Restoring Dignity. Rebuilding Lives. One Family at a Time.

When Hurricane Melissa struck, it weighed heavily on my heart. Even though we were  spared, our brothers and sisters in Westmoreland, St. Elizabeth, St. James, Hanover, and parts of Trelawny and Manchester were devastated. Entire homes flattened. Roofs ripped away. Rivers changed course and swallowed houses. Communities cut off, still without clean water.

From the moment we heard the first reports, we felt the call to move.
Since then, Uplift East has completed  outreach missions, and every time we go back, it becomes clearer:
➡️ The need is humongous.
➡️ Our personal funds alone cannot stretch to what is required.

This is why the campaign had to be started.

We have met women like Madia, Brandisha, and Gigi, each from different communities in Westmoreland — women who have lost their homes in entirety, standing on the bare earth where their houses used to be. Many are still sleeping in open, exposed spaces. Many are washing in the rivers because the water system is still down.

And every time we drive away after a distribution, I say to myself:
“Bread and tin food alone cannot fix this. They need back a roof over their heads.”

WHAT WE ARE RAISING FUNDS & MATERIALS FOR

We are focusing on the most urgent needs, the things that restore dignity and basic safety:

1. ROOFING & REBUILDING MATERIALS

These are CRITICAL right now — more than anything else.

• Zinc sheets

• Plyboard

• Ammunal / hurricane straps

• 4×4 and 2×4 lumber

• Tarpaulins

• Nails, screws, roofing screws

Just enough to help a family rebuild one room, to sleep dry, to have a roof over a child’s head before school reopens in January.

2. WATER & SANITATION

Because many communities still have no water.

• 400–650 gallon water tanks (we are contributing three to the most cut-off communities)

• Water trucking (hiring trucks to deliver clean water weekly)

• Solar lamps (no power in several areas)

• Portable water containers

3. SHELTER & BASIC COMFORT

For families still sleeping exposed in the open.

• Blow-up beds

• Bedding

• Tents & heavy-duty tarps

4. SEEDLINGS & FARMER SUPPORT

Because Westmoreland is a breadbasket, and farms were wiped out.

• Vegetable seedlings

• Seed packs

• Basic farm supplies to restart small crops

5. CARE PACKAGES (Selective)

We keep this simple and targeted:

• Canned proteins

• Rice, flour, oats

• Toiletries

• Sanitary products

Clothing is not needed (we do not have the manpower to sort it).

WHY WE ARE ASKING FOR SUPPORT

Everything we’ve purchased so far has come straight from our pockets. We will continue to give — but the scale of destruction is far beyond what one team can manage alone.

And with school reopening in January, we have a short window to help families at least recover one safe, dry space for their children.

This is why we are appealing to:

• well-wishers

• Jamaicans in the diaspora

• friends of Jamaica

• allies with a heart for women, elders, and vulnerable families

People who understand that grassroots hands reach the forgotten corners that big organizations often miss.