Masonic Outreach – East POS

Masonic Outreach Programme – East Port of Spain

The Genesis

In November 2006, on the occasion of our celebration of the Festival of Saint Andrew, Fr. Clyde Harvey, Parish Priest of the Holy Rosary/Gonzales RC Parish in Port-of-Spain was invited to deliver the feature address to the Brethren.

Fr. Harvey’s address dealt in large measure with certain challenges facing young males in the society, particularly in the East Port-of-Spain area, an area that includes his Parish.

While not appealing directly to the Brethren for assistance, his remarks did leave a mark on the hearts of the then reigning Masters of Lodge Eastern Star, Rosslyn, Arima and Hesperus. Together they agreed to meet with Fr. Harvey to follow up on what he spoke about and to discuss possibilities for providing assistance to him.

Several meetings were held during the early part of 2007 and a tentative programme was set out. Technical experts in the areas of child education and psychology assisted us on a pro bono basis in our deliberations.

The Programme

Target group

It was proposed that the programme be conducted on a pilot basis and that the target group be young men, aged from 11 to 14, from the East Port-of-Spain area.

Programme Objective

The programme objective is and remains to assist our “client” in the following areas

• Develop a plan for his life in whatever area he may select
• Achieving his life plan
• Inculcating the core values detailed below in his life plan

Core Values

The core values agreed upon are

• Responsibility
• Commitment to family Citizenship
• Discipline
• Trust
• Caring/Sharing
• Courage
• Integrity
• Respect
• Cheeriness – looking on the light side

Inculcation of Core Values

We seek to inculcate the afore-mentioned values in two phases –live-in camps followed by after
camp activities the main one being mentoring.

Live-in Camps

The camps are residential and are run during the month of July for a period of 10 days. During that time the participants are exposed in a “user-friendly” manner to the core values. They are also exposed by way of outings to a wide range of places the objective being to sow in their minds the possibilities of careers to which they can aspire.

Mentoring

The mentoring effort is intended to nurture the seeds that have been sown during the camp.

The mentor is expected to “walk” with the young man for 1 year in the first instance. His objective is to build a healthy relationship with the young man so that he, the mentor, becomes a point of reference in the young man’s life.

Activities are also staged during the year whereby the entire group of boys, their families and mentors meet in a group activity. These activities take the form of an outing to some place of interest in the country, a family day, etc..

The Morris Marshall Development Foundation

The entire programme is run through the Morris Marshall Foundation of which Fr. Harvey is Chairman.

The Morris Marshall Development Foundation was founded in 1994 to further the work of the late Morris Marshall who had been Parliamentary Representative for Laventille West. Morris Marshall held fast to the philosophy that it was through education that social change must come to this community.

The objectives of the Foundation are as follows:

• To deliver high-quality alternative instructional interventions at its community facility, the Morris Marshall Centre
• To provide scholarships/ bursaries to deserving individuals to meet educational goals
• To provide social interventions to relieve poverty

The Foundation has to date constructed its own Community Facility, the Morris Marshall Centre, and conducts several community activities there, viz.

• Training at the Computer Laboratory
• Use of the Library/ Study Centre/Internet Café
• Lectures and Workshops at the Audio Visual Room
• Distribution of Scholarships through the Scholarship Fund.

The Foundation has, over the years paid particular attention to young men who have not been successful at the Common Entrance examination, in an attempt to help them re-enter the mainstream of the education system. Unfortunately that project had to be abandoned after it was determined that a more concentrated effort involving mentoring is needed in that area. An estimated 70% of the homes in the area are single-family with a female being the head of the household. It was recognised that there is therefore the need to galvanise a stronger male input in any initiative taken in that area.

Approval of the plan by the District Grand Lodge

At its Quarterly Communication held in July 2007 the District Grand Lodge of Trinidad and Tobago and Grenada sanctioned the idea of a Masonic outreach programme for male youth in East Port-of-Spain in collaboration with the Morris Marshall Development Foundation.

A Committee comprising 4 senior Brethren of the DGL was established to oversee the progress of the activity. The Brethren are:

• Bro. Peter Salvary, PDGM
• Bro. Teasley Taitt, PSDGM
• Bro. Pastol Parmassar, WDG Senior Chaplain
• Bro. Henley Wooding, WDG Assistant Lecturer

Pledge to the Foundation

Our continuing pledge to the Foundation is to provide all of the resources – financial and non- financial – to make this initiative a success and thereby as a society of men contribute to the upliftment and empowerment of men in the society.

In more specific terms the community of Freemasons in the District

• Underwrites the financial cost of the annual camps
• Provides a pool of mentors for the programme
• Provides administrative support to the programme.
• Procures technical and administrative support to the programme.

Our Dream

Our continuing dream is to be a part of a process that would hopefully break the cycle of crime and violence to which our young men are exposed and create out of them responsible citizens … TTGOTGAOU!!!