One Love 4 Kids (originally named Caribbean Student and Community Outreach Foundation) is a volunteer-run, nonprofit 501(c) (3) charitable organization founded in 2007 by Shernet R. Dixon James. One Love 4 Kids serves impoverished children and families living in Jamaica and the Caribbean region. One Love 4 Kids provides educational, economic and health assistance to impoverished children, their families, communities and schools in Jamaica and the Caribbean region.
The organization was formed after the organization’s president and founder returned to her native country of Jamaica and discovered more than 80% of children she interviewed in the Mountain View lacked basic educational , health and personal supplies needed for them to function confidently and effectively in school. For example, many of the students interviewed reported that lacking basic items such as tooth brushes, toothpaste, deodorant and feminine care products have caused them to miss many days of school because of the negative comments they received from peers and teachers alike about their personal hygiene.
During her visits to Jamaica, Mrs. Dixon-James also observed that a significant number of children were out of school during school hours, parents and young children were begging in the streets and neighborhoods were dirty and lacking basic sanitary conditions. When some of these students were approached they reiterated that they did not have the financial resources for tuition, meals and other necessary supplies needed for school. Parents also reported that they were unable to effectively contribute positively to their children's education because the lacked education and financial resources. Additionally, during Mrs. James visit to a few neighborhood schools she discovered that the schools she visited had no running water and a large number of dilapidated buildings.
Consequently, upon her return to the United State, Mrs. Dixon-James enlisted the help of families and friends to assist her in providing children in the Mountain View community, located in Kingston Jamaica with school supplies, clothing and other personal care items. Supplies were collected and distributed during the organization’s first dinner and supply distribution project in December 2008. The organization has held this project for the past two years, and the organization is hoping to make it an annual event. During the project, children from Mountain View (Top Range) and two neighboring communities (Nannyville and Backbush) received a healthy meal, school supplies (dictionaries, notebooks, pencils etc), and other personal care items.
Since its inception, the organization has been funded exclusively with donations provided by the founder’s, families and friends. However, Mrs. Dixon-James is looking forward to the support that she knows you will provide.