It has been a gloomy school year for the teachers, parents and students of the Holy Family Primary in downtown Kingston.

( L - R ) Tyrese Saunds, Kevon roberts, Ashly Anderson - Contributed photos

The gloom which has lingered over the school began in September when the school received the heart-wrenching news that a grade-three student, Ashly Anderson, was hospitalised after being shot in the head. She has remained in a coma since then.

In April of this year, another sad story popped up when a grade-five student, Kevon Roberts, suffered from a twist vein in his head. This has caused him to experience bleeding from the brain and has prevented him from attending school.

The most recent problem affecting a student at the school is a child who has been found to have a growth on his brain. The child, Tyrese Saunds, now has to receive chemotherapy and radiation treatment.

All three students are in hospital and to help them overcome their life-threatening situations the school last week Thursday launched the Holy Family Save a Life Foundation.

help in raising money

Principal of the school, Cecille Palmer, said that "the Kiwanis Club of downtown Kingston and a number of schools have been very helpful" in assisting the ailing students. However, they are seeking the public's help in raising money through the foundation to assist in their treatment.

When THE STAR spoke to Kadian McIntosh, Ashly's mother, she described her daughter, before the incident that placed her in the Bustamante Hospital for Children, as loving and helpful. Anderson was shot in the head in the incident.

Roberts is described by his teacher, Tricia Gordon, as an active student who was always smiling and jovial before his illness.

His mother, Janet Mason, said her son needs to either do a surgery in Jamaica, which requires the lifting of his crown, or travel to the United States to do a procedure that does not require the lifting of his crown. The cost to do that, however, is US$22,000.

Before his illness, Saunds is said to have been very aware and, according to his teacher, Suzette Marshall, was someone who didn't give any trouble.

In order to make a donation to any of the children please call (876) 922-7142 or 363-4412.

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