By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS

Tribune Staff Reporter

lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

SOCIAL Services Minister Myles LaRoda on Friday announced the expansion of the Empowerment Hour programme to the Fox Hill Community Centre and a new partnership with the Good News Seventh Day Adventist Church.

The Fox Hill sessions are set to launch on September 8.

Mr LaRoda praised the programme’s impact, pointing to the strong response from participants and their families.

Mr LaRoda said the response to the initiative has been overwhelmingly positive, particularly from vulnerable groups and their families. He recalled visiting sessions at both the Flamingo Gardens and Nassau Village centres, where he saw participants fully engaged and energised.

He said the activities provide vital opportunities for children and adults with physical or cognitive challenges to spend time productively, rather than remaining isolated at home. Families, he noted, have described the programme as a blessing, saying it helps their loved ones become more socially engaged and confident in public settings.

The minister said the programme is also instilling important lessons about environmental stewardship. Children, he said, are being taught from an early age to value the natural resources of The Bahamas and to take simple but meaningful steps to protect the climate — lessons he believes will benefit the country socially, economically, and spiritually in the long term.

Launched in September 2024, the Empowerment Hour initiative provides activities to support personal and academic growth. These include homework help for primary school students, “Free Your Mind Fridays” for youth ages 5 to 17, and 12-week sessions covering areas such as American Sign Language, backyard farming, career planning, culinary arts, sewing, and mental health awareness.

The programme is built on principles of equality, equity, wellness, and both social and economic empowerment. Since its launch, it has partnered with more than 100 organisations, businesses, and private citizens, benefiting hundreds of children, young people, and adults in communities including Flamingo Gardens and Nassau Village.

Through its collaboration with the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities, the initiative has provided opportunities for those who have aged out of school. A partnership with the Department of Agriculture has introduced backyard farming, leading to harvests shared with community members, senior citizens’ homes, and soup kitchens. Some participants have sold produce for extra income.

In July, 70 children joined Camp Climate Action 2025, where they learned to grow food in small spaces and create planters using recycled tyres, bottles, and pallets.

The programme has also worked with the Ministry of National Security, using community centres to host sessions. A 12-week “Daytime Hour of Power” was recently completed in Nassau Village, while the new Fox Hill sessions will feature garment-making for beginners and intermediates as well as jam-making classes.

Mr LaRoda credited local churches, including the Good News Seventh Day Adventist Church led by Dr Henry Moncur, for stepping in to provide space when facilities were scarce. The ministry will also provide a grant to support upcoming church-led community projects.