‘It’s difficult not to act’

Still in awe and shock at the extent of damage wreaked by Hurricane Melissa in the western half of Jamaica last October, TotalEnergies Jamaica’s Managing Director Vincent Daniault appeared eager to oversee last Friday’s handover of 1,884 solar lamps to Food For The Poor (FFTP) and the Salvation Army at the petroleum marketing company’s Ocean Boulevard headquarters in downtown Kingston.

“I am used to the region from working in Costa Rica, and I was also in Houston for hurricanes,” said Daniault, vouching for the quality of the versatile Sunshine 150 Solar Lamps, which, depending on source, can fetch a price of US$60 per unit on the international market.

Equipped with a small, detachable solar panel, which can either be hung or staked, the Sunshine 150 Solar Lamp is also equipped with cell phone-charging capabilities via USB port, offering up to 100 hours of light at its most conservative of four lighting modes.

Daniault, joined by other TotalEnergies senior management staff, Howard Henry, manager, retail, shops, foods and services; Ulanda Graham, human resources director; and Steve Francis, procurement manager, explained that the Sunshine 150 Solar Lamps have been deployed by TotalEnergies in parts of Africa hit by energy crises.

“We have a big presence in other countries, especially Africa in which TotalEnergies is working to help people. The aim is to bring energy to those parts of Africa,” adding that a day after the passage of Hurricane Melissa he had embarked on a tour from Montego Bay, St James, traversing hard-hit Black River in St Elizabeth.

“In Black River, the buildings were destroyed and trees stripped bare. It was difficult not to act seeing the kids and people. I have never seen anything like this. It makes you feel helpless,” he added.

GRATEFUL FOR HELP

Marsha Burrell-Rose, marketing and public relations manager at Food For The Poor, acknowledged the Jamaica Public Service’s post-Melissa efforts at restoration of power to affected areas, but pointed out that “some communities are so far up in the hills” that the immediate concerns remain food and water.

“However, these solar lamps will definitely help us because, if they don’t have anything, they do have sunlight in abundance,” added Burrell-Rose, thanking TotalEnergies for its donation of 1,164 lamps and the support “we have been getting from all over the world”.

Colonel Edward Lyons, chief secretary in charge of Caribbean territorial emergency disaster services, Salvation Army, said TotalEnergies’ donation of 720 solar lamps to his organisation was a fulfilment of a scarce commodity.

“People have been calling for these same lamps for a long time after seeing other persons receiving them from relatives overseas. They are very scarce. It’s the first time this amount has ever been made available locally.

“Many people can’t afford generators. These 720 lamps will solve multiple problems. It appears to be a lot, but we will still have to be very selective in how we effectively distribute them,” Lyons noted, a point which struck a chord with Graham and Henry, who pointed out that TotalEnergies did its due diligence in carefully selecting which charitable bodies to engage.

Burrell-Rose described FFTP as a “trusted charity of 43 years started in Jamaica, spreading to 17 other countries, with a track record of excellence in service”.

“We don’t just give away items. We capture data, monitor and evaluate. We believe in showing people how we are spending their money,” Burrell-Rose emphasised.

TotalEnergies’ post-Melissa charitable activities started on November 13 with the delivery of 700 care packages by staffers in Back River, followed by a donations of US$10,000 to Red Cross Jamaica and US$20,000 to FFTP in December.

ainsley.walters@gleanerjm.com