The Tribune

By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

YELLOW Elder residents in need received food items yesterday at the community’s Tom “The Bird” Grant Park.

The charitable act is the efforts of the Rotary Club of New Providence in partnership with AML Foods Ltd as well as the Royal Bahamas Police Force’s South Central Division and Yellow Elder Neighborhood Watch.

Past President of the Rotary Club of New Providence Valentino Hamilton explained they were to provide grocery bags for 100 families.

“So, we would’ve purchased groceries from AML and they agreed to match our donation, which not only enables us to give out 100 bags of groceries today in the Yellow Elder Community but also next week in another community - the Englerston community,” he said.

The project is an estimated $4,000 venture for groceries, excluding the donation of computer tablets given to them by a different foundation. They planned to give those tablets to Yellow Elder Primary School, Woodcock Primary School, and Government High School.

Mother of eight Maria Miller has been living in the community for 20 years and explained the pandemic has affected a lot in her area.

“Some of them work in hotel. Majority of them are happy because the hotels are opening but they saying for how long and is the touriscoming in. Are they going to able to stay on their job or are they going to get lay off again?,” she said.

The 48-year-old has also suffered from economic downturn of this health crisis. She has been unemployed for two years. Now, the pandemic has made it harder to clean houses.

“The company shut down so eventually I go look elsewhere. So, I was just doing odd jobs. I’m a housecleaner I do housekeeping. So, any little job I can get, every little here and there I just do. That’s what I’m doing now and right now it’s tough because ain’t nobody want you in their house because of this pandemic.”

“I been on social service for a little while but they decline my card because I had to go to the labour board but after this pandemic don’t make no sense going to the labour board to look for a job if ain’t nobody giving you a job. So that’s a downfall for me too from social service. So any little hand out that’s round here nowadays I jump at it.”

It’s been stressful especially dealing with her children’s school work. The mother admitted she felt sometimes that she didn’t think she could make it mentally.

Similarly, Brenda Mackey, 50, has not been able to work. She claimed that she had a contract with the government to clean pipes but she was told to stop working. This was back in June this year.

“They took it from me. Tell me to stop work. I don’t get no social service,” she said.

“I stop so now they say I forfeit the job, so that was a dirty deal.”

The mother wants her contract back because she needs to feed her child as the father was killed about four years ago.

She recalled: “I spoke to everyone. I went to the House of Assembly and I spoke to Halson Moultrie and he tried his best but right now I don’t have no income - not one.”

It also has been a struggle for 79-year-old Inez Mckenzie whose house burned down after Hurricane Matthew. She said she is living with her grandson. The pandemic for her has been too rough.

“It was rough enough you don’t want think about it,” she admitted.

“I be round my grandchildren most of all. You have to help them pay their little bills and thing because it was really rough (for a) senior citizen.”

“You know you get a little something off you little pension,” she added.

“You have to help the children them pay little bills and things. Even if I was doing it by myself it couldn’t sustain me.”