On Thursday, August 20, 2009, Avis Chuck, telephone operator at the Ministry of Transport and Works had every reason to sport the million dollar smile seen on her face. Reason? After quite some time confined to a wheelchair that did not fully cater to her transportation needs, she was presented with one that did just that!

The wheelchair was presented to her by Mrs. Del Cunningham-Chambers, Founder/President of the Jamaica Visionaries Association Inc.; a voluntary organisation operating out of Canada. The organisation has and continues to help may Jamaicans in the areas of health, education and other social needs. The Association was founded some fourteen years ago and has since contributed aid amounting to over twenty million dollars to various sectors of the Jamaican society.

Speaking at the handing over ceremony, Mrs. Cunnignham-Chambers said she was very pleased to be a part of such a positive initiative. She said that she saw this as part of her Christian duty and thanked God for allowing her to be able to do the work her organisation had been engaged in. In outlining her organisation’s involvement in the initiative, she paid tribute to Ms. Annette Osbourne, former Director, Human Resource Management and Development in the Ministry of Transport and Works and who is now stationed at the Department of Local Government. For her part, Ms. Osbourne re-counted her association with the initiative, saying that she was pleased to have done her part in bringing some amount of comfort to Ms. Chuck.

Responding to the gesture of the wheelchair being handed over to her, Ms. Chuck noted that with the newly acquired wheelchair she would now be able to move about more comfortably. She was very effusive in her praise for all those who were associated with the process of getting the wheelchair to her.

On hand to witness the handing over were many members of the Ministry of Transport and Works as well as family members of Mrs. Cunningham-Chambers.