Help Restore Lionel to a Permanent Home

Hi, my name is Amalia Scott. My father, Lionel Scott, has suffered from severe mental health conditions and homelessness in Jamaica for the past 18 years. Due to a recent health scare, he is currently in a rehabilitation center. I'm running this campaign to restore him to a permanent home and sustain his wellness as he transitions back to living independently. I grew up without my father and I've only recently reunited with him. I hope this campaign will enable him to grow older and live a meaningful life so I can continue to get to know him as an adult. Any and all that you contribute will mean the world to me and our family. (To see a breakdown of our costs, scroll down.)

Lionel's Story

Lionel is a Jamaican athlete. He attended Manchester High School in Mandeville in the 70s and 80s where he became well-known as a long-distance runner. The longer the distance, the better he ran: his classmates knew him as the Bionic Man. He represented the school in the 3000 and the 5000m but was also a fierce competitor in national cross-country and road races. He won most of the following races: The Livity Burger 10K, The Red Label Wine 10K, Vouch ½ Marathon, Nike/High Mountain Road Race and Scouts 10K.

After winning many races in the early 80s, he won a track scholarship to the University of Mississippi, where he studied Physiology. While on the Ole Miss track team, Lionel became the holder of the Jamaican 3000-metre Steeplechase record of 8:52.2 set on May 4, 1985, in Indianapolis. In the mid-80s, while training for the Olympics, Lionel and my mother met and married.

Unfortunately, while at university Lionel began to suffer from psychotic episodes and was unable to attain appropriate care. This, coupled with a knee injury, cut short his career and he eventually returned to Jamaica. My mother and Lionel had become pregnant with my brother Michael, and after the birth of my brother, my mother followed Lionel to Jamaica. Lionel did a stint running with his alma mater to help with the track team, but he continued to struggle with his mental health. My mother became pregnant with me, but as Lionel’s mental health and stability continued declining steeply, my mother returned to Mississippi.

Lionel, my mother, and my brother, 1989

After my mother's departure in 1990, Lionel returned to live with his adoptive parents (his mother died when he was 9 years old). Lionel cared for them until they died. Family issues led to him being removed from the home, and he started living in his car. Eventually, his mental disorder took over his life. He struggled to take his medication and inherent to his condition, he also found it difficult to accept the help of concerned friends and relatives. After years of struggle, Lionel ended up living in a hut he had built in the bushes near the home from which he’d been forcefully removed. Eighteen years later, in 2022, Lionel’s mental and physical condition began deteriorating rapidly. Here is a video of Lionel during this time: https://fb.watch/bnF7PEEe0l/

Lionel and the "hut":

In April 2022, following the intervention of his family and schoolmates, Lionel was admitted to Harrison’s Rehabilitation and Nursing Centre in Mandeville, Jamaica.

Since being admitted, Lionel has gained weight. He has regular meals and constant supervision. Currently, Lionel’s former schoolmates are bearing the costs of Lionel's accommodation and his various treatments ( $454 per month). This arrangement is unsustainable for the community and for Lionel’s psychological wellness. While he has regained some physical health in the home, he is unhappy there and has declined in his capacity to relate with family and friends when we visit him. Lionel has made clear his desire to live independently, and as his family, we have evaluated that this is the best option for him.

A lifelong friend of Lionel’s has set aside a parcel of his family land in Mandeville where we (family and friends) have permission to erect a self-contained structure in which Lionel can live ongoingly. While Lionel’s intention is to live independently, and we as his support system want to help him achieve this, we are also aware that due to his mental health status, he will continue to need assistance as he transitions back to independent living. We therefore intend to provide him with several supports in addition to building the home, as described below and accounted for in the budget breakdown.

Tony (lifelong friend), Lionel, myself (daughter), and Tsehai (niece) at the Rehabilitation and Nursing Centre in January 2023.

I feel keenly aware of the systemic setbacks Lionel has faced as a mentally ill black man who attempted immigration to the US. I am training as a mental health professional in Louisiana, US, and have seen firsthand how inaccessible services can be for people like Lionel. I grew up very aware of my father, his mental illness, and his absence, and I have only recently begun accruing enough resources as an adult to visit Jamaica regularly. I know it is lucky that Lionel is still alive, and through this campaign, I hope to help sustain his life enough to have the time to get to know him. For everything you share toward this campaign, I, my family, and Lionel's community offer deep gratitude.

Provided we receive the necessary funds, our plan includes:

-Funding Lionel's assisted living through summer [6 months]

-Building a small home for him by end of summer

-Sending a psychologist to visit him weekly [1 year]

-Paying someone local to check on him weekly to assure he has proper food and water supply since none of Lionel's family or schoolmates live locally [2 years]

Breakdown of costs:

6 more months at Rehabilitation Center

$2,724

Tiny house build-out

$10,000

Funds for someone to attend him weekly (2 years)

$75 per week for for 2 years = $7800

Psychologist or counselor to visit him weekly (1 year)

$80 per week for 1 year = $4,160

Minimum budget: $24,684

UPDATE | September 29, 2023:

Hi everyone, my deep thanks to all who have donated to this gofundme. We have come so far. As I write this, we have raised an incredible $27,237.

Let me bring you all up to date on our progress. As can be expected, real time has overtaken our original projected timeline. However we are moving forward and we now expect to have Lionel in his new home by mid-December. At that time I’ll be able to visit Jamaica and help him transition from assisted living to his independent living situation.

Update on Lionel:

Currently Lionel is still in the rehabilitation center. He has been seeing a fantastic psychologist and a psychiatrist, both of whom have helped us more appropriately assess the situation. While we still plan to honor Lionel’s strong preference to live independently, after more closely monitoring him throughout this year, we are reassessing jut how independent he can truly be. Because Lionel has been exhibiting symptoms of catatonia (not uncommon for people living with schizophrenia), we believe he will need more care than originally anticipated, including longer-term visits from the psychologist, and regular visits from a nurse to help him bathe, keep his home in good order, and assure he has water and food as needed.

Update on housing:

During the summer we realized that we had dramatically underestimated the cost of building a home from scratch due to both rapid inflation and an originally very low estimate on the cost of labor. Amazingly, we then learned about a company that retrofits shipping containers into residential homes. About 2 weeks ago, I put a 50% deposit of $10,558.44 down for the residential container build-out, which will be completed in late October, at which time I will put the remaining 50% of the cost down, bringing the total cost of the container home to $21,116.88. The container home comes turn-key and will be put on the city electricity. Additionally I will pay a construction company in Mandeville to build a foundation for the home, and a veranda outside of it once the container is placed. That construction company has estimated roughly $5,000 for labor and materials

All of these changes in the projected pathways forward mean that I am again raising the ask. I intend to raise the ask high this time in order to ensure that I am including all of Lionel’s needs for the next 2 years. After 2 years, I will be finished with graduate school and will be eligible for a salaried position as a counselor; and my half-brother and another son of Lionel’s, Chris, will also be more financially stable after inheriting a position in a family business. Together Chris and I will be able to support Lionel financially longer-term.

I make this ask humbly with the understanding that this is an ambitious goal, and that these times are not known for economic stability. I am at peace knowing that with everything we have received so far, Lionel will have a roof over his head. Because Lionel has been houseless for almost my entire life, even the progress we have already made is something I could not have imagined before this year. Whatever amount of money we make toward the rest of the goal will go toward Lionel’s psychological, medical, and domestic care for the next 2 years.

To everyone who has donated, shared this fundraiser, or been moved by Lionel’s powerful story, from the bottom of my heart I thank you.

Cost of container home: $21,116.88

Estimated cost of construction for foundation and veranda: ~$5,000

Total cost of Lionel’s stay at rehabilitation center April-December 2023 ($454 x 9 mos.) : $4,086

Psychologist to visit him weekly for 2 years ($80 x 108 weeks): $8,320

Nurse to visit him for various needs, 2-3 times per week for 2 years ($200 x 108 weeks): $20,800

Total ask: ~$60,000

Quote for Container Home:

Bank Screenshots for transparency of expenses: