by Doug Ashbury
Northern News Services

NNSL (Oct 08/97) - In a rare learning opportunity, some St. Patrick High School students will travel to Jamaica in April to work alongside islanders for two weeks.

Through Jamaica Self Help of Canada, the Northerners will volunteer at various sites, such as a women's housing co-op and a rural agricultural co-op.

The trip will give students a glimpse of the island's culture and its poverty, and will foster global thinking.

"This is an active form of learning offering leadership skills. The students will have to show a lot of initiative," science teacher and chaperon Andrew Hodgkins said.

To help fund the April 3 to 19 trip, students have scheduled a trash and treasure sale Friday and a Jamaica night for Dec. 5.

"Though I can be self-motivated and I work well alone, I know the great strength that comes from being part of a group," Safiya Adam said.

"My expectations and hopes from this experience are that I will return a better person for having helped bridge the gap between north and south," Pamela Jones said.

Students will receive high school credits for their volunteer work.

Jamaica Self Help, started in 1981, supports nine Jamaican projects and has a yearly development budget of $350,000 raised by donors and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).

In the last decade, over 20 groups have visited Jamaica through Jamaica Self Help.