Randolph Lopez School of Hope, which caters to students with special needs, will be the beneficiary of funds raised at this year’s National Leadership Prayer Breakfast (NLPB).

The organising committee made the announcement at a news conference Thursday to launch the 38th staging of the event.

The former School of Hope has branches in Kingston, Portland and St Thomas. It caters to more than 560 students with intellectual disabilities. The school is one of five which is jointly operated by the Jamaican Association on Intellectual Disabilities.

“We really welcome the help as that could assist us with refurbishing our girls’ bathroom as well as assist with some safety and security concerns that we have,” vice-principal of the government-run school, Andre Johnstone, told the Jamaica Observer.

Last year over $500,000 was donated to Children First to assist with its holistic life skills and skill-building project at South Camp Juvenile Correctional Centre.

The annual leadership breakfast, scheduled for January 18 at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston at 7:30 am, will be held under the theme: ‘Let’s stop it… Return to Righteousness’.

“The purpose of the NLPB is to gather the leaders of all levels of State, Church and others at the start of each new year for fellowship and prayer and to ask God’s blessing on our nation. The prayer breakfast promotes national unity, peace, justice, and reconciliation among leaders in all sectors of the society,” said organising committee Chairman Reverend Stanley Clarke.

Reverend Astor Carlyle of Webster Memorial United Church is expected to be the keynote speaker, while secretary for the Jamaica Evangelical Alliance, Reverend Fitzroy Thomas, will offer the nation’s prayer.

The National Leadership Prayer Breakfast will, for the 33rd consecutive year, be sponsored by Victoria Mutual Building Society.

“We continue to commend the hard-working members of the National Leadership Prayer Breakfast Committee on not only the work being done among our nation’s leaders, but also on the work done after the actual breakfast has ended,” said VMBS CEO Courtney Campbell.

“We have witnessed first-hand that these donations have been making a significant impact on the important work of many charities across the island,” Campbell added.