GoodHeart | KC Choir aids St Hilda’s High rebuild

Dozens of students at St Hilda’s Diocesan High School for Girls faced a sudden challenge when Hurricane Melissa swept through Jamaica, causing significant damage across several parishes, including sections of the school’s home parish of St Ann. The hurricane affected the school and boarding facilities but also revealed the resilience of the girls and the strength of the school community. With support from their brother school, Kingston College (KC), they are beginning to rebuild, continue their education, and look forward to brighter days.

For the hundred-plus-year-old learning institution, normalcy is a thing of the past. Although school reopened three weeks ago on a phased basis, many are still unable to attend, especially the girls for whom living on campus is critical for their ongoing education.

The Kingston College Chapel Choir sprang into action to assist them in starting the long journey of rebuilding by offering part of the proceeds of its recent Christmas Choral Concert. For chairman of the choir committee, Lloyd McEwan Jnr, helping was simply the right thing to do.

“We have a long standing, symbiotic relationship with St Hilda’s. When we have our choir music retreat, they host us and we board with them for a week or even up to 10 days. After the passing of Hurricane Melissa, we felt we needed to help them, so we all went down there, choir boys and old boys alike, and helped with the heavy lifting and just provided practical help with the clean-up. So any amount of funds we can raise to assist, we are more than happy to do that,” McEwan told GoodHeart.

Welcoming Kingston College’s efforts to help them reset, rebuild and renew the girls’ hope, vice principal for St Hilda’s Vanessa Thompson-Walters, said that though things are challenging, she holds renewed faith in humanity’s capacity to care.

“The school was badly affected with major damage to our boarding facilities, chapel, principal’s cottage, dining room, as well as our main building that houses the bursar’s office, general office and our computer labs. Three of our computer labs were severely damaged, so laptops, desktops and a smartboard were affected,” she shared.

Established 119 years ago, St Hilda’s boasts a general population of 1,015 girls. As a boarding institution, the impact has been felt severely, because before the hurricane, they could accommodate 200 girls, but currently can only house 45. Therefore, getting everyone back on campus to advance their education is a priority.

“The repairs to the boarding facilities are of utmost importance, so any contribution we get from this generous concert being put on by KC will definitely be much appreciated,” Thompson-Walters added.

It is also the perfect opportunity, she shared, for the girls to witness that when life becomes difficult, you do not give up, but stay the course and turn problems into purpose.

“The truth is the girls are very resilient young ladies in the making, and despite the challenges, when they came back weeks ago, they did so with an attitude of gratitude. Even though they had to make adjustments to schedules and routines, they came prepared to learn; so I think it shows that in times of crisis, they have to rise to the occasion and forge ahead,” said Thompson-Walters.

nicola.cunningham@gleanerjm.com