Wed | May 8, 2024

New Fortress Energy Foundation spreads Christmas cheer

Toys for over 3,500 children plus food hampers for 600 families

Published:Friday | December 23, 2022 | 1:17 AM
Councillor Leeroy Williams, Mayor of Montego Bay (right-back), joins Verona Carter, vice-president, New Fortress Energy (centre) and Bishop Conrad Pitkin, Custos of St James, in handing out toys to the hundreds of children who gathered for the city’s ann
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Councillor Leeroy Williams, Mayor of Montego Bay (right-back), joins Verona Carter, vice-president, New Fortress Energy (centre) and Bishop Conrad Pitkin, Custos of St James, in handing out toys to the hundreds of children who gathered for the city’s annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony on Thursday, December 15. New Fortress Energy Foundation, one of the main sponsors of the event, donated toys for 800 boys and girls in Montego Bay.

New Fortress Energy Foundation (NFE) has delivered food hampers to 600 families and made toy donations to over 3,500 children this year.

Six hundred vulnerable families and shut-ins on the government’s PATH programme who reside in Old Harbour, the refinery council communities in Hayes, Clarendon and Montego Bay were grateful and overjoyed to receive generously packaged hampers of food and personal-care items. The packages, which include a chicken and a Christmas cake, contain items to last a family of five for about one month.

Verona Carter, vice president at New Fortress Energy, said, “We are always looking for meaningful and practical ways to help those who are most vulnerable in our society because giving back is at the heart of who we are at NFE. We are happy to partner with Food For The Poor Jamaica for the third consecutive year to deliver food packages to these families, especially at Christmas, so that they can enjoy a proper meal with their families and loved ones this holiday.”

PARTNERSHIP

The initiative, which first started during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic when the first community in Hayes, Clarendon was placed under quarantine, was done in partnership with Food For The Poor Jamaica and supported by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, which manages the PATH programme, a release noted.

Kivette Silvera, executive director at Food For The Poor Jamaica, explained that, “On any given day, we get requests for thousands of people who need help, and the number of these requests double at this time of year. As a charity, we rely purely on donations and partnerships with companies like New Fortress Energy to help as many people as possible. We commend NFE Foundation for always leading with their hearts, and we would like to invite more of corporate Jamaica to partner with us so we can help even more people because the needs are indeed great.”

In addition to the food hampers, New Fortress Energy Foundation also donated toys to more than 3,500 children during its Christmas Treats held recently. Santa Claus, balloon animals, clowns, rides, food, and entertainment were the order of the day at the Old Harbour Bay Development Centre in Old Harbour Bay and the Wembley Centre in Hayes, Clarendon, where NFE held its annual Christmas treats.

Lorine Cousins, chairman of the Refinery Community Council for the Port and Refinery communities in Hayes, said, “The children are always very excited to get a present from Santa Claus; this is something they look forward to ever since NFE started their Christmas treats in 2018. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic they still found a way to get toys to the children and that says a lot about their hearts and their commitment to giving back. On behalf of all the children and the families in the Port and Refinery Council communities, I say a big thank you to NFE for all they do.”