From WhatsApp group to official organization, Jamaican residents in N.L. launch association

A new association representing Jamaican and other Caribbean residents living in Newfoundland and Labrador has officially launched.

The Jamaican Canadian Association of Newfoundland and Labrador has been a long time coming, says president Didan Ashanta Wedderburn.

"Six years ago when I came here, I had hopes of forming community, of finding community," Wedderburn said on CBC Radio's The Signal.

Vice-president Olivia Newland-Johnson said the association will be a road map for newcomers, helping people navigate the province, and offering resources and knowledge in multiple areas like housing, the job market, education and even food packages.

"We want to make their lives easier," Newland-Johnson said, adding they welcome people to register.

They are also welcoming residents to attend a gala in celebration of the association's launch taking place on Aug. 2, at The Lantern venue in St. John's.

Wedderburn says the gala has the essentials of a Jamaican party — great food and music, including a Reggae dance party hosted by DJ Blanco, Bahamian vocalist Chanel Rolle and even performances from the community's children. The public can buy tickets through the association's website.

There will also be recognition of the Jamaican residents who have made "significant contributions to our province," Wedderburn said.

"We're bringing [a] spotlight to them to say 'We see you. You have been blazing the trail so we can follow behind you.'"

'Wanting to be together'

When Tricia-Gaye Pinnock, the association's events co-ordinator, first landed in the province 11 years ago, she said she could count on one hand how many Jamaicans she knew. Now, there are a little over 300 Jamaican members, and she suspects there are more.

The idea for the association first started a few years ago, with the simple wish of finding more Jamaicans living in the province. So they created an event at Bowring Park during Jamaican Independence Day in the hopes of luring out fellow Jamaicans.

From that event, they created a Whatsapp group that quickly ballooned to 200 members.

"It started just by us wanting to be together," Wedderburn said. "And then we realized we need to support each other in ways that's beyond having a party in the park."

With a formal association, they could better represent their community, apply for grants and collaborate with other organizations and businesses.

Natasha Sutherland, who is part of the community through her Jamaican husband, runs the L.S Real Estate Group that is sponsoring the gala.

Sutherland said to grow the province's population, diversity is key.

"It's people coming to this province, they are going to be working at companies, they're paying taxes, their kids are going to school here," she said.

"And I think it's very important for businesses, then, to give back, to make sure these people feel welcome."

And that welcome is a big aspect in retention which is also on the to-do list of the association, said Wedderburn.

"Belonging is core to retention… if they don't feel that sense of belonging, they might not stick around long," she said.

"It is within cultural community groups that we find that belonging. You get that soft landing where someone can show you where and how and why and when."

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