By Carlena Knight
A non-profit organisation is set to give back to students in Antigua and Barbuda in a significant way.
Scrub Life Cares, which was founded by Tanya Ambrose, daughter of Antiguan cricket legend Sir Curtly Ambrose, is dedicated to improving the well-being of underprivileged communities to protect and serve youth, and to create positivity.
With that mantra in mind, the group has decided to launch its inaugural literacy programme, which will be to offer literacy packages with essential items.
“Through our literacy programme, we are committing to donating 100 backpacks filled with school supplies and other essential items to low-income families for the upcoming 2021 fall school term. We’ve decided that this time around, to kick off this part of our programme, we will serve the Irene B Williams Secondary School who will work along with us to help us distribute the backpacks to students in the surrounding communities.
“We will also be donating backpacks filled with essential school items to the Child Protection Unit in the Family and Social Services Division. We’ve forged a relationship with the Family and Social Services Division and it is a pleasure to continue to serve our youths with their guidance,” Ambrose explained.
She is encouraging the public to support the venture through donations of school items such as notebooks, pens, pencils, folders, flash drives, binder sheets, rulers, and pencil cases.
The drop-off location for persons in Antigua is NeNe Candy Frozen Treats Ice Cream Shop on Church Street, from 2:30 pm to 9:30 pm daily.
Interested persons can also donate via Paypal at www.paypal.com/paypalme/scrublifecares .
Individuals can also check out the group’s Amazon wish list http://bit.ly/SLCbackpackwishlist
The deadline for donations for the back-to-school backpack initiative for the September school term will be August 1.
Following this donation, Scrub Life Cares will expand the programme to include mentorship and tutoring classes as well.
“We will focus on supplemental education, guidance for character development and social skills, and group counseling. Part of our programme is to equip them with life skills for career development by partnering with local community leaders. We intend to have reading programmes for primary school students and also offer youth counselling, which will be spearheaded by our in-house clinical psychologist. The mentorship and tutoring part of our programme will be up and fully functioning at the top of 2022,” Ambrose said.
Plans are also being made by the organisation to launch a period poverty programme within the next few months.