January was an exciting month for the JPS Foundation. Don't just take our word for it, read all about it in the second issue of the Foundation's newsletter, Connection!
THE JPS FOUNDATION “SHOW UP!” JPS PRESIDENT & CEO, KELLY TOMBLIN, URGES YOUNG WOMEN LEADERS PAGE 3 RENNOCK LODGE SCHOOL OPENS PAGE 6 A PUBLICATION OF THE JPS FOUNDATION NO. 2 FEBRUARY 2014 WWW.MYJPSFOUNDATION.ORG BUSTAMANTE GETS eSMART PAGE 4 FOR THE LOVE OF OUR CHILDREN Tracy-Ann Lewis, JPS Business Analyst, reads with this child at the White Marl Primary and Junior High School in St. Catherine on Tuesday January 28. See more highlights on Page 8. TRELAWNY SPRUCES UP MODEL SCHOOL PAGE 7 Call 935-3514/935-3513. [email protected]. facebook.com/myjpsfoundationja. twitter.com/myjpsfoundation
Transcript
THE JPS FOUNDATION
“SHOW UP!” JPS PRESIDENT & CEO, KELLY TOMBLIN,
URGES YOUNG WOMEN LEADERS PAGE 3
RENNOCK LODGE SCHOOL OPENS
PAGE 6
A PUBLICATION OF THE JPS FOUNDATION NO. 2 FEBRUARY 2014 WWW.MYJPSFOUNDATION.ORG
BUSTAMANTE GETS eSMART
PAGE 4
FOR THE LOVE OF OUR CHILDREN Tracy-Ann Lewis, JPS Business Analyst, reads with this child at the White Marl Primary and Junior High School in St. Catherine on Tuesday January 28. See more highlights on Page 8.
ON January 23, the JPS Corporate Communications and Foundation teams watched the midday screening of Girl Rising at the Institute of Jamaica in support of the Althea Laing-led "Self Esteem and Image Enhancement Work-shop for Girls". The documentary is gripping to say the least. It tells the stories of nine girls from around the world who face arranged marriages, child slavery, and other heart-breaking injustices. Despite these obstacles, the brave girls offer hope and inspiration. By getting an education, they're able to break barriers and create change. The stories of these nine girls deliver a simple, critical truth: Educate Girls and you will Change the World. Watching this film further brought home the fact that while
as a people many of us suffer, we are still fortunate in having the freedom to access what to others in the world is unattainable. We invite you to attend a spe-cial screening of Girl Rising here at the Corporate Office on Tues-day February 18 at 12:30 p.m. in the HR Conference Room. We’ve also gone a step further to help our own children with the Heart to Heart Valentine’s pro-motion. By purchasing a heart you are pledging your love to a student and helping to fund our Model Schools project which aims to provide quality learning environments for basic school children On Pages 6 and 7 you will read of the progress being made with our Model Schools and you can help us achieve more — simply for the love of our children.
THE JPS Foundation has embarked on cross country road show and what a show it has been! St. Thomas gave us a delicious reception with a full Ackee and Salt Mackerel breakfast. It was also in St. Thomas that the idea of Foundation Liaisons was formed, when Parish Manager Mr. Oswald Smiley nominated Natoya Mighty-Smith for the role. Our next stop in St. Catherine was the most interesting to date, partly due to the impassioned input by one team member.
KSAN followed with a lovely turnout that almost got side-tracked by the unseen, but still very felt, presence of a resident croaking lizard! Then we took on the West! On January 16 we were greeted by a ‘vibesy’ turn-out in St. Ann in the morning; In Trelawny, we had an ‘awwww’ moment when a team member upped his donation from $700 to $1,200, and in Montego Bay we were told by another that he was now “inspired” to give back!
Following a restful night at El Greco, we visited Westmoreland —home of CHAMPION VOLUN-TEER, JULITTE REEVES, then later we met a dedicated team member in Hanover who humbly said his donation was small but he would give more when he could. Back in the East, next was KSAN where Foundation Manager, Nathelie Taylor was told she rivalled ‘Jenny Jenny’! Portland was perhaps the most heart-warming as four unlikely heroes unhesitatingly donated
$4,000 in cash, while at our final stop in St. Mary, Oneil Lewis left us motivated with his story of volun-teerism. It’s been great visiting you all and meeting such wonderful people in the process. Thanks for all your suggestions and contributions — we appreciate it all! In February, we eagerly look for-ward to visiting the remaining par-ishes in Region South — Portmore, Clarendon, Manchester and St. Elizabeth. We can hardly wait for this experience. See you soon!
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THE four inductees of the JPS Foundation Young Women Lead-ers Programme got an inspiring start to their 12-month leader-ship training when they met with JPS President & CEO, Kelly Tom-blin, on January 10. In this their first Leadership Development Session, Shana-Kay Cunningham (UWI), Alshadane Wright (NCU), Kemesha Vassell (UTech) and Angelique Gardener (JTS) learnt that the gender gap that exists in corporate Jamaica is promulgated by women not being afforded or taking the op-portunity to bridge that divide. “We face the challenge of older companies being led by men who grew up under a different paradigm. We also see where women often lack established business networks. Most often too, women face an internal hur-dle in developing the needed confidence and determination to step into leadership roles. I chal-lenge you to change all of this.” Ms. Tomblin went on to encour-age the ladies to step up, close the gender gap and simply show
up and take their places as lead-ers in Jamaica. “Even when women reach high executive levels, they do not aspire to Board seats. Women continue to be underrepresented in leadership roles. But I chal-lenge you to show up! Showing up is winning half the battle. Re-member it is when you feel the fear that you lean in.” Alshadane Wright, the youngest of the quartet of participants at age 17, was moved by the presentation to step into her greatness. “It was very informative. I was very motivated and strength-ened to face life’s challenges. I now see opportunities different-ly. I am looking forward to the rest of the programme and this development journey. The next Development Session takes place on Friday February 7, when founder of Future Services Limited and Executive Producer of business reality show The In-novators, Yaneek Page, address-es the topic of ‘Ideation, Innova-tion and Risks in Leadership’.
3. YOUTH LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
JPS President & CEO, Kelly Tomblin, urges young women leaders to take their place
Angelique Gardener, Alshadane Wright and Shana-Kay Cunningham listen to Kemesha Vassell during the session.
JAMAICA’S only specialist pediat-ric hospital, Bustamante Hospital for Children, now stands to bene-fit from improved energy manage-ment, as the institution was re-cently presented with access to the cutting edge energy manage-ment tool, JPS eSmart. The eSmart application is an online portal, hosted by Utilismart from Canada which provides a similar service to other North American utilities and Companies. The software will allow the hospi-tal to monitor energy usage, as frequently as every 15-minutes, analyze trends and gauge the effectiveness of energy conserva-tion initiatives. The donation was made courtesy of the JPS Founda-tion and the eStore. The presentation saw access to the software application being officially handed over to the Chair-man of the South East Regional Health Authority (SEHRA), Mr. Lyttleton ‘Tanny’ Shirley, by JPS’ Senior Vice President for Custom-er and Corporate Services, Sheree Martin. Speaking at the handing over ceremony, Mrs. Martin noted that the JPS Foundation is about em-powering and educating fellow
Jamaicans. “We want our customers to ben-efit from energy efficiency, in ad-dition to an improved customer experience,” she said. Chairman of SEHRA, Mr. Shirley, in addressing the gathering, stressed that energy saving is high on the country’s agenda, observ-ing that it will involve an educa-tional process in addition to vari-ous measures being undertaken, to successfully bring about the changes in energy costs, that we wish to see. Meanwhile, JPS Director of Sales and Marketing, Garth McKenzie, pointed out that optimal energy management would ultimately mean more funds available, to undertake the tasks of the organi-zation which practices efficiency. This he noted, tied in well with the JPS’ objective of providing an energy solution for all Jamaicans.
BUSTAMANTE GETS eSMART
4. COMMUNITY
“We want our customers to benefit
from energy efficiency, in addition
to an improved customer experience.”
Here, the application is tested by the stakeholders.
ABOVE: JPS’ Senior Vice President
for Customer and Corporate Services,
Sheree Martin, presents Chairman of
the South East Regional Health Authori-
ty (SEHRA), Mr. Lyttleton ‘Tanny’
Shirley with the software application.
5. FEATURE
‘High VOLTage’ is a monthly feature that shares brief profiles about our Volunteers On Location To Serve (VOLTS) who are operating at the highest levels in ser-vice to others! This month, Connection features Roderick Keating, Field Services Technician in St. Thomas, who inspires us all. His was the first parish the Foundation team visited in their Road Show series, so it’s apt to start with him. Volunteering is not just important to Roderick; it’s soothing to his spirit. Bob Marley’s quote “If my life is for me one, mi no want it”, is what drives him to give back. One of his most memorable VOLTS moment is his participation in the clean up after Hurricane Sandy which he described as “a family thing.” Giving back was something he saw demonstrated by family members, especially an uncle, and he sees volunteering as showing true love and unity. Thanks Roderick, for all you do! Want a ‘High VOLTage’ volunteer to be featured? Just nomi-nate that person — stating name and reason for nomination — by Monday March 3, 2014 and we’ll take care of the rest!
FEBRUARY 11 JPS Foundation Road Show — Spanish Town Parish office FEBRUARY 12 Ribbon-Cutting at Falmouth Gardens Basic School FEBRUARY 13 JPS Foundation Road Show — Clarendon Parish office FEBRUARY 14 Valentine’s Day treats FEBRUARY 18 JPS Foundation Road Show — Portmore Parish office FEBRUARY 18 ‘Girl Rising’ movie screening (Corporate Office) FEBRUARY 19 JPS Foundation Road Show — St. Elizabeth Parish office FEBRUARY 24 JPS Foundation Road Show — Manchester Parish office
What’s on!
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6. EDUCATION
PRESENT-DAY: NEW HOME! Principal of the school, Mrs. Jacqueline Lewis, greets the tiny tots in their own new space in January. For years, the early childhood stu-dents were taught in the school’s library, a situation that was not conducive to learning. department.
The JPS Foundation’s third established Model School Project — the Infant De-partment at the Rennock Lodge All Age School — officially opened its doors to students for the January 2014 term. The students were formerly housed in the school’s library because the facilities in the Infant Department were not con-ducive to learning. To facilitate this hap-pening, the JPS Foundation tiled the classrooms and fenced the perimeter of the Infant school. Fixtures were also installed in the teachers’ restroom to allow completion. Principal of the school, Mrs. Jacquel-ine Lewis, expressed her gratitude. “We have needed this for so long! We thank the JPS Foundation and its hard-working staff, especially Omar Thomas who worked tirelessly to make this a reality for our children.” It is still a project in motion, however, as the fence is to be painted in the school colours and new windows to be installed in the classrooms. A specially-designed playground is also to be creat-ed. Another important focus area will be making the institution into a model school for energy usage. This will include infrastructure up-grade; wiring the school for electricity, as needed; retrofitting the school to use only energy efficient lighting (LED) and working with the institution to ensure it manages its usage and keeps its energy costs as low as possible.
FLASHBACK: THE WALL IN CONSTRUCTION Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, the Honourable Phillip Paulwell (right), lays a block to help complete the wall at the entrance of the infant department of the School as JPS President and CEO, Kelly Tomblin, looks on during the work day in November 2013.
PRESENT-DAY: SECURE! The completion of the new wall and gate at the school was the realisation of the Foun-dation’s commitment to making the infant school a safe and se-cure environment for the students, in keeping with standards set by the Early Childhood Commission.
PRESENT-DAY: NEW HOME! Principal of the school, Mrs. Jacqueline Lewis, greets the tiny tots in their own new space in January. For years, the early childhood stu-dents were taught in the school’s library, a situation that was not conducive to learning. department.
7. EDUCATION
THE children of the Falmouth Gardens Basic School — the JPS Foundation Model School for Region West — now have a delightfully new and safe playground to romp to their hearts’ desires, thanks in part to the Trelawny VOLTS (Volunteers on Location to Serve) who executed a successful work day on Sunday January 19. Bedecked in their beautiful yellow shirts and armed with an array of tools, the team focused on putting the finishing touches to
the exterior of the school. Specific attention was given to painting the wonderful play structures on the specially-designed Play-ground, rendering the fencing and doing general landscaping and beautification to the yard. This work day was a cost-efficient mission. Team members in the West galvanised their fundraising prowess to raise $30,000 which in January bought paint, building materials and refreshments for themselves on the
work day. Top soil and plants were also do-nated by businesses in the area, which fur-ther went to off set the staggering cost of $120,000. The contractor, Schheed Cole, who designed and constructed the uniquely-styled playground also assisted by donating garden benches for the children to sit out-doors. This was the second donation he made to the project, the first being an addi-tional piece of play equipment which he installed free of cost in 2013.
… York Town Basic on track to completion too! THE JPS Foundation’s first Model School Project, the York Town Basic School in Clar-endon, has undergone further development since its launch in August 2013. Through the Foundation’s intervention, the school got electricity for the first time in
2013. Several months later, a fundraiser was held which led to them receiving a stove and a freezer. To enhance the school’s functionality and the students’ and teachers’ comfort, fans are set to be in-stalled in the classrooms.
The major focus now, however, is on safety and security, with a proper fence to be in-stalled. This is in keeping with operational standards set by the Early Childhood Com-mission, stipulating the conditions required from all early childhood institutions.
8. EDUCATION
JPS VOLTS SHARE STORYTIME WITH STUDENTS
Students at the White Marl Primary & Junior High School in St. Catherine were ‘edutained’ on Tuesday January 28 when a team of JPS VOLTS visited the school to read with them during their special Reading Day. In addition to being thrilled by the stories, the students also received gifts of books and pencils. Here are the highlights.
9. COMMUNITY
LENNOX Paline is JPS’ champion walker! The Senior Security Officer, who is based at our Portmore branch, shares that walking is among his favourite things to do, noting that “I love to walk! I do a lot of walking every day. It’s one of my strengths and I enjoy it a lot.” It was with little surprise then that this passion of his led to winnings at Sunday’s LIME Foundation 6K when he strongly walked his way to second place in the 40-49 Walk Race Category. The event was supported by the JPS Foundation and Paline was among other JPS colleagues – including an enthused contingent from the Portmore office led by Manager Cecile McCor-mack along with senior executives Kelly Tomblin, Keith Garvey and Winsome Callum – who took on the challenge of walking or running in support of purchasing a fluoroscope for the Bustamante Hospital for Children. Beautifully bedecked in bright yellow JPS-branded T-shirts complemented by megawatt smiles, the JPS team
assembled early at the Waterford High School on the cool Sunday morning, eager to get those legs going in their event of choice. At the blow of the whistles indicating the start of the respective races just shortly after 7:00 a.m., the group began their treks for charity,
with all completing the course within an hour. “I was very excited to do the walk when Mrs. McCormack
told me about it,” Paline explains. “This was my first time doing a 6K but I was glad to
join the Portmore team in this activity because it was for a very good cause – the children at the Busta-mante Hospital.” He admits, however, that while he was keeping a good pace during the race, a slight stop to get a drink deprived him of the ultimate win in his age group.
“The only reason why I came second is because I eased up a bit and this guy who was behind me all
along just slipped past me. Even so, I feel good about participating and representing for my team here and the
JPS Foundation. I feel very good about it.”
LENNOX PALINE COPS AWARD IN LIME FOUNDATION 6K
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