By: Precious Mills
BASSETERRE, St.Kitts (Friday 19th April 2019)- Coordinator of the Explorers Club movement Inspector Rosemary Isles-Joseph is encouraging parents to be firm yet caring in doing their part in the positive upbringing of their children.
She made the appeal during an interview on Monday this week (15th April) at the end of the club’s second annual march and rally featuring over 350 children from the six established groups namely MolPhil, Shadwell, St. Paul’s, St. Peter’s, Cayon and Lodge.
Led by its drum corp, the event saw youngsters fitting the age groups of 0 – 7, 8 – 10, 11 – 13 and 14 and above, accompanied by police officers of the 10-member support team of the movement initiated by the Ministry of National Security.
The march-rally outing that morning started at Greenlands pasture in Basseterre along Cayon Street next turning right onto Church Street, left on Liverpool Rowe and left onto Fort Street before swinging left on route to its starting point.
Stops spanning about 20 minutes were conducted outside Government Headquarters on Church Street and also at the upper section of Fort Street whereby the youngsters recited the Explorer’s song, pledge and motto-all written by Isles-Joseph.
The club’s adopted song ‘Love Can Build a Bridge’ was also performed to appreciative onlookers including Youth Minister Shawn Richards.
Asked about the club’s goals, she shared with this reporter: “Our main objective is to keep these children away from guns, drugs, gangs and any kind of criminal activity. Also, our main goal is make sure they learn respect; they learn to respect their parents, school teachers and anybody in authority. So, we’re working with these children.”
Club activities include clothing drive, homework assistance, cooking lessons, sewing classes and playing fun games like netball, volleyball and basketball.
Commenting on positive behavioural change within club members, Isles-Joseph highlighted: “So far especially, I can tell you about specifically about MoPhil [Molineaux and Phillips’] because that is the club that I am mainly in control of. As it relates to their behavior, I see tremendous improvement from when we started on the 6th of June 2017. In terms of their behavior in school, behavior at home and on the streets, a big improvement and so I am glad that we were able to make a difference and from what I understand, all the clubs have experienced positive changes within the children.”
“ I am not saying that all the children have changed but we have big improvements and hopefully in the long run; this is not just for today or tomorrow but these children are the children of tomorrow and hopefully we are trying to mould them so that in the future we can have a much better St.Kitts-Nevis,” Inspector Isles-Joseph added.
This top police officer issued a message to parents and guardians.
“I am asking all parents. We go to parents and ask them to allow their children to join the club, and too often we hear parents turn to the child and ask ‘Do you want to join?’ No, no, no! You let the child know that he/she will join; you don’t let the child lead you. You have to lead the children because at the end of the day if you ask the children if he/she wants to join the child might say yes but two to three weeks from now they might say ‘I don’t want to go back’, and so parents have to take charge.”
Inspector Isles-Joseph continued: “Children are not being children; they are being the parents and the parents are being the children. Parents have to know the strengths of their children and push them to that direction because parents don’t realise the strengths of their children until these children end up in a group or some sort of club where they take on some sort of activity then the parents would see the true potential of their children so I’m asking all the parents, allow your children to join; do not wait until they are out of hand and then call the police because by that time there is little we can do. Start them from now. I’m not saying that we’ll be able to change them one time but they will grow and we’ll be able to help them and mould them as we go along.”
“We are a loving, caring club and our main goal is that at the end of the day we make a difference in these children’s lives and the whole community St.Kitts-Nevis and so that we can move forward a crime free nation,” she also noted.
Inspector Isles-Joseph outlined that each club meets once on a weekly basis: MolPhil Saturdays at 4PM (Phillips’ Hard Court), Shadwell Wednesdays 5PM (Dr. William Connor Primary School), St.Peter’s Thursdays at 5PM (St. Peter’s Community Centre), St. Paul’s Mondays at 5PM as well as Lodge and Cayon Tuesdays at 5PM (Violet Petty Primary School and Cayon Primary School respectively).
“So all the different parents, if you want your children to join, just go to these locations on the days mentioned. There is no long process.”
The club’s year of calendar of events include summer camp in August followed by Independence Parade in September and a Christmas concert in December as well as a passing over ceremony to facilitate to the transfer of club members to their age category sections.