LASCO Top Cop aims to empower youths

LASCO/Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) Police Officer of the Year 2017/18 Corporal Stokely Fagan transformed Seaward Primary and Junior High School, located in the heart of the Olympic Gardens community in Kingston, into a career hub dubbed Youth Upliftment through Employment and Skills Training (Y.U.T.E.S).

On Friday, February 23, 2018, youth and young adults of Olympic Gardens were invited to the campus to engage in discussion and seek opportunities with LASCO Distributors Ltd, HEART/ Trust NTA, National Youth Service (NYS), JCF, Ministry of Labour, and the Small Business Association of Jamaica.

"The career expo, Y.U.T.E.S is a real vision of mine to encourage the young persons in my community to have hope, to get an opportunity to enhance themselves," Fagan said.

"I'm trying to give all the young persons in my community an opportunity to get themselves employed or learn how they can seek employment. Because they are the future and they are the persons that will be handling the countries affairs when we are gone as senior citizens," Fagan added.

"If we don't give them hope or a different mindset as to how they can approach life then we'll be fostering the monsters of tomorrow; that we the police have to face day in and day out. So whatever we can do as a community initiative, we must do our very best to put our best foot forward there," he said.

Shared vision

As the main partner of JCF in this venture, LASCO not only shared Fagan's vision but played an integral role in ensuring it came into being.

"It is important to empower our young people so that we can secure a better tomorrow for Jamaica," said Renee Rose, LASCO Distributors brand manager. "LASCO has always held this view in high regard. Providing opportunities such as this one will help young people to network and weigh the many options that are available to them," Rose said.

It is well-known and understood that youth empowerment aids in the reduction of poverty and ensures that young people have the necessary skills to sustain a livelihood, which in turn, prevents an increase in crime.

"We want to ensure that these young people understand the importance of education and the key role it plays in improving our country. This venture of hope shows youths that they have myriad options and can succeed regardless of their current financial situations," Rose added.

Recruitment

Not only did the expo showcase a number of career options for young people but it also provided the opportunity for recruitment with HEART/ Trust NTA. HEART Trust, now actively involved in the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector, spent the day recruiting young people for different call centres and provided guides on how to become certified in different skill sets.

Along with HEART, the NYS offered comprehensive work experience packages for youths which included the promotion of the National Service Core Programme which is an on the job skill training programme.

All the entities that were gathered at Seaward Primary and Junior High School were aligned with the passions of Fagan, which made the day a success.

The Police Officer of the Year Awards was established in 2000 through a partnership between LASCO and the JCF to publicly acknowledge the professionalism and dedication of the members of the police force. The 2018/19 LASCO Top Cop finalists at the national level will be announced on Monday, April 9, 2018.