WARDS of the State aged 18 and older, who no longer qualify for traditional State care, are set to benefit from an improved transitioning experience.

This was made possible by a multi-year partnership between the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) and Massy Group of Companies.

For years the CPFSA has embarked on a scheme to ensure that youth exiting State care are given financial, psychological, and emotional support, or whatever assistance is required for them to transition successfully and seamlessly into adult life.

The assistance has included housing support for those who may not have a safe place to go after exiting State care; vocational skills training that includes internship and entrepreneurship; life skills coaching and mentoring.

Now the agency will have the support of Massy, which will help with the CPFSA’s transitional living spaces islandwide by providing the beneficiaries with the necessary skills, support, and exposure to successfully lead productive and independent lives.

Under the partnership, for the first year, Massy Distribution will stock each of four pantries with basic food, cleaning, and personal care items monthly. Massy Gas will also outfit each location with a year’s supply of cooking gas, and Massy United Insurance will pay for much-needed counselling services for the young people.

“We want our young people to know that they matter — every one of them,” said Janine Chen, VP/CEO of Massy Distribution.

“In a meaningful way, we want to stand in the gap like family as they transition into adulthood. At the very core of who we are at Massy, we are ‘A Force for Good’. This partnership embodies the very spirit of our company values. We want to help create a nurturing space where young people can achieve their full potential in a safe and supportive environment.

“In addition to the individual contributions from each company, we are coming together to offer monthly life skills classes. Drawing on the talents of our own staff members, topics will cover everything from budgeting, to interview skills, cooking classes, and career planning. We want to ensure they feel equipped to face living on their own for the first time”, added Chen.

In welcoming the partnership with the Massy Group of Companies, Audrey Budhi, director of children and family services at CPFSA, said her team will continue its campaign to educate the public and engage stakeholders about the realities of children who are placed in children’s homes and with foster families.

“CPFSA deals with the most vulnerable. Many of them who come to us have experienced extraordinary levels of distress and hardship that are no fault of their own. As an agency and safe space, we always need help to support these young people. We are charged with caring [for] more than 4,300 children, from 0-18, between formal living spaces and those in foster care.

“What Massy has done has bowled us over; it exceeded any expectations we had, especially with the economic challenges presented by COVID-19. For them to step up like this is giving a major boost to our agency locally, and further supports Jamaica’s progress as a pioneer in after-care programmes internationally” said Budhi. CPFSA counts USAID and the Caribbean Child Development Centre among the first partners to answer the call for help.

“We are grateful for our first set of partners, and now Massy is taking this intervention to another level [which is] allowing us to grow the life-changing impact of the after-care programme. From a social policy standpoint, I would say this could be counted as a positive contribution to the national crime-reduction strategy,” added Budhi.

Commenting on the partnership, minister of state in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Robert Morgan stated that it will help with the total development of wards of the State.

“This multi-year partnership with Massy and CPFSA is an indication of Massy’s commitment to the development of Jamaica by its holistic approach in caring for our country’s children.

“Transitioning into adulthood is difficult for any person but there are far more challenges for our young men and women who are coming from State care, and these transitional homes are getting the much-needed support with [not only] gas and food for the year, but also these young adults who may suffer from severe emotional traumas will benefit from counselling. We know that this can only help with making healthier Jamaicans,” said Morgan.

Team members of the Massy Group will also donate gently worn corporate attire to those entering the world of work. Massy Distribution also committed to hiring some of the wards as part-time promotional staff.

For Rosalee Gage-Grey, CEO of the CPFSA, the partnership with the Massy Group has come at an opportune time, as added support is needed to assist youngsters in the Transitional Living Programme.

‘We welcome this partnership with Massy Group, which will be a great benefit for our young people transitioning from State care to independent living. We see this as an excellent example of corporate social responsibility, and we commend Massy for this.

“The CPFSA is committed to ensuring that all children in our care have positive outcomes and are equipped to make a positive contribution to society,” Gage-Grey said.