Former youth offender now mentor … Experience in incarceration has put Scottmore Richardson on a new path

As a business operator, 20-year-old Scottmore Richards is able to give back to his family, but as a volunteer involved in several mentorship programmes, the third-year university student loves the fact that he is also actively giving back to his country.

It was his incarceration at a juvenile facility five years ago that helped to create both opportunities. His experience, while unfortunate, taught him tenacity.

During his six-week stay at the Metcalfe Street Juvenile Remand Centre, Richards was introduced to the ‘A New Path’ programme started by the Organisation of American States (OAS) and USAID. Under this programme, he was granted the opportunity to start his own business.

“We went on a weeklong camp, where they helped us to prepare for a pitch because we had to face a panel of judges to pitch our ideas. During that time, they assisted us in getting our business plan, getting our pitch forward, and stuff like that. I think it was about like 40 of us,” he recalled.

Richards decided he wanted to start a poultry business, and with the assistance of his assigned case manager, he was able to achieve this.

“Before I went on the camp, I went around and did my research to find out prices and got invoices for materials, and stuff like that, and found out who would support my business. Essentially, I tried to find my target market,” he said.

The judges were pleased with his presentation, and the juvenile offender was granted $300,000, which he used to start McRich Poultry Production in May Pen, Clarendon.

“My target market is persons within the community, restaurants, supermarkets because I have a few supermarkets that I supply chickens to, and, of course, corner shops in and around the community. The demand is very high. I just need some more funds to expand at this time,” he said.

Richards was granted $100,000 last year by the Institute of Law and Economy, which also sponsored the ‘A New Path’ programme. This money has been invested in the business so that he can expand into selling eggs.

OUR ECONOMY IS SHORT OF ENGINEERS

Richards will be entering third year at the University of Technology, where he is pursuing a major in structural engineering and a minor in construction management.

“I realise that our economy is short of engineers because our engineers, most of them they migrate and start working in countries overseas, and we need engineers. We need our youths to know that we can actually change our country by ourselves. We don’t need others to really come in and solve our situations and solve our problems,” he told The Sunday Gleaner while on a lunch break from his summer job/internship recently at the Department of Building Projects at the Ministry of National Security in Kingston.

“I believe that in being an engineer, I can actually help in aiding the design and development of Jamaica and help it to be a better place where persons would want to live, work, and raise children.”

Although financing his tertiary education is expensive, the young man has redirected the profits from his company into helping to take care of his family in May Pen, Clarendon, and to reinvest in the business. He has been able to continue the pursuit of his studies with the help of grants, donations from well-wishers, and student loan.

ROUGH CHILDHOOD

Life was not easy growing up since his mother had seven of them with not much support. He spent most of his childhood living with his aunt, as a result, until his mother took him back at 13 years old. At first, he was disappointed that he had to leave Vere Technical, where he had been placed by the Government. He attended for only two weeks, as his family could not afford the transportation cost.

Today, Richards has no regrets that he was instead enrolled at Bethel College in the parish, which was within walking distance from his house.

Despite getting into conflict with the law, he later became the head boy and started using his experience as an opportunity to mentor other youth.

The money that he makes from his business is not much he says, but what little he makes has been invested in helping to send his four younger siblings to school.

Volunteerism is a passion for me

Despite a hectic schedule running a business and going to university, 20-year-old Scottmore Richards has invested his time in mentoring youth.

The former juvenile offender is currently a youth ambassador for the Organisation of American States and has signed up for the Ministry of National Security’s ‘We Transform Youth Empowerment and Reintegration Programme’.

The programme was launched under the theme ‘Save a Child, Change a Nation’ and is being implemented through the Department of Correctional Services in four juvenile remand centres for the rehabilitation and reintegration of youth offenders.

The programme aims to reduce the number of youth in correctional facilities reoffending and ensure the successful reintegration of these young people into society.

It targets 242 children between the ages of 12 and 17 in the centres as well as youth offenders monitored by the island’s 16 community service (probation) offices.

In January, Richards, who is a product of the ‘A New Path’ programme, also became a member of Called to Lead Jamaica. The aim of this group is to empower and inspire behavioural transformation in youth that are displaying maladaptive behaviours through mentorship and leadership training facilitated by their peers.

“I believe that anything that you are doing, you should have a passion for it, you should have a love for it, and that makes things a lot easier. Volunteerism is a passion for me. I like giving back because I am a product of these activities. It is because of volunteerism, it is because of mentorship, why I am who I am today,” he said.

nadine.wilson@gleanerjm.com