Remember: Affirm your child
FOR the month of May, adults are being encouraged to celebrate children by “affirming” them.
During the month, observed annually as Child Month, the National Child Month Committee has coined the theme “A.F.F.I.R.M. Me!” to encourage adults to Acknowledge, (Be)Friend, Favour, (Positively) Influence, Respect, and Motivate our children.
The calendar of activities for Child Month include a national church service on Sunday, May 6 at the William Knibb Memorial Baptist Church in Falmouth. National Children’s Day will be observed on Friday, May 18 with special activities for children in Half-Way-Tree, downtown Kingston and Montego Bay; and a National Day of Prayer and Fasting will be held on Wednesday, May 30 at the May Pen New Testament Church of God.
The observance will go beyond May, to include the Youth Outstanding Academic Achievement Awards Ceremony to recognise students from non-traditional high schools, which will be held on Wednesday, June 27 at The Knutsford Court Hotel, New Kingston. A Youth Forum is also scheduled for Friday, November 2 at the St Andrew Parish Church Hall.
In addition to the activities organised by the committee, they will also partner with the Jamaica Fire Brigade in its campaign, ‘Jamaica’s Future is on Fire… Mek Wi Fix It’, which aims to get children to acknowledge fire safety practices and extend these to friends and families.
Remember, children are indeed the future, and in affirming a child you help to build strong children and eliminate trying to repair broken adults.