For anyone passing by a house in West Bay being painted by several dozen young men, on Saturday, 30 Sept., they would have witnessed the collective effort of 43 students from the Boyz2Men programme giving back to the community.
The boys – 40 from John Gray High School and three from Hope Academy – set out to brighten up the exterior of the home of West Bay resident Lorraine Ebanks, something she had wanted to do for years but couldn’t afford to, she told the Compass.
“They are a great bunch of young men,” Ebanks said. “For me, it’s great because it’s a huge help financially… I’ve been trying to do this and it’s been difficult. So, this is a big blessing to have them all here. I am very, very happy and grateful.”
While the hot weather didn’t help the task, the boys continued to scrape the walls before painting, keeping themselves distracted with the labour at hand, jamming to everything from dancehall to country music playing on a portable speaker, while taking breaks to eat oranges or KFC, which were donated on the day.
“I think this is one of those ventures that we do that gives back so much,” Christopher Murray, founder of the programme, told the Compass. “Mrs. Ebanks… told me she was so pleased with how her house was looking.
“This moment is almost invaluable, because to be able to serve others, I believe, is one of the greatest opportunities for an individual… they could be elsewhere doing things that are self-serving.”
The Boyz2Men programme was established in 2009 to assist young men who were drifting into trouble because they lacked strong male role models.
Today, the programme directed by Murray, Simon Miller and Seaford Russell Jr, stretches across four different schools – Clifton Hunter High School, John Gray High School and Hope Academy on Grand Cayman, and Layman E. Scott High School on Cayman Brac – catering not only to at-risk boys but also to others in need of guidance.
Murray said through community projects, the boys will learn the importance of contribution.
“To be able to be giving back to the community and an elderly lady, who is unable to do it – I think this is something they will never, ever forget and I am hoping this is start of other great things they’ll continue to do because, to be true leaders, you have to serve others,” he said.
Building new bonds
With the academic year recently starting, gathering the 2023-24 Boyz2Men inductees to paint a home was key in allowing them to bond with those they would have otherwise not acknowledged on school grounds.
“At school, you only have like an hour to hang out with each other, but now you can hang out and socialise more,” new John Gray Boyz2Men member Jerrin Reynolds-Velasquez said.
“It’s good that our relationship is growing in a good way, because at least we can talk while doing something that is meaningful.”
Some of the boys were painting for the first time, while others familiar with the task offered help to their peers.
“Some of them are taking the advice well but sometimes they are hard of hearing,” Kaniel Baker, of John Gray Boyz2Men, told the Compass. “I feel after this experience, our relationship in school is going to be much more better.”
But apart from at John Gray, outside relationships were also formed.
“It’s cool to meet new people,” Matthew Bernard of Hope Academy, said. “The experience has been great. I’m the type of person that likes to go outside, paint, clean up yards and help people.”
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