Joseph Cunningham, Gleaner Writer
FLETCHERS LAND in western Kingston is currently a violence free community, according to its residents. However, they say this was not attained by sudden flight.
Concerned about deteriorating moral principles within Fletchers Land, a group of residents formed a committee with the aim of restoring pride to the community.
"The community had become divided because the residents did not have a representative that was appreciated by all," Carlton Powell, chairman of the Fletchers Land Management Benevolent Society (FLMBS), told Volunteer Today.
Mr. Powell said, initially a committee had been formed in the 1970s, however, it has developed into the FLMBS a consultative body that facilitates the needs of its residents and advocates on behalf of community-based organisations (CBOs).
UMBRELLA ORGANISATION
It is the umbrella organisation for all CBOs in Fletchers Land, a community comprising three distinct regions, and home to over 6,000 persons. The regions are Orange Villa, Beverly Gardens and Fletchers Proper, which begins along North Street and takes in parts of Orange Street, east across National Heroes Park, south along East Street, ending on North Street.
The organisation is registered under the Friendly Society Act of 1966, which stipulates that organisations registered under it should benefit their communities.
Training programmes are administered in conjunction with four other non-profit organisations Sistren Theatre Collective, Dispute Resolution Foundation, Youth Unlimited and the Rise Life Management Initiative.
In tandem with these NGOs, FLMBS offers training in cultural and dramatic expressions, remedial classes for adults, mentorship and homework sessions for students and lectures on dispute resolutions.
INSTILLING VALUES
Carlos Francis, a youth leader and part of the Fletchers Land Youth Club, told Volunteer Today, that it is a ritual for all students who are part of the youth club to be off the streets by 9:00 p.m. This he said was instilling the appropriate values for upward social mobility in the young people.
Francis is a beneficiary of the Fletchers Land Parenting Association's breakfast and lunch programme. He is comforted by the source of assistance to his mother who he explained, was not always able to provide breakfast or lunch money.
President of the association, Arlene Bailey, said its motto is 'Every child is your own', an initiative, which she said most adults within the community have welcomed. The Fletchers Land premier football league is also a highly anticipated annual event put on by the FLMBS.
The Ministry of National Security spearheads all FLMBS programmes. Other financial support comes from fund-raising projects hosted by residents.
To contact the Fletchers Land Management Benevolent Society, call Carlton Powell at
358-5293.
