COVID-19: Hundreds benefit from BCB/RHTY&SC food hampers project

The Berbice Cricket Board (BCB), under the leadership of President Hilbert Foster, joined hands with the ten cricket teams of the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC), MS to assist hundreds of families with food hampers as part of its COVID-19 community outreach project.

The BCB President, in his swearing in speech in 2018, had pledged that under his leadership, the board would not only become the best on the cricket field, but would reach out to touch the less fortunate, elderly and youths.

Foster recalled on Tuesday last he visited the club office after an absence of three weeks and observed that the club had over 100 missed phone calls; he soon realised that all of them were about seeking assistance in form of food hampers as most families were unable to provide meals for themselves.

After consulting with some senior members of both the BCB and the RHTY&SC, MS, the COVID-19 programme was launched with the objective of sharing out at least 500 food hampers at the value of about G$3,000 each.

West Indies middle-order batsman Shimron Hetmyer was the first contributor to the project, while other donors include Bish Panday of P&P Insurance, Shabeer Baksh of Big B’s Restaurant, former BCB Secretary Mortimer George, USA-based CEO of Cricket Zone Ravi Etwaroo, along with cricketers Shemaine Campbelle, Sheneta Grimmond, Shabika Gajnabi, Clinton Pestano, Tremayne Smartt, Adrian Singh, Gregory Crandon, Junior Blair, Royston Crandon and Mahendra Gopilall.

Corporate sponsors include the National Milling Company (NAMILCO), the official sponsor of the RHTY&SC first division team, Poonai Pharmacy, Caribbean International Distributor Inc, Bakewell and RL Construction.

Other donors included the Edinburgh Cricket Club, Rana Persaud, Dr. Puran Singh, Victor Takurdeen, Terry Pike, Ryan Tillak, Linden Jones (Ojay) of Juggernauth Entertainment, Timothy Sandia, Regional Vice-Chairman Dennis Deroop, Dennis D’Andrade, Sunil Marimoothoo, Joy Papannah (Tate) and former BCB President Anil Beharry.

The management of Bounty Farm Limited also donated a large quantity of chicken and has committed to doing so for the next two months. Foster expressed total satisfaction at the success of the ongoing project and noted that it would continue as long as donations come in.

Among the clubs that received food hampers for their members are Kildonan, Whim, Port Mourant, Albion, Chesney, West Berbice, Blairmont, Mt. Sinai, Rose Hall Canje, Young Warriors and Guymine. The RHTYSC, MS, also donated hundreds of face masks to residents as part of the COVID-19 response.

The RHTYSC, MS, cricket teams involved in the joint programme are RHT Namilco Flour First Division and Under-21, Bakewell Second Division and Under-17, Metro Female, Farfan and Mendes Under-12 and Under-13, Pepsi Under-19 and Intermediate.

“BCB Secretary Angela Haniff expressed gratitude to the donors for coming on board with Guyana’s leading cricket board and the RHTY&SC cricket teams. She urged other donors to join the hampers project,” a release from the BCB concluded.