ROEHAMPTON, St James — With sections of the roof at Roehampton Basic School in St James still covered by tarpaulin, weeks away from the start of the new school year, school board chairman Malvareen Johnson and her team sprang into fund-raising mode. But they fell short of the $750,000 it is expected to cost to put on a new zinc roof.

They still need donations, but they have taken a significant step forward and they are determined that they will welcome students September morning. On Monday, the Roehampton community development committee (CDC) handed over a $250,000-cheque to help the early childhood institution restore its Hurricane Melissa-damaged roof.

“It’s a good feeling, I’m overwhelmed by this generous contribution,” Johnson told the Jamaica Observer.

“We look forward to continuously working with them. We are grateful for this. We did a little fund-raiser of our own, a little fish fry; but we did not raise the estimated amount and so we were a bit worried,” she added.

Roehampton school board chairman Malvareen Johnson collects a surprise donation from former Member of Parliament for St James Southern Homer Davis.

Then Roehampton CDC came to the rescue.

“We are going to make sure that… even if it’s not fully completed, we are partly completed for school to be in full session on September morning,” she said.

During the ceremony to hand over the CDC funds, former Member of Parliament (MP) for St James Southern Homer Davis had a surprise.

The roof of Roehampton Basic School is now a mat of tarpaulins.

“This school is dear to me and therefore I am giving $100,000 towards the work to replace the roof,” he said, pushing the total amount raised to $350,000.

Johnson said the additional donation, along with other promises of support, has given the school hope that it can be ready for the new school year.

“I’m overwhelmed to see Mr Homer Davis also come on-board and there are promises from the Rotary Club of Montego Bay; so we are more than happy for these contributions,” she said.

During her address to those gathered at the school, MP Nekeisha Burchell explained that she has been in dialogue with the service club about assisting with the rehabilitation efforts.

An internal view of the roof at Roehampton Basic School which was damaged by last year’s Hurricane Melissa.

“There should be a visit soon to look at the school,” she disclosed.

For now, the CDC has been filling the gap. Its members are particularly proud that they were able to raise funds through a jerk festival held in the community on Independence Day.

“We really wanted to do something and so we decided on the fundraiser for the community and part proceeds will go towards the basic school,” CDC president Janice Murray told the Observer.

Roehampton Community Development Committee members, school representatives and well-wishers are all smiles following the handover of a ceremonial cheque on Monday.

“It was an initiative born out of wanting to rebuild our community centre. We wanted to have a space where we could have our recreational activities and stuff and so we decided we’re going to try and raise some funds. But then I brought to the attention of the group that the basic school is in need of help,” she added.

In addition, she said, committee members have pledged their time and effort to assist with rebuilding the roof and making things easier for the school.

This was welcome news for the school’s chairman, who said they plan to make further improvements to the structure once the roof is replaced. Without a roof for protection, all the charts were ripped from the walls during last October’s storm and flood waters dislodged floor tiles.

“We are aiming to make a better roof, a stronger roof, a hurricane resistant roof, that’s what we are looking forward to, that’s what we are trying to aim for, hurricane straps and all those things just in case another Melissa visits us we will be better,” Johnson said.

The school now serves 108 students, and there is an ongoing push to create a more comfortable learning environment.

“We not only want to do the roof but we also want to put back in place the charts, the fans all of this for their comfort,” Johnson said.

“We have a far way to go because the school lost almost everything. Students’ books were lost during the hurricane, documents were lost during the hurricane so we are basically starting from scratch,” she added.