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| Children with Lorna Stanley at the Operation Restoration Christian School, Rema |
Trench Town is one of the major inner-cities in which OSJ has been involved.
Outlined below are some of the ways in which OSJ has helped so far:
OSJ played a prominent role in establishing a pastors' fraternal in Trench Town so as to initiate a united effort to transform the community. The pastors continue to meet every second Thursday under the leadership of Pastor Errol Henry. This fraternal continues to be very active: one of the major events held by the fraternal this year was a crusade at which over a thousand persons attended and many responded to the call of the gospel.
We have also been involved in a number of outreach campaigns, one of the first being the visit of Nicky Cruz in May 1999. After sharing the OSJ vision with the National Intercessory Prayer Network of Jamaica (NIPNOJ), they got involved in praying and fasting for the community once a month. The have continued this for five years.
OSJ has played a vital role in supporting Operation Restoration with professional, financial and spiritual help and advice. This ministry, based in Rema, includes:
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| Children with Lorna Stanley at the Operation Restoration Christian School, Rema |
Recently the school rose in the esteem of the community with nine passes out of ten in the Grade Nine Achievement Test.
This outcome is not only positively viewed by the community but also by agencies such as the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica (EFJ), the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) and by the Member of Parliament for the area Dr. Omar Davies.
Lorna Stanley, the founder/director of Operation Restoration, is regarded as a matriarch of the community and is an activist for positive change. This was recently evident when the Rema community asked her to speak on their behalf on national television to state emphatically that they would not retaliate after the brutal slaying of two young twins, their older sister and her unborn child.
OSJ has played a supporting role in the re-opening of the Hugh Sherlock Centre in Rema. An organisation called PORROTT (People's Outreach (Rema) Reform Organisation of Trench Town) has been established by Larry Alexander, one of the directors of OSJ, to further develop the centre.
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| A few of the people who attended the rap session in Rema, 17 Feb 03 |
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| A few of the people who attended the first rap session in Federal Gardens, 18 Feb 03 |
A few discussion sessions have been held in Trench Town between OSJ and members of the community. The purpose of these sessions is to share alternative ways of thinking, to listen to their concerns and seek out practical ways in which we can help. Recently one was held in the Rema area and on 18 Feb 2003 we held the first in the Federal Gardens area, with Les Isaac, our guest from the UK, giving helpful input. The event was met with interest and a positive attitude and our plan is to hold these sessions on a regular basis in order to build our relationship with the people. It is now our challenge to respond to the issues they have highlighted. Also, there is great tension between the two communities and at the appropriate point we hope to play a role and breaking down the barriers to bring sustainable harmony.
OSJ, along with other church-related bodies, has helped establish a chicken farm in the community. More of these are required and so we are working with other groups seeking to establish these.
As well as increasing our general levels of support in Trench Town, our main aim for the future is to pull the pastors and community workers together to compose a unified, strategic plan to impact the area. This is likely to be through the OSJ community transformation programme which you can read about on the Communities page of OSJ's Objectives.