HOWELL’S CONTENT, Clarendon – For almost a month starting November last year, Norma Nelson kept secret from her co-worker and friend, Chatealine ‘Debbie’ Parkes, whom she saw almost every day, that she had entered her name in competition to win a dining room makeover.

“I know her and see all the struggles she’s been through…. and I didn’t want to get her hopes up,” Wilson said.

What eventually happened as a result of Nelson’s secret decision surprised both women – times two.

The first surprise was that Parkes, 31, won the dining room overhaul in the Observer Makeover Magic Competition. But because Parkes lives in a one-bedroom house, there really was nowhere to do a dining room makeover.

Parkes and her 11-year-old daughter Kedeisha Rogers cooked and washed dishes in a board structure, used a zinc shack for their shower and used a pit latrine.

The only logical thing to do, as far as head of promotions at the Observer, Marlon Davis, was concerned, was to implement surprise number two for Parkes – a brand new dining room, kitchen, and bathroom.

“I thank God for Marlon, because he made it possible. As you can see, I had one little zinc bathroom. It wasn’t pretty, but I had to live under it because no betta nuh deh, and although you work for better it takes a longer time,” Parkes said, adding that she had recently started receiving minimum wage, while workmen laboured feverishly to complete the house.

Davis said as soon as he saw Parkes’ house, he knew something extraordinary had to be done. At first, Parkes was told she would get only a new dining room and kitchen.

“I thought it was going to be board,” Parkes said, “because it was board I had before, then fi come si seh is concrete structure,” she added, finding it hard to mask her disbelief.

Her prolonged state of shock may be explained by the fact that she has had a series of hardships related to finding somewhere to call home. About seven years ago, Parkes was living with her mother in a district called Rhinesbury, but they moved to Howell’s Content near York Town in Clarendon to live with Parkes’ grandmother, because rent was too expensive.

Parkes built a wooden structure adjacent to her grandmother’s one-bedroom concrete house. But in 2002, fire destroyed the board house and left her homeless.

She managed to put some money together to buy building materials, and with the help of friends from her church, United Brethren in Christ, built her current one-room house in a few days.

But before moving into the new house, tragedy hit. Her nine-year-old son Christopher Bernard was killed in a motor vehicle accident.

“I’m sorry he’s not here to enjoy it [the new house], but God knows everything,” Parkes said, standing over her son’s tomb.

Davis said the peculiarities of Parkes’ situation, highlighted by the fact that she is a hard worker, made the decision that much easier.

“The good thing is this is not somebody just sitting around waiting for handouts like so many Jamaicans are. She works very hard,” Davis said.

Parkes said there are many other people like her in Jamaica who are working hard, but can barely see the results.

“People are suffering. We are willing to work. I am a single mother and I struggle in every way. I try to make two ends meet. That is me, I try,” she said.

“When God sees that you are trying he will send help and he did send help. I wasn’t looking for this big help… ahaa glory to your name, Jesus! Thank you, Lord!” Parkes said, bursting into hysterical laughter.

“There are people out there who really do care about people,” she said. “That is what I am excited about. I never knew that this was possible.”

Davis said Parkes’ situation demonstrated that maybe it was time to make the competition, which was in its second year when Parkes won in December, bigger. Courts Jamaica, Sherwin Williams and Pings Fabrics are the major sponsors of the competition, but May Pen-based Epic Hardware came on board and donated building materials.