The St Thomas Renaissance Foundation last week donated several garbage disposal drums to primary schools in Eastern St Thomas, in an effort to assist with garbage storage and collection.

The New York-headquartered foundation, a not-for-profit, non-political, and non-denominational group, comprises past students of schools in St Thomas who live in the United States and Jamaica and who are desirous of supporting their former schools.

Officials of the foundation toured nine schools in the eastern section of the parish and presented 31 drums to the schools to assist with their garbage collection efforts. The schools which benefited were: Golden Grove Primary and Infant, Rowlandsfield Primary, Barking Lodge Primary, Arcadia Primary, Duckenfield Primary, Dalvey Primary, Old Pero Primary, Amith Hall Primary, and Johnson Mountain Primary.

Local liaison for the St Thomas Renaissance Foundation, Travis Smith, said that the provision of the drums forms part of a wider programme to uplift schools in the parish.

“We are trying to make St Thomas better. We decided to go with a garbage collection project now so that we can keep the schools clean. If we can teach the students to keep the schools clean, they can develop on that. When they go home they can take better care of their surroundings. When they go on to college they will take that pride with them and keep the places there clean too,” said Smith, who, along with the foundation, is working on more for next year.

“We want to expand the project next year by making it a beautification project in the schools,”Smith stated.

Principal of the Golden Grove Primary and Infant School Claudette Gilzine welcomed the gesture of the St Thomas Renaissance Foundation.

“It is our hope that the presentation of the drums will assist the students to become more environmentally friendly. I really appreciate the donation, because when the garbage trucks do not come around, the garbage overflows and we have to get garbage bags to store it in,” Gilzine said.

For principal of the Barking Lodge Primary School, Dahlia Henry, the provision of the drums ushers in a greater move to build self-awareness by students, in particular the boys.

“We are happy for the drums. We can do several things now, including providing incentives for the child who collects the most garbage. We want to plan an environmental group, targeting the boys, to emphasise why they should keep their surroundings clean, etc.

“The effort by the foundation is a really good one, and for them to think about this remote area school is really great and I welcome the drums,” Henry said.

Foundation officials are hoping that more past students of St Thomas will give the organisation more support by joining through its Facebook page, St Thomas Renaissance Foundation Inc.