Teen looking to expand ‘Nourishing Neighbours with Helping Hands’ charity

Fifteen-year-old student and philanthropist Sherinae Brown, following a successful third year of Christmas street feeding, is moving to register as a non-profit organisation her initiative dubbed ‘Nourishing Neighbours with Helping Hands’.

Brown, along with youth volunteers, fed over 80 homeless people in the Corporate Area on Christmas Day and says she will heed the call to continue feeding the vulnerable group more often.

When she began what started out as a Christmas Day meal sharing, the Immaculate Conception High School student did not have a name for the initiative and was just exercising her joy of giving.

After three years of trial, test and proof, she is now sold on making it a life-changing goal to impact the lives of the less fortunate on a bigger scale.

“I was just brainstorming one of those days with my mom and we came up with a few ideas. She gave me the idea of the name and I said it has a nice tag to it, so let’s use this name,” Brown told The Gleaner.

This year Ackeef Nugent, a teen visionary from Cockburn Gardens, joined Brown and eight other volunteers on the road cheerfully giving out meals.

Nugent garnered national attention this year following his efforts to instill education in his peers and children in his violence-torn community.

“We cooked a large pot of food, rice and chicken and included mixed vegetables into the food. We boxed them and went out and gave to the homeless from Stony Hill all the way to New Kingston,” Brown said.

Brown said all the recipients were extremely grateful.

“I saw a smile on their faces and it really enlightened my day. They were really thankful and taken aback that I am a young person and I had more youngsters on my team. It was inspiring once again and opened my eyes to the point that a lot of persons don’t have the chance to eat a good Christmas dinner,” Brown said, adding that her gift of giving came from God.

She was grateful for those who came on board to make the initiative a success, including councillor for the Stony Hill division, Tasha Schwapp; her school principal, Mrs Reynolds; parents and church family.

“We got some sponsors, we got some contributions and we went ahead as planned,” Brown said.

For the new year, Brown says the goal is not to limit Nourishing Neighbours with Helping Hands to just Christmas.

“I’d like to do it more often, get more people involved and get other sponsors on board. I intend to make it a non-profit organisation and work with other groups,” Brown said.

Recent moves to tighten the oversight of Jamaican charities have not been enough to satisfy money laundering watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which wants a more comprehensive approach to ensure that they are not being exploited.

Brown has been doing research and following the debate surrounding charitable organisations and is encouraging stakeholders to play by the rules so that she may have a seat at the table.

Brown said: “I’m hoping and praying to God, please to make everything go through for next year and even though there may be scrutiny towards organisations, I would really like for there to be a more open mind and thought towards us, and charities.”

She said while there are charities that focus on helping those in the homes and shelters with meals and basic items, she finds that a lot more help is needed for the homeless population in Jamaica.

Brown, a devoted Christian, told The Gleaner that little is much once God is in it.

“You might be as small as I or even younger and make a big impact on the world. Don’t limit yourself to what you can based on age. I’m just 15 and I know a lot of people my age are shy of doing things and think they can’t. Sowing seeds is what God wants us to do as his children. The little you can do for someone can make a big difference,” Brown said, citing herself as living testimony.

Earlier this month Brown, Nugent and 11 other students were among 29 recipients of the inaugural Children’s Advocate Recognition Award held at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel.

The youths, hailed as “extraordinary children”, were honoured alongside 16 adults from various disciplines who have impacted the lives of Jamaican children over time.

Children’s Advocate Diahann Gordon Harrison bestowed the honour on Brown for her feeding initiative.

andre.williams@gleanerjm.