Montego Bay community reaches out to poor with food, medicine

JAMAICA

In an effort to assist the less fortunate in the wider community, Bishop Burchell McPherson of Montego Bay and his team at the Blessed Sacrament Cathedral have transformed the grounds of the church to host several initiatives geared at giving back.

A Jamaica Observer article said that news team was met with an “open door” when it contacted Bishop McPherson earlier that week, as he proudly explained the daily happenings on the grounds.

“We are a part of several initiatives,” the Bishop stressed. “We have our medical clinic here and that is opened Monday to Friday; we have the Food for the Poor programme, a food distribution programme, where we assist families with food packages once a month; and we also have a soup kitchen that’s geared towards people living on the street.”

The medical clinic, Bishop McPherson further explained, is being run by the Good Shepherd Foundation and provides a wide range of medical services at heavily discounted rates.

Under the Food for the Poor programme, meals are distributed daily to different organisations and churches in Montego Bay free of cost.

The food distribution programme, which sees many families receiving food packages monthly, is one of the biggest initiatives being undertaken by the church. These packages include rice, flour, cornmeal, oats, tin mackerel as well as non-perishable items.