TAKING the stage at the Transitional Living Programme (TLP) Higher Education Expo 2026 as beacons of hope, former wards of the State Monae Williams and Christopher Dawes testified last Thursday that they have not allowed their beginnings to define their reality.

Speaking at the annual Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) TLP expo for youth transitioning out of State care, Williams and Dawes urged the attendees to leverage the event for valuable networking. They challenged the adolescents to view these new connections as opportunities to escape hardship.

Described as an exit-readiness project, the TLP is aimed at facilitating a smooth transition to independent living for adolescents who have reached 18 years and are leaving State care. The youngsters are exposed to different pathways to aid in their readiness for independent living including life skills, coaching, entrepreneurship, vocational and technical skills training, house accommodation for two years, as well as tertiary enrolment.

For this year’s expo staging, a Supreme Ventures-funded scholarship will give 25 adolescents leaving State care the freedom to take on any degree programme of their choosing, with full coverage of all accommodation and tuition expenses.

Director of the Alternate Care Services Division at the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) Larenzo Badalo (left) converses with former ward of state, Christopher Dawes at the annual CPFSA Transitional Living Programme (TLP) Higher Education Expo 2026, held at the Wolmer’s Boys’ School in Kingston last Thursday.

Speaking to the Sunday Observer, Williams shared that being a recipient of that scholarship some years ago shifted her mindset. The opportunity, she said, made her realise that her future success depended entirely on her choices.

“It doesn’t matter where you start. You could have started with one cent, once you have the potential to build on that one cent, then you have the whole world. And that’s what I did… Yes, there were challenges. Yes, I was depressed, I was stressed. But with CPFSA and Supreme Ventures, oh my God, man, I’m telling you, the rest is history,” said Williams inside the auditorium of the Wolmer’s Boys’ School, the venue for the expo.

Looking back, Williams recounted that transitioning from the streets to State care, at the time, felt like a complete derailment. Today, she views those challenging events not as misfortunes but as vital milestones that have shaped her life’s journey.

“It all started out in…2014 but the real hard-core stuff started in 2017 when I met CPFSA. They took me and they nurtured me — because I was once on the roadside living — and they were like, ‘No, a pretty girl like you needs nurturing.’ So I was taken into State care, and the rest was history,” she said.

Williams also shared that the programme allowed her to meet role models and mentors who affirmed her curious nature as a critical life skill. She explained to the Sunday Observer that this served as a boost for her confidence, allowing her to walk into any room with her head held high.

“From I was going to school I was known as the ‘nuff’ [inquisitive] girl. I was always nuff. It discouraged me at one point but with the sessions that I attended, I remember Krystal Tomlinson, now Mrs Carter, she had a session with us one day and she came and asked for a volunteer. No one wanted to volunteer, and when I went up she gave me a thousand dollars. Everybody was like, ‘No, but that should have been me.’ And her key words were, ‘In life, you have to be nuff.’ And from she told me that I have never stopped being a nuff girl,” said Williams.

Now a proud graduate of Northern Caribbean University (NCU) and the holder of a degree in marketing, Williams works as a logistics officer at retail company Unicomer Group. She told the Sunday Observer that the role is not the final stop for her career.

“I know that my journey is not just being at Unicomer…it’s to go further, because my dream is to be featured on the SimSoul Sessions. I would love my story to be on there because I have a lot to speak about. But, with time and with progress, I’m just taking my time to just put myself out there and to encourage people,” she said.

Meanwhile Dawes, who was also a recipient of the Supreme Ventures-funded scholarship, told the Sunday
Observer that he did not know how to navigate attaining an undergraduate degree. However, with the help of TLP, he is now the holder of a Bachelor of Education in Human Ecology.

“While starting college, I didn’t know where my first step was coming from, so that was one of my major challenges. Emotionally, I wasn’t there because I just came out of State care so to go independent, living on your own, you don’t know what to expect. But, along the way, God sent me two scholarships in order for me to complete my degree for the life I envisioned,” said Dawes.

His academic dreams are now boundless, with Dawes looking to start a master’s degree programme in January, after which he hopes to attain a doctorate. But his main goal, he’s decided, is to be a positive influence on the lives of children.

“My big picture is to go inside the classroom to impact students’ lives, but my journey isn’t finished. I’m very happy for the position that I’m at now but I’m looking forward to starting my master’s focusing on AI or health care in January in Canada. So, hopefully, everything will go as the Lord planned,” he said.

Meanwhile, CPFSA director, Alternative Care Services, Larenzo Badalo shared that some 300 young people are currently benefiting from the many pathways offered by the TLP.

He expressed hope that the youth present at the expo took the opportunity to make themselves visible and become more knowledgeable about the paths available to them.

“We want them, today, to understand that a derailment is not the end. Going through State care is just a stop on your journey to where you’re going, but while you’re in State care you’re not defined by being in State care. You should be able to have the access to all the opportunities that other persons who are not in State care are supposed to have, so what we do for them is bring services to them,” he said.