As I am honest, I will say up front that I hated most of the years I spent at Hampton School in St. Elizabeth.
When I was growing up, Hampton supposed to be one of the most prestigious schools in Jamaica, and since it was only about a mile from my home in Malvern, my fate was sealed before I was even born💫
When I attended however, it was more like a prison or the secluded covent in Britain that your read about, than a school. 😡
I will be honest though in that I loved the last two years of my life there (in sixth form), as we commuted daily to share classes with the boys at our brother school, Munroe College 🥰. (Oh boy, weren't those days exciting! One day I will tell you about them.)
It was my dislike for all things Hampton though why I washed my hands off that institution on leaving, and never got involved in the "old girls" affairs. (HOGA, Hampton old girls association is the name of the past students' group). (ME OLD? YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING.😉
Anyway, to cut a long story short, I learned about the situation below recently and had to get involved.
The information came via a video about conditions in Woodlands, St. Elizabeth and its environs, which suffered badly with the passing of hurricane Melissa. The video was forwarded to me by my cousin Everett Smith, a Florida based attorney who was born in Woodlands.
It's about a Hampton girl whose home was upended by hurricane Melissa. This further added to her misery as a day girl who had to use public transportation daily from the border of Westmoreland/St. Elizabeth to get to Hampton School. This distance means she has to leave her home in the wee hours of the morning in the dark and return at nightfall. That sounded appalling, especially as it related to her safety as a young woman.
Besides, what time would that leave for her to study, was my other reaction and how could she deal with personal issues such as bathing etc when the very bathroom of her home no longer exists?
These are what motivated me to contact Sonja Pringle, an active HOGA mrmber, to see how we could help. I am happy to see the ball got rolling quickly, thanks to the hard working Dawn Ebanks, president of HOGA.
Let's all rise to the occasion.
You see whether we like the school, me or not, there are situations that call for immediate action.
I am therefore calling on all who read this blog to assist this young lady. No donation will be too small and a spreadsheet will be sent to everyone showing all donations and expenditure.
Thank you. And please share this blog with friends/schoolmates who have a heart.🤎
,.....................,,.......................................
The young lady's name is: Anna Marie Wright.
Donations are to go to:
Zelle. Jordannem.ebanks@gmail.com.
PayPal. Jordannem.ebanks@gmail.com.
Update from Dawn Ebanks 08/15/2026
Spreadsheet not opening on my phone but anxious to share contributions so far:
1. Karan $10,000
2. Anonymous $10,000
3. Annette $40,000
4. Sonia us$100
5. Sharon us$50
6. Joan us$200
Total j$60,000
Total usd$350 j$54,250
Total J$114,250
Ps. Google Hampton School, St. Elizabeth if you require any other info.
A WhatsApp group chat called "Tatewood student" has also been established. (Tatewood is the name of a large property in Woodlands).
Link: https://youtu.be/wtmUzaCD-g4?is=w39LMukggbYC4z9u.
