Thirteen-year-old Jason Jones of Belvedere Settlement has always dreamt of having his own cricket bat as he wants to follow in the footsteps of his idol, Shivnarine Chanderpaul. Jones, whose mother died in child birth, is being cared for by his aunt Anita, who is very supportive of her nephew’s desire to play for Berbice, Guyana and the West Indies.
Unable to obtain a cricket bat on her own, Ms. Jones approached a family friend to seek assistance from Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC), an organisation she was aware assists youths to fulfil their dreams under its ‘Dare to Dream’ programme.
Under this programme, the cricket teams of Guyana’s leading youth and sports organisation has assisted over 105 youths to fulfil their dream by assisting them to obtain needed items that they cannot afford themselves.
Club Secretary/CEO, Hilbert Foster, who received the request, readily agreed to provide the Port Mourant Secondary School student with a bat and stated that it is the club’s hope that Jason’s dreams of playing cricket at high level is realised.
The long-serving Secretary/CEO stated that too many youths who dare to dream are unable to fulfil their wishes because of lack of finance and this is a pity.
The RHTY&SC, M.S, he stated was founded in 1990 by three-time Commonwealth Youth Service Awardee, the St. Francis Community Developers, to offer sports and education as an alternative to a life on the road and through a simple formula of honesty, sheer hard-work and dedication the club has risen to be the best in Guyana, just 27 years later.
“This was because a group of 17 youths and a team of experienced advisors dared to dream and together they achieved their goal despite huge obstacles like lack of finance and facilities. The Dare to Dream programme was launched in 2000 on the 10th anniversary of the founding of the club and its main objective is to assist less fortunate youths,” the RHTY&SC said in a release.
Foster urged the young cricketer to practice hard every day, to seek advice from former cricketers and to always be disciplined. The Secretary/CEO also spoke on the importance of education and urged Jones to remain in school. Education, he stated, is the main foundation for success and noted that future assistance to Jones would be tied to a commitment to education.
A clearly elated Jones, who is not a member of the RHTY&SC, expressed gratitude to the RHTY&SC and the Pepsi team for assisting him. He said that it is surprising that a club would assist a non-member, but promised to make the RHTY&SC proud in the future.
Senior Pepsi Under-19 and national junior cricketer Sylus Tyndall handed over the bat to Jones in the presence of Assistant Secretary Simon Naidu.
