Lacovia, St Elizabeth…Nigel Coke |
“It’s never too late for a shower of rain.” That famous proverbial held true for 105 year old Roberta Gayle and her 78 year old daughter Gwendolyn Tomlinson who are now living in well needed housing. Gayle and Tomlinson were the recipient of the keys to their own house on Sunday March 21, 2021 in Lacovia, St. Elizabeth.
The furnished one bedroom house, outfitted with kitchen and bathroom, is a joy to the first time homeowners.
Gayle, who has lived in Lacovia her entire life has had many challenges. With 11 children (4 boys and 7 girls), and the oldest being Gwendolyn, she could not speak much, but kept uttering her thanks to the church. “I feel nice,” she uttered several times.
“I feel comfortable knowing that I now have a roof over my head and I am grateful to what the church has done. Life is now alright,” said Gwendolyn after the keys were handed over.
The dreams of Gayle and Tomlinson were made possible through the collaborative effort of the West Jamaica Conference of Seventh-day Adventists and overseas donors, who were mobilized by the church under the housing segment of its mentorship programme.
“Real church happens after you have left the four walls of the building you called church,” said Pastor Glen Samuels, president of the Adventist church’s western region. “We hand over this house in order to help them live a more relaxing life in their senior years. It’s our joy to share and we thank those who helped us to care,” he added.
Pastor Everett Brown, president of the Seventh-day Adventist church in Jamaica who offered words of encouragement to the family said: “It was indeed heartening to see how happy these two ladies were to receive their home. This only serves to underscore and reemphasize the need for the church to be an integral part of the community in which it serves because the needs are always varied and great, and one of the greatest ways to show the love of Jesus is the support and care for His people.”
In addition to the house, the ladies were given linen and toiletries to make their living more comfortable.
