Recisa Fearon’s philanthropy

IT didn’t take much searching for Recisa Fearon to discover her passion. In fact, although she was drawn to nursing, Fearon recalls having vowed to make the quality of life better for parents and children who could afford neither medical care nor financing their educational journey, as she had been exposed to similar hardships herself.

“While I was going to Wolmer’s, my parents sometimes found it difficult to get all my textbooks, PE gear and school fees paid on time. Sometimes I didn’t have enough lunch money for the week, so my mother would cook early in the morning and give me lunch to carry with me. It can be very hard when you don’t have all your resources to complete your projects,” Fearon told All Woman.

Born and bred in St Catherine, the 34-year-old is now an advanced nurse practitioner in adult care at the CarePoint Health System in New Jersey. Having migrated just two years after leaving Wolmer’s, she struggled not only to adjust to a new culture, but to gain admittance into nursing school.

With so many irons in the fire, Fearon admits that for a while she lost sight of the promise she had made to herself until she saw an article in the Sunday Observer. She describes the article as the catalyst for the establishment of her non-profit organisation — The Rising Sun Foundation (RSF).

It was founded with the core principles to assist in eradicating poverty, illiteracy and other social ills which are within the corridors of education.

“The RSF movement began in 2013 when I came across the article highlighting five parishes which had been underachieving in the national Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT). They were St Mary, Westmoreland, Portland, St Thomas and Hanover,” Fearon said.

“In thinking about this, I wanted to contribute to a solution, so I decided to start at the early childhood level by assisting parents who could not afford much-needed school supplies for their children. In working with persons in the various communities, the rising demand for basic supplies led me to enlist the help of friends, family, and like-minded associates to donate well-needed school supplies to schools in these targeted parishes.”

But making this dream a reality was no easy feat, as positioning herself to ensure her stability and that of the business proved very difficult. She said this experience was also an eye-opener to the many glaring weaknesses in several government systems.

“The process to acquire the required documents for the foundation was neither efficient nor clear. The registration process was unnecessarily long and tedious as communication from the various government agencies was inconsistent, unclear, and for the most part time-consuming. It also showed significant cracks in our customer service delivery in how procedures are not seamless across government agencies, and make the country seem unfriendly to charitable organisations or any business trying to register in Jamaica,” Fearon shared.

She said the dissatisfaction extended even to the wharf, where she met many unpleasant faces, and had to suffer through several hours of waiting for exorbitant charges associated with the clearance of goods.

But even these setbacks, she said, have not been enough to deter her.

“I am absolutely passionate about advancing the holistic development of Jamaica’s children so that they may be empowered to lead a life that is meaningful and productive to themselves and their society. As I do my work, when I get discouraged, my school motto — “Whatever you do, do it to the best of your ability” — is a great source of encouragement. I am proud of my work, but I also want to encourage others to give back,” Fearon said.

Admitting that she could not have done it alone, Fearon acknowledged that a team of committed, trustworthy individuals and companies in Jamaica have also helped to keep the wheels of altruism turning.

“An institution is more than just one person, and having a committed team makes the difference,” Fearon said.

She added: “I have several personal donors from different parts of the world such as Africa, Pakistan, Haiti, USA and Jamaica, who believe in my cause. DHL Express Jamaica has continuously assisted the foundation to transport the school supplies across Jamaica, and the Jamaica Producers Group has donated snacks for treating the children. Malachi Morgan, treasurer, director Wayne Thorpe, and secretary Felicia O’Sullivan have been very efficient and hard-working towards making our mission a reality.”

Fearon, who is described by at least two members of her local team as a “lady with a golden heart” and “ a woman of substance”, when not tending to her adult patients or at one charity show or another, says she is watching football — Chelsea being her club of choice, enjoying the cool countryside, and listening to old-school reggae.