Inmates to receive musical instruments FOOD FOR the Poor, one of the island's largest charitable organisations, is providing inmates at three of the local prisons with musical equipment to form a band at each of the institutions. Bradley Finzi-Smith, Execu-tive Director of the organisation says the gesture is in keeping with its commitment to help with the rehabilitation efforts in the local prisons. Inmates at three prisons -- Tamarind Farm prison, St. Catherine District Prison and Richmond Farm Prison in St. Mary --are to benefit. All three institutions have already been presented with a complete drum set, a mixer, tape decks, bass and lead guitars, amplifiers, microphones, microphone stands, keyboard, banjo, monitors, stage boxes, tambourines, equalisers, trombones, clarinet, a saxophone, two crossovers and a host of smaller items and accessories such as wiring materials. Mr. Finzi-Smith said each set of equipment was acquired overseas at an equivalent cost of roughly $500,000. He said the decision to acquire them for the inmates came after a visit to Richmond Farm late last year, when a request was made for such equipment. "Knowing that the other two institutions had the same need, it was decided to source three sets of the same equipment for the three prisons, as this, we knew, would significantly boost the rehabilitation programmes inside the prisons, which is very important to us." Reacting to the presentation to his institution, Superintendent Gillette Ramsay, of the St. Catherine District Prison, said it was heartwarming to receive such a 'meaningful contribution, which I have no doubt that the inmates will appreciate." Noting that the prison chapel in which the equipment was being presented had also been donated by Food for the Poor, Superintendent Ramsay said the series of donations from the organisation over the years "must surely be a blessing from God."
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