THE young and not so young were out in their numbers at the Oberlin High School football field where Digicel hosted a Community Day activity for the residents of Lawrence Tavern and surrounding communities.

The Digicel Community Day was planned and executed through a joint effort between Digicel’s marketing and sponsorship team and the residents of Lawrence Tavern. A member of the team said that “instead of planning everything from start to finish; we got the residents involved in the process by asking them what sort of activities they would like to see at the fun day. We also gave them the necessary financial resources to provide some of the refreshments on the actual day.”

It was conceptualised by Digicel’s marketing and sponsorship team with some assistance from the arm of the company, the Digicel Foundation. Members from both departments were also on hand to assist with the activities.

The members of the team, who came to help with the staging of the Community Day were Digicel employees who gave of their time and weekend to assist in making the day a success. Also on hand were 10 students from the University of Technology Students’ Union.

President of the Students Union Jheanell Johnson highlighted the long-standing relationship between Digicel and the Union.

“As the official sponsor of the Union for the past five years they are a big support to us in addressing the needs of the students and also the needs of the youth in the communities in which the university operates.

She further explained: “Our involvement in the Community Day activity is well within our broader mandate as a Students Union to assist the youth in various communities through social outreach.” Her sentiments were also shared by the western UTech campus President Romona Foster whose council members were also on hand to share in the activities of the day.

Tahnida Nunes, project co-ordinator for the Community Day outreach programme says that “the day not only involves fun and entertainment for the residents but we also try to give back to community in a lasting way. So for Lawrence Tavern we decided to assist the Oberlin High School, the main secondary school in the area, by installing protective fencing around the most vulnerable areas of the school grounds; all of this at no cost to the community or the school administration.”

The day’s activities included a six-a-side football competition, netball competition, deejay competition, domino competition, ring games; face painting, art and craft and football shoot-out. It ended with an exhibition by the Oberlin High School Cheerleading Squad and a high energy performance by Chino of Big Ship Studios.

— Evon Benjamin