Greetings! I am Samantha Abrams, founder of Sapodilla's Caribbean Restaurants. For the past 25 years I’ve also served in private and nonprofit sector roles leading major departments at GEICO and heading organization with global impact. As many of you know, my husband is Jamaican and his family is from St. Elizabeth Parish. This has become my second home (I’m Guyanese). We are all aching from the aftermath of Melissa, but no more than the people living in Jamaica.

We are calling on our community, friends, and supporters across the diaspora to stand in solidarity with the people of Jamaica, particularly St. Elizabeth Parish — a community that is hurting and in urgent need of our help.

Hurricane Melissa has left families in St. Elizabeth struggling to meet even their most basic needs. This awful cat 5 hurricane hit the same areas that Hurricane Beryl hit last year. Homes have been destroyed, power is nonexistent, water access is limited, especially for drinking (not to mention a refreshing bath), and daily essentials have become hard to secure. It will only get harder. We’re raising critical funds to restore a basic level of comfort, safety, and nourishment for these communities.

We would like this effort to be strategic, intentional, and impactful with direct contact with boots on the ground. We will also work with a few local churches in St. Elizabeth to make this direct support.

For example, we need to send:

1. Generators, solar solutions and flashlights (electricity will be a long haul effort - at least a year at minimum)

2. Folks need a warm place to sleep - we need to provide them mattresses

3. Food & water - we're going to be sending barrels of food in hopes it reaches in the next 3 weeks

4. Bedding - sheets and light blankets (it gets chilly in this area at nights)

5. Tarpaulin to cover those roofs that are damaged or completely gone

6. Mosquito nets

7. Other needs expressed and needed

Every dollar raised will be strategically deployed through trusted family members and local partners such as the Baptist Church to directly reach those in greatest need. Sapodilla’s D.C., in collaboration with community leaders and respected NGOs, is committed to full transparency and real, on-the-ground impact. We will provide real-time stories, photos, and videos of how your dollars were invested.

This is more than a fundraiser — it’s an act of solidarity. Together, we can make sure the people of St. Elizabeth Parish have the essentials to rebuild, recover, and rise stronger.

Please donate what you can and share this campaign widely with your networks. Every contribution, no matter the size, makes a difference. We are the cavalry our people are in need of right now!