Dear Mrs. Skinner,
I have been getting e-mail from a person named Sharon. She has been helping the Bahamas since Hurricane Floyd. She has given us a school called J.A. Pinder in Sandy Point to help. If you want to help here is a list of things they need:
(list Followed)

That small beginning resulted in four Charleston County Schools lending a hand to the children of Sandy Point. The "Sharon" in Amelia's letter is Sharon Kossack, a professor of education at Florida International University. Sharon, as faithful readers of this great board know, is the tireless Stateside Coordinator of Abaco's EVERY CHILD COUNTS. ECC is a liason of US and Bahamian educators who work to help provide all children in the Abaco's with appropriate educational services and opportunities. This group, additionally, promotes literacy throughout the Abaco's.

Since Floyd's aftermath Sharon's focus has been on assisting the schools of the Abaco's with school replacement supplies. Together with David McNair of Hilton Head Island (SC) they have provided contacts, arranged transport, assessed needs, and gently encouraged the support that the schools of Abaco have received. Sharon and I have become quite close via the internet. We have never met face to face yet the dignified concern and love that Sharon attaches to her work is obvious. These have been rough times for the Abaconians and the stateside people that love the Abaco's. Through it all Sharon has been a quiet beacon of hope and trust that people pulling together will make a difference. And it has.

During the drive to collect school supplies for J.A. Pinder School when I would meet with various classes at Blaney Elementary I was always impressed that the students at Blaney before I met with them knew the name of J.A. Pinder School, how many kids attended, and who the principal was. The effort to lend a hand to the kids at Sandy Point was not an anonymous effort. This was a child to child effort. I would often tell the kids that once the supplies were delivered these very notebooks, these very pencils would be in the backpacks of kids their age at J.A. Pinder School. The children at Pinckney and Blaney Elementary Schools understood that but I knew that Sandy Point only had fragmentary information that some schools in Charleston were sending some school supplies. Part of my hope was that I could help the people at Sandy Point understand the genuine concern and regard that complete strangers had for their welfare.

Sharon Kossack, after meeting Mr. Wells, the principal of Pinder School, had described him as wonderful, elegant, and gracious. He is that, and more. When we met at the landing strip he warmly greeted us and thanked us for our concern. I explained, as best I could, how much and how many people from our hometown had grown to know and care about Sandy Point and it's children. Through the several hours we spent at Pinder School I knew we were in the company of a great man and a leader of his community.

Mr. Wells is also the minister of his church, as well as a fisherman. He only has time to fish in the early mornings or late evenings of the long days of the year; lots of sunrises and sunsets on the water for Mr. Wells. Although he is very proper in a Bahamian way he has a quick wit and an easy smile and laugh. He carries himself with a dignity and self-respect that can only be carried by a person who sees the dignity and worth in others. Amelia thought he was really nice and really friendly. And he is that too.

After loading the supplies into the two vehicles, Amelia and I slid into the front seat of Mr. Wells' pick-up for the short drive into Sandy Point. Approaching the settlement the road snakes down to the west side of the Island. There were several places that the road had been washed away by the storm. Dirt and sand had been moved into those erroded areas to provide passage for vehicles. At several locations Mr. Wells stopped to point out fragments of houses or buildings that had been lost to the sea. At one point a long assortment of rocks and concrete lay among the sand; that had been Sandy Point's seawall. Completely destroyed. Other areas where sand dunes had been covered with vegetation now were bare and significantly eroded.

Entering the settlement there was a spaciousness to Sandy Point that I had not seen in my limited travels through Abaco. Sandy Point is laid out in a gridwork of streets with fairly large lots of land for each home. It's a very modest settlement, but very attractive in the Bahamian way. It appeared that things were progressing, still lots of cleanup but all and all things were really looking up.

We worked our way through the streets of Sandy Point finally arriving at J.A. Pinder School. We pulled into the narrow school yard in front of the school and slid out of the truck. It was 11 AM. School was still in session. I asked Mr. Wells if it would be possible to visit some of the classrooms and meet some of the students and teachers. He said that would be "delightful." He asked us to follow him and we stepped into Ms. McKinney's sixth grade class.

Follow Ups:

Re: Trip Report Part IV- A River Runs Through It Sandra Irish 19:56:55 11/18/99 (0)