The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

OFFICIALS at the Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre yesterday announced a new outreach partnership with the Shell Saxon Superstars, with the group now set to host the hospital’s annual holiday Junkanoo parade.

During a press conference at the centre’s Fox Hill Road compound to announce the move, Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre (SRC) senior staff applauded the initiative, insisting that the inclusion of the popular group could reduce the common stigma attached to mental health in the country.

SRC Chief Medical Staff Coordinator Eugenia Combie said she viewed the parade as “very important” to patients because it is viewed as a “cultural activity” - one she said qualifies as a “hallmark” event for the country.

She said: “[Patients] feel very important when they participate. We engender a lot of values when we allow them to participate, preparation for Junkanoo might take months, so it calls for cooperation around them, it calls for collaboration and it calls for perseverance.

“So we let them bring their ideas and work with each other to create toward what they want to portray on that day. On that day we give them the opportunity for them to be on stage, as well as a parade, not just in front of us as family, but also in front of judges and they always do their best.”

Sandilands has hosted the parade since 1999, with each ward at the facility outfitting a group of participants with the view of “being the best.”

SRC Principal Nursing Officer Thelma McKenzie stressed that the effort put in by the patients is one of “pride and joy and enthusiasm.”

“Junkanoo is always an exciting time at Sandilands. It is a time when our patients really look forward to pasting their costumes with newspapers with the help of the various groups. They look forward to it with pride and joy and enthusiasm.”

“In preparation for Junkanoo, each ward enters the competition. It is very competitive because we have (patients) from various areas and they look forward to winning the final title. They brag about what they do, and how they do it.”

While the partnership announced Wednesday focuses solely on the upcoming parade, public relations officer for the Shell Saxon Superstars, Kendonique Moss, said the group is dedicated to a full scope of outreach initiatives.

“We are fortunate to have this partnership,” she stated. “It is more than just Junkanoo. Of course Junkanoo unites people from all facets of life, but we want to make sure that the persons who are here feel that they are included as well. So many times, the persons that may be at SRC are not included, and that is not what we want.”

“We want them to feel inclusive. So we want to take it even a little bit further, not only the Junkanoo that is going to ignite us and unite us, but we want to go a little further in terms of a movie-night perhaps, maybe some gardening that we can partake in; just to be involved in an outreach programme. There are a lot of times we find that people tend to forget persons that are here at SRC and we don’t want that to happen. We want to be inclusive.”

Officials at SRC have indicated that the upcoming parade will be open to the public.