THE Desnoes and Geddes (D&G) Foundation continued its drive to provide support to inner-city schools, as they navigate the financial challenges of the current academic year, with a donation of $250,000 to Swallowfield Infant and Primary School.

The money is to facilitate the purchase of a chest freezer and significantly boost the school’s breakfast programme. The cheque handover took place on the school’s premises, situated on Whitehall Avenue in St Andrew.

Principal of Swallowfield Infant and Primary School Jacqueline Bailey expressed her appreciation for the foundation’s timely donation of the freezer as she underscored the convenience it will offer.

“Currently, we have to store some of our frozen items in the tuck shop on our school grounds, and ever so often we have to walk with these items across the compound when we’re ready to use them.

“Not only do we experience the inconvenience of doing that, we don’t have as much space as we’d like to store the items. So the foundation’s donation towards a new freezer comes at the right time and brings us great appreciation,” said Bailey.

Swallowfield Infant and Primary School launched a breakfast programme more than a decade ago, catering to students who may need the opportunity to have breakfast before coming to school. The feeding programme assists between 100 and 200 students each week.

“Unfortunately, many of our students are from less fortunate backgrounds and this is one of the reasons we started the programme. We frequently offer porridge, eggs, bread, and cakes, and it helps our students to start the day right, ready to learn. With this donation, we anticipate that we’ll be able to support even more students,” added Bailey.

With a few goals achieved with the D&G Foundation’s contribution, Swallowfield Infant and Primary School is now setting its sights on further enhancements.

These include expanding the school’s infrastructure, addressing the need for new furniture, improving internet access across the campus, creating vibrant murals, and acquiring additional tools and devices to enhance the learning and teaching experience.

“Since the start of the back-to-school season, we have tried our best to assist as many schools in need as possible. Fortunately, we got word that Swallowfield Infant and Primary School needed some support, and we were more than willing to assist.

“We hope that with our donation more students will benefit from the feeding programme, creating a good foundation for the programme’s expansion. We are glad to have formed this partnership, and we look forward to extending more support to as many schools as possible,” said D&G Foundation accountant Dennis Beckford.

The donation to Swallowfield Infant and Primary School is part of the D&G Foundation’s ongoing commitment to improving Jamaica’s early childhood sector. In September, the foundation also provided back-to-school support for The Christian Early Childhood Academy, Callaloo Mews Basic School, and Joseph Royal Educational Centre.