour, Father and guide we can do anything that He has gifted and called us to do. By talking to God, He will direct us in the way that we need to go.

As an assignment, the mentees were asked to research the rights of a Jamaican citizen and to return to our next session knowing the Jamaican Anthem and Pledge, and having an understanding of how these relate to them as citizens and how they should direct our conduct and impact various aspects of our lives.