Last night, Youth Opportunities Unlimited hosted a graduation ceremony for dozens of youth who completed an employment enhancement program. The program was funded, in part by the Jamaica Social Investment Fund, and we recognized the hard work of the young people who trained in areas such as computer skills, leadership and digital design. We opened the evening with a prayer and the anthem. Everybody was dressed in their finest, although we had to tell a couple of young men to pull up their pants and pin a young lady’s blouse shut. Oops!

We had a guest speaker by the name of Juleus Ghunta, who I have written about before. We also had a special guest speaker by the name of Evadne Coye, who is an Ambassador to Sir Patrick Allen, Governor General. In addition to these inspirational messages, saxophonist Dwayne Foster performed “We are the World,” which had everyone singing along and swaying in time. A spoken word performer named Randy Mclaren (Kriativ Activis, he calls himself) enthralled the audience with his dub poetry. He spoke about how he is the first person to go to college from his tiny village in St. Thomas parish. He has two more credits to go. Simply the Best Dance crew also thrilled everyone with a dancehall performance. In addition to these more entertaining performers, a board member, Mrs. Scott (YOU’s executive director), and someone from the government agency also spoke about the program, which has helped many of the youth to find full-time employment. It was amazing to hear them speak about how such a program has given them a boost in confidence, as well as the means to navigate the work world. It is a good reminder that those people born with privilege take for granted that they know how to behave in the workplace. One young man came up to me and asked if I could make sure to get a picture of him receiving the certificate, as it will be the first time he has graduated something since basic school (primary school.)

After everybody received the certificates, food was served. Patties, fried chicken, sandwiches, from what I could see. I was rushing off to see the results of the election.