the Essence of Minella Riley
Mother ~ Blessed ~ Strong
Loyal ~ Loving ~ Encourager
I met Minella at the airport the day we were flying to Jamaica. It was my third trip to build a school as part of the Helping Hands Jamaica Foundation’s 27th school build. On the first trip, I went to build, but I also tried to capture the building photographically. The second was part build and part photography. By the third time, I had given up all pretense of building anything and concentrated on photography. It was safer and easier than pretending.
When I first met Minella, there was a connection – she made me change what I ordered for a special meal, telling me to live a little. That was the kind of person who looked after my best interests.
Then she got me into trouble at the airport in Jamaica. The big man in a uniform busted me for taking pictures of her in a “no photography” zone. I was asked to delete the photos. I deleted one image but forgot to delete the others in the sequence—I’m bad!
We then boarded the bus, and she sat across from me. At that point, we were given patties and a drink. I took another photo of her, one of my favourite portraits on the trip. She toasted me with a drink in her hand with the biggest smile. That friendly look and smile made me and anyone looking at the picture quite at ease with her.
I must admit, I didn’t spend enough time with Minella to get to know her better. When you have 30 people in the build, you simply can’t. What more information do I need to have to tell me she is a thoughtful, giving, kind person? Anyone who goes on these projects is just that. Giving of oneself to help those less fortunate is one of the highest calling activities I know of.
Another connection I realized we have is the experience of immigrating from one country to another to better one's life and, more importantly, one's children’s lives. That has got to be one of the most challenging decisions one can make—taking a leap of faith from within a known comfort zone (good or bad) and entering an unknown world. Meet Minella, but after, I introduce you to our common cause the Helping Hands Jamaica Foundation (HHJF).
Why am I so passionate about this HHJF of all charities and all the people in need in Canada and abroad? Why did this strike a chord with me? There is so much need and no end of good causes. I have done my best to participate in three to five charitable causes a year.
If I could participate more deeply in more charities, I would. That’s not how I am built. I want to help the whole world – since I am not Warren Buffet or Melinda Gates, I spread support to a limited number annually. Then, I rotate out of some and into a new set. My participation is also different than most. I gift dollars, but more often, I gift my photographic talents. I feel it is a more rewarding and unusual way to support. Visit my website at nkerba.com and look at the charity tab for some charities I have supported.
Allow me to tell you about the Helping Hands Jamaica Foundation. This group of Jamaican Expats had done very well for themselves in Canada, their adopted home. They knew they wanted to do something significant back home in Jamaica.
As a relatively poor country, certain areas are neglected. There are not enough resources to provide a consistently high and equal level of services across the country. One problem is that education and schools in the poorer areas suffer from a lack of funding. Schools are not the modern fancy buildings we have in first-world countries; quite often, they are undersized, ill-equipped and deteriorating dramatically. Helping Hands has come through magnificently. They and “Food for the Poor” have collaborated to build several schools. Helping Hands just built their 27th school. The goal for each school is to raise funds, get the necessary permits, and then build a school to hand off to the local Parrish. Jamaica has parishes, not provinces. Once the funding and permits are in place, a local building crew is hired to build the foundation and get services to the structure. Volunteers pay to support and are given a chance to see the dream come to fruition and participate in the actual building of the school. It is a delicate balance; we are not trying to remove jobs from the locals but providing logistical support for three to four days. In those few days, we had to put up outside walls, sometimes framing for the building; we did not do electrical, plumbing, or roofing, as those were the purview of the local labour force. We then painted and handed off the school to the community.
I’ve fallen in love with the people who appreciate our gift and what we are doing for their children. I especially love the children we are supporting. Photographically, I am in a fantastic photo zone from the minute I land. Everywhere I look, I see a picture to be had. After returning home and seeing any trip shots, I quickly get into a rabbit hole and can be there for an hour or two.
One look in those children's eyes makes this a worthwhile cause.
What has been your biggest challenge, and how did you overcome it?
My biggest challenge was packing up lock, stock, and barrel with my two children to move to Canada and join my husband. This was no easy feat.
Many moons ago, my husband decided to move our family to Canada, where his mom resided. After much consideration, he began the immigration process for me and our children. Everything went according to plan, and we were excited about this great move to Canada, a country we knew very little about except that there was a lot of snow and potentially significant opportunities for us and the children.
However, moving to Canada meant giving up my entire life as I knew it. It meant giving up my family. It meant giving up the job I loved and was on an upward trajectory. It meant giving up my community, my friends, and everything I had known my whole life. We made the move under less-than-ideal circumstances. I wrestled with the notion of failure: What if this doesn’t work out? In my mind, my only option was to move back home under a banner of shame and embarrassment. I cried for weeks. I felt sorry for myself. I missed what I knew as home all my life. But prayer changes things, and through my devotions, I was reminded that my God is a faithful God. His word says, “After you have struggled a little while, he himself will restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” I realized I had to pick myself up, brush myself off, and start over again. This seemed like, at the time, a monumental task, but I kept reminding myself that I was born to be a winner, to be at the top and not at the bottom. So, I made one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make. I took my children back home to Jamaica so that they could finish their school year while I stayed in Canada to plant the seeds of what would soon bloom to become our new home. I had never been separated from my children, and while I was devastated, I was not defeated. I kept telling myself that this decision was necessary to find our footing in Canada.
My husband and I moved in with his mother in Brampton, Ontario, to save money. Driven to do good for my children and to be reunited as soon as possible, I started working. Though the jobs were mostly temporary assignments, one assignment was with “Manpower Temporary Agency,” while there, I earned their prestigious Tiffany Award within three months (awarded to top female employees). Another assignment was with a French Bank, Credit Lyonnais, and although I did not speak French, within two days of working with them, they offered me full-time employment. Additionally, they were gracious enough to delay my start date until I returned to Canada after picking up my children in Jamaica. Once my family was reunited, we rented a condo. Though the owner was skeptical of us as newcomers, he took a chance on us despite promising the apartment to another family. We registered the children in school and found a fantastic babysitter who became a good family friend. Within six months, our family was reunited, and the rest, as the saying goes, is history. To God be the glory.
At some time, you reached a fork in the road. At that time, it didn’t feel like it, but looking back, you realize it was a big moment. One that changed your life. Describe yours.
My fork in the road was deciding whether to return to my homeland, Jamaica, to my friends and family in shame and defeat or stay in Canada and fight alongside my husband and children. I knew in my gut that if I were to return to Jamaica, I would be depriving my husband and children of all the opportunities Canada had to offer. For the first time in my adult life, I was devastatingly unemployed, and I felt like I had taken a massive step back in life. Though we had a great life in Jamaica, at that time, opportunities were minimal. Sitting in this in-between stage of my life at this fork in the road was overwhelming, to say the least. I was inconsolable. I also carried the crushing weight of guilt from my husband trying to console me to no avail.
Though difficult to admit, I decided to fight and stay in Canada as I was petrified of facing the negativity and shame of returning to Jamaica with my tail between my legs. I have not regretted my decision to fight against my doubts, fears, and anxieties to stay in Canada. By the grace of God, my family and I have done very well for ourselves here. So many doors were opened for us. Our children are educated, self-sufficient and doing very well for themselves. My husband recently retired from an extensive career, and I have been in a management position with a Bank for almost 30 years. I have travelled across the world and have formed long-lasting friendships. I had many people in my life who held me upright throughout my journey. Some were roots in that they are still in my life, while others were leaves brought to me for a particular reason and season. Both the roots and the leaves have taught me to be self-sufficient, which has, in turn, fostered my mission to give back to my community. This was and is still a requirement for my children: they volunteer in their communities in whichever way they feel called. I have learned that no matter how little we think we have, it is always enough to share with those in need. The little we share brings much to someone else’s life. Give, and it will return to you tenfold.
What is one gem you learned on your journey that you would love to share? Alternatively, what hint would you tell a younger version of yourself?
Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, just as long as you can.
You can donate directly to the Helping Hands Jamaica Foundation at their website
https://helpinghandsjamaica.com/donate