MANDEVILLE, Manchester — With there being an increase in the number of homeless people turning up at the Mandeville-based Candle in the Dark drop-in centre, chair of the entity which operates the facility, Wendy Freckleton on Wednesday commended students of Northern Caribbean University (NCU) for donating $75,000 to the facility.

The money is to be used for the construction of a lunch area at the centre, which is adjacent to the Mandeville Regional Hospital.

The donation was raised by 42 NCU students for their final project in fulfilment of a course.

“The initiative is really welcomed, because when you have different projects it is really difficult for charities to raise funds to do what we really need to have done. We appreciate the fact that NCU came through for us and the students I know over the last couple of weeks have put in quite a bit of effort into ensuring that this is possible,” Freckleton told the Jamaica Observer.

She said the facility caters to more than 40 homeless people daily.

“We have people coming from different areas and really what we find is that the homelessness and the needs has been increasing, so we do have more people than we would normally have coming in to eat,” said Freckleton.

“Now that we have received some funding I must add that the Member of Parliament (Manchester Central) Rhoda Crawford did contribute zinc to the project, so we are now more mobilised. We hope to complete this project by the end of May,” added Freckleton.

She said it is commendable that the students are involved in community-based projects.

“We appreciate the effort of the department, especially the students. It is not very often that you see students being involved in projects such as these and they are young adults. They are really the future. The leaders of tomorrow and it is important that they realise what is happening in their environment and contribute towards ensuring that the most vulnerable in our society are better taken care of,” she said.

Freckleton noted that the donation was timely, as the facility had outgrown the existing lunch area.

“This for Candle in the Dark will mean a lot, because currently we need more space for people to eat. We don’t want everybody bundling in the same space and especially spaces that can be a little more outdoor, so this would mean that when our clients come they can have a more comfortable space to sit and eat,” she said.

A makeshift tent currently covers the area where the new structure is to be built.

“The tent that we would have been using for the past two years is tattered now,” said Freckleton.

NCU lecturer Russell McLean said the students in his spring 2022 Human Skills and Strategies class were tasked to raise funds towards the project at the centre.

“It incorporates training our students to be involved in community projects. This is one way of getting them actively involved in contributing to society,” said McLean.