Stars bring some cheer to the elderly North East Stars players and staff paid a visit to the Sangre Grande Home For The Elderly on wednesday to spend some time with the residents. Jamaican forward Sean Fraser and Guyanese wing back Carey Harris accompanied Trinidadians Akiel Guevera and Marc Leslie to the residential home, where the players chatted to staff and the elderly people living there. The players, together with North East Stars events co-ordinator, Khaty Martin-Jones and Operations Director Kevin Harrison, were given a tour of the establishment by manager Francesca Francis and Margaret, who is the caretaker.
Although some of the residents were bedridden, the players visited the rooms to chat with the residents. The oldest resident there, 98 year old Mr Roberts had recently undergone an operation to remove his left leg above the knee, after already suffering the same fate on his right leg.
"I must admit it shocked us to see Mr Roberts" said Marc Leslie. "Our legs earn us our living and I guess we take them for granted. To see Mr Roberts having to endure his situation brought home to us just how lucky we are"
"Mr Roberts was great" said Carey Harris "Despite his disabilities and the discomfort he was in, he was genuinely interested in talking to us. He asked us all where we were from and he had a very bubbly sense of humour. When we asked if he played football when he was young, he told us that he played cricket and that it was a much more skillfull game than football! That told us!!"
"Old people are amazing" said Sean Fraser "They are often forgotten by society, but they have a wealth of knowledge and experience that people overlook because they just see a persons age. But they are still young at heart. One lady I was talking to broke of our conversation so she could take a call on her mobile" laughed Sean.
Akiel Guevera added " All the guys at North East love doing things like this. We feel we owe it to our community to take an interest. Obviously, there is much more we wish we could do. We just hope that by doing our little bit, others will take an interest and become involved. We are in a position to use the clubs profile to bring the publics attention to people who need some love and support"
The players promised to return with signed photos of the visit. "We hope to organise a small project to help make life more pleasant at the residential home " said Khaty "The players have actually volunteered to return to paint some of the residents rooms. We will be approaching paint companies to see if we can get some paint and equipment donated so that we can return and brighten up these peoples lives a little"
Operations Director, Kevin Harrison said " This is all part of the Digicel Pro Leagues HOPE project which encourages the professional teams to do work in the community. We are using the break in the Pro League programme to implement several projects. On 11th August we are holding an event at The Carlton Savannah Hotel to raise awareness for female survivors of domestic violence and would like to hear from anyone who would like to become involved."
North East Stars C.E.O. Brent Sancho said " We have really bought into the HOPE project. We have a busy agenda over the next few months and we are working with our genourous business partners to do what we can. However, we are always in need of additional funds and products to provide a real difference in our community." Anyone wishing to assist North East Stars in their community projects can contact them at northeaststarsfc@gmail.com
Link to article & photos on Pro League website:
http://www.ttproleague.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=271:stars-bring-some-cheer-to-the-elderly&catid=1:domestic-news
