KEEPING OUR CHILDREN CONNECTED TO EDUCATION

What started out as an opportunity to serve disenfranchised families at their almamater, George Town Primary School has transitioned into a mission to keep our children connected to their Education.

Michal Myles and Alric Lindsay have developed a partnership that is far reaching and rooted in serving their communities. Over the past two months, Mr. Myles and Lindsay has personally raised and donated well over CI$30,000 in laptops, personal protective equipment (including face masks and hand sanitizers), food supplies, scholarships for TVET training and the Financial Peace University money management course.

On Saturday, June 6, they donated another 3 computers to families who have struggled to keep their children connected to their curriculum.

Mr. Myles stated “Why are we not more committed to ensuring that every child owns a laptop computer and connected to the internet? The country was reportedly committed to spending CI$2,000,000 on the redevelopment of Smith Barcadere and to participating in a financing deal in the region of CI$300,000,000 on a cruise berthing facility that would have served to benefit mainly mega cruise ship CEOS and their financial bottom lines, however we still have children that are doing their schoolwork off their parent’s cellphones. Why have we not committed this type of financing and expenditure to ensure that every child in the Cayman Islands is connected to the internet and has a laptop?

Mr. Lindsay stated that “policy makers do a good job of making bullet points and jotting down notes about things that need to be done to make our communities better. But when the time comes for implementation or taking action, our representatives support deals that only benefit a small group of people or corporations who become wealthier and wealthier each four-year period that our representatives serve in the legislative assembly. In contrast, the less fortunate communities and lower income groups live their daily lives facing adversities and are forced to accept $50 food vouchers and $10 gift certificates to make ends meet. Starting with our children, we must take steps to develop wealth for the masses and not just a few privileged people”.

The mission for the two men over the next six months is to raise funds to purchase another 20 laptops computers for 20 students; expand the money management course Financial Peace University to another 30 Caymanians who want to learn how to budget, dump debt, save and live debt free. Currently, the course has 30 persons participating and establish TVET training for another 20 Caymanians at the Inspire Cayman Training Center.