I agree with Rob about teaching a man to fish......but he has to eat while he learns.
My wife and I have known Lenbert for a few years and have been on a dozen or so pub crawls. We have brought school supplies, toys, backpacks etc. to the children of Jamaica. A couple of years ago Lenbert and I had a discussion about what we could bring that would help the children the most. Lenbert's reply was "musical instruments". I thought it was an odd request but I realized that children that have an interest in music actually do better in school and are more focused. By bringing musical instruments and hopefully getting the kids interested in music, we can help them in other areas as well. We look forward to hearing the orchestra someday and to know we had a little help getting it started.
So far the wife and I have brought more than 50 instruments to Lenbert. We don't pass them out to the kids, but we turn them over to Lenbert to let him get them into the correct hands. After our last trip, Lenbert posted a video of all the kids on the bus playing our musical instruments after a day at the beach. Not one child knew how to play an instrument but the cacophony of noise was music to our ears. I can't stop smiling every time I watch that video. We are already stockpiling instruments for our November trip and can't wait to turn them over to Lenbert. I have promised him that with every trip we will bring better quality instruments each time.
Giving is a good thing, but give intelligently. We hope by our giving of musical instruments at least one child will become focused in school and possibly even excel in music and their education. We love Jamaica and we trust Lenbert to do what he thinks is best for his community. His love for his community and his commitment to help his neighbors is one of the things we have come to love about Lenbert and the spirit of the people of Jamaica.
We look forward to many more trips to Negril and to giving back as much as we can to the people and place we have come to love.
One Love and Jah Bless!
