Hello, my name is Shannon, a Jamaican native living in Japan with strong family roots in St. Elizabeth parish.

As we may all be well aware now, the western sections of Jamaica, my island home, were devastated by the passing of Hurricane Melissa. St. Elizabeth was among the hardest hit, and my family in Brighton district were not spared Melissa’s fury.

The family home there, which has been in the family for generations and was until now occupied by my cousins, was destroyed. Most of the homes and historic structures, such as churches, are now without roofs, and personal belongings have been destroyed.

I am setting up this GoFundMe with the hopes of assisting as many of the families there with making repairs or rebuilding their homes and lives, including an elderly couple whose home collapsed on them during the storm and who had to be rescued by other members of the community. I would also like to assist with getting whatever necessities people will require during this very difficult time, and being such a remote community, on-the-ground aid may be slow to reach them.

Brighton is largely a farming community, and so with crops also destroyed, many people will be starting from scratch.

The money raised will be spent on:

Please donate whatever you can.