WHEN LIME Corporate Communications Manager Elon Parkinson recently came across a very powerful image on Facebook of a boy helping an elderly lady with her bag along a street in downtown Kingston instinctively he knew the deed should neither go unnoticed nor without reward.

This forced Parkinson to contact 16-year-old fourth form Alpha Academy student Donique Benjamin who had captured the priceless moment of human kindness while on her way home from school the day before. It turned out that the ‘Good Samaritan’ in the photograph was also her friend Matthew Nesbeth, a 15-year-old fourth form student of Kingston College.

The photo, which received scores of positive comments after it was shared more than 600 times on the social media site, was also picked up by the Jamaica Observer website

on Sunday.

“Helping and showing kindness to the elderly is one of the ways members of the society ought to demonstrate social responsibility. By his own act and at a fairly young age, Matthew reinforced these values and attitudes. Even more was that his friend, Donique, saw it fit to capture the precious moment and share it for the world to see. We strongly feel that these exceptional young Jamaicans should be celebrated,” Parkinson said.

Consistent with LIME’s mantra to ‘Value Every Moment’ Parkinson invited the students to the company’s head office in Kingston for a special presentation. Matthew received a smartphone and book voucher valued at $15,000 to assist with back-to-school expenses, while Donique was also presented with a book voucher.

Nesbeth admitted he was a bit shy about Benjamin posting the photo online as it was something he would have usually done for persons in need.

Still, he is very thankful for the show of appreciation from LIME. Both students admitted they did not expect to be rewarded for their act.

Nesbeth said he plans on pursuing a career in medicine while Benjamin wants to be a midwife.