Projects

DeepBlueRipple International Inc.

Community Events & Service Projects

If you find a project that inspires you, please contact us to find out how you can lend your support.

We greatly appreciate all those who have contributed their time, energy, resources, good spirit, and funding to our ventures.

1st Annual Friends of The West End Kids Fair Feb 4, 2008

This completely free, non-profit event was a HUGE success. Thanks to all the talent, love, energy, patience, and hardwork of our all volunteer crew for making this kick-off event so fantastic for everyone!

The goal of the Friends of The West End Kids Fair is to celebrate community and life through laughter, art, music and fun.

In addition to CHNY2K8 participants attending, enjoying and entertaining, many parents and adults of Divers Village came and contributed their talents, good spirits and resources. It was a day of cross cultural laughter, music and celebration.

Planned events included: live music, watercolor painting, kids tattoos, tie dye workshop, orgami workshop, face painting, harmonica & percussion workshops, frisbee, Hula Hoop, sidewalk chalk art, hacky sack, boomerang, soccer, Kazoo the Clown, and a kid-run Chinese Dragon parade that snaked through the neighborhood. http://picasaweb.google.com/bobbej/KidSFairCHNY08

Artists, musicians, and volunteers from both America and Jamaica stepped forward with their services, talents and time. Donations such as art & activity supplies, and musical instruments made the event a success and allowed us to offer a wide range of activities. Please contact us if you would like to participate in the

2nd Annual Friends of the West End Kids Fair January 25, 2009 was a tremendous success. Last year we did a community clean up in Central Park, the location for the fair. Not only did the community keep Central Park clean in the interim, but now several families live there safely in a clean, drug-free environment! Thus, there was very little clean up needed for the fair. In addition to return activities from last year (painting, hula hooping, frisbee, hacky sack, and live music), we added a few exciting surprises. Local businesses donated drinks and snacks for the children. Thanks to Melanie MacNeil and the Asheville Hoops organization we had enough hoops this year to run a wild & wacky hoola hoop obstacle course! We had more musicians and instruments, so more children could try their hand at playing. Harmonicas were again passed out to many children. Thanks to Nicole Potter painting was once again a resounding success, drawing in kids and young adults alike to create and take part. This year we had more support from parents and more of the older children took turns volunteering to hand out the drinks and snacks. It was a fabulous day. Thank you to: all our volunteers, the entire Divers Village neighborhood, Sea Star Inn & DJ's Convenience store for donating drinks and snacks; Natasha Wallace from Negril Escape Resort & Spa for helping out; and members of the following bands - Acoustic Syndicate, Snake Oil Medicine Show, Laura Reed & Deep Pocket, Josh Phillips Folk Festival, Larry Keel & Natural Bridge, the Overtakers & Princess Tia. For some pictures visit: http://picasaweb.google.com/melmacpink/JamaicaKidsFair#

West Haven Children's Home

West Haven is located in Copse, in mountainous rural Jamaica about 1 hour from Montego Bay in Hanover Parish.

West Haven is one of the few state designated homes for mentally and physically handicapped children in Jamaica. Almost all the children living there are wards of the state.

83 residents currently live at West Haven, ranging from ages 4-36. Most of them spend their entire lives at West Haven once they are brought there at an average age of 3 years old.

West Haven's staff work tirelessly in understaffed conditions. A lack of funding and resources has lead to a shortage of even basic supplies such as towels, wet wipes, and diapers. Doctors and Dentists make visits when needed but there are very few disability specialists on staff. There are no organized activities or educational instruction provided due to a lack of staff. The children of West Haven desperately need therapeutic-based activities such as physical, educational, emotional, and occupational therapy; and art, music, and recreational activities accommodated to their special needs. In addition, there is much that can be modified in the cottages and surrounding grounds of West Haven to better accommodate to the children's specialized needs, particularly to stimulate and engage the bedridden children.

On Feb 5th, 2008 a group of 26 musicians arrived in a bus at West Haven to play music and interact with the children and to begin a DeepBlueRipple International project on the healing power of music. The visit was a tremendous success and the children of West Haven responded incredibly well to music, dance, and play. The therapeutic value of the project was immediately apparent, as many children came alive and immersed themselves in dancing, playing percussions, singing, and simply listening. Music was played in a general area for the children who were mobile or able to be wheeled out, and then the musicians moved minstrel-style through each housing facility and performed at the bedside of each child who was bedridden. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4f0TfRnhxSg
http://picasaweb.google.com/bobbej/CHNYJamaica08WestHaven
http://www.flickr.com/photos/washingtoniv/sets/72157603914750440/

DeepBlueRipple International plans to return to West Haven during CHNY2k9 in January 2009 for another interactive musical event with twice the amount of musicians, performers, and other warm hearted folks.

DeepBlueRipple International returned to West Haven the week of June 23-27, 2008 with a team of 17 consisting of disability specialists, educators, massage therapists, a chiropractor, an art therapist, musicians, caregivers, a documentary filmmaker and several young adults. The group built relationships and created laughter through specially tailored art, music, and recreational activities that accommodated to the special needs of the West Haven kids. The bedridden children participated in bedside art activities, bedside movement and play therapy, bedside games, received massage and chiropractic care; and were read stories and serenaded with live music. Negril Escape sent a truckload of workers from across the island to help improve the grounds. The men hand cut a defunct sugar cane field and tripled the size of the garden, cleared a play area with a jungle gym and made it wheelchair accessible, and made various needed building repairs. It was a huge success! Funds from the DeepBlueRipple Westhaven Benefit went towards the purchase of vegetable seeds and fertilizer for the new garden. There was a cake & ice cream party and live Reggae Mento music by The Overtakers. The kids of West Haven love to dance and the staff were equally as thrilled and joined in on the dance party! Thanks to the success of our supporters we were able to leave an enormous supply of therapuetic toys, recreational games, art supplies, musical instruments, educational DVDs, CDs, books, educational materials, garden supplies, and more. Nicholas Hunter of Hazen Hunter Photography documented the entire week and the photos can be viewed at www.westhaven.hazenhunter.com
DeepBlueRipple International, Inc. Executive Director Elana Himmelfarb took photo portraits of each child and in collaboration with the volunteer group constructed profiles on each West Haven resident. The profiles include their name, a potrait photo, and information on their likes & dislikes, specific needs, suggestions on what is soothing, art/music/play preferences and skills, and personality. This compilation of profiles will be sent to West Haven to be available to visitors and volunteers to facilitate and encourage bonding and relationship building with the children. The portraits will also be printed up, laminated, and hung over each resident's bed. The children absolutely loved the photos we gave them and will be thrilled to have their personal space marked by their very own photo! The wealth of information, depth of experience, and body of work that has emerged from this service project will not only help us understand the specific needs of each individual child but will also prove instrumental in designing future projects at West Haven. Most importantly this week forged and solidified bonds that will last a lifetime. art & music therapy, and learning to perform a more intensive needs assessment on how art, music and recreation can be used to improve the quality of the children's lives. DeepBlueRipple International will then design art, music and play projects based on the results of this assessment. On

Nov 3 & 6, 2008 DeepBlueRipple returned to West Haven as a continuation of working on the portrait project for the children. Once there we saw that the vegetable garden had become defunct because one gardener passed away and the new one broke his arm and could not work. Negril Escape Resort and Spa donated the use of their Jungle Bus and groundskeepers for the day. they cleared the entire garden and readied it for planting!

CHNY2k9 Musician Concert Thursday January 29th, 2009 Once again we returned to West Haven for music & play during Chinese New year. We had more than double the participation, with over 60 people joining us! We loaded up 2 buses to maximum capacity and more with musicians, volunteers, Jamaicans, hula hoops & musical instruments galore for another interactive musical event at West Haven. This time both the staff and the residents knew what to expect and those who were mobile ran & rolled their way to the pavilion for a group jam. Children who wanted to join in were rolled out by volunteers & staff. Everyone once again jammed out together under the Jamaican sun. Then, the music was taken on the road and we played on the porches of each of the 5 housing units. The children who could danced along, and the bedridden children could enjoy the music from their beds as they got tlc and hugs from volunteers. Afterwards, the musicians broke into smaller groups and wandered the grounds while the kids blew bubbles, played with hula hoops, and socialized with the visitors. Among the group of locals who joined us were a handful of teenagers, which was a special treat for the teenagers at West Haven, who rarely get to meet kids their own age from the outside world. The group was having such fun we stayed and extra hour - the musicians just couldn't stop playing and nobody was going to stop them! Thanks to all volunteers, the West Haven staff, the children of West Haven, Chinese New Year volunteers, our Jamaican friends who accompanied us, and members of the following bands: Fred Tackett of Little Feat Acoustic Syndicate, Laura Reed & Deep Pocket, Josh Phillips Folk Festival, Snake Oil Medicine Show, and The Overtakers. Thanks to Bryant James, Chris Sherman, Melanie MacNeil, and Patricia Tackett for taking such wonderful photos and footage of our time at West Haven this year.

For pictures visit: http://picasaweb.google.com/melmacpink/JamaicaWestHavenOrphanage# For YouTube clips visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vL3-m5NF9lU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfj9I4-6iXU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sMwql9DSD4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gln7rB6M3g http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqqSIeghVGc

Please contact us if you are interested in providing funding, resources, or time to this very worthy cause.

Rusea's High School Orchestra Instrument Drive

Principal Thompson, Mr. Lloyd Johnson, JP of Hanover Parish and DeepBlueRipple International have teamed up to help Rusea's High School attain their first student orchestra.

The drive started with a bang, with both CHNY and Feat Fan Excursion attendees donating a generous supply of quality band instruments. On February 12, 2008 DeepBlueRipple International delivered the first installment of donated instruments: 2 flutes, 3 clarinets, 1 tenor saxophone, 1 trombone, 2 acoustic guitars, 28 recorders with instruction book, 2 trumpets, and 1 drum. The instruments will be used for student instruction and well maintained by the Music Department at Rusea's High School. The students were so excited to see the first wave of instruments arrive, that they spontaneously broke into a group sing-a-long of Bob Marley's One Love!

Nov 2008 Youtube clip of Rusea's HS choir http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYcKUCJzXA8

CHNY/DeepBlueRipple Assembly on Cultural Preservation & Pride w/ Ras Allen Jan 2006:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-cyCGl1R5I

Rusea's Devotional and School Song before Assembly Jan 2006:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eakiPOIq6cE

February 2009 we were able to deliver a new slew of instruments to Rusea's, thanks to our triple donation drive with CHNY, Little Feat & RatDog. The music teacher received from us the following: 2 new acoustic guitars, a new trumpet, a new trombone, a new clarinet, a reed cleaning kit, a brass cleaning kit, and guitar instructional material. A big thanks to Music Matters and Zach Whiteis for his generous instrument donations.

DeepBlueRipple International looks forward to a continuing collaboration with The Feat Fan Excursion to complete this inspiring project. Thank you to everyone who generously contributed!

For a list of needed instruments, please contact us.

Diver's Village Girls Club

This program was developed by West End Negril resident Laura Dewar to help support, empower and inspire teenage girls in the impoverished West End Negril neighborhood informally called Divers Village. The DVGC girls range from age 12-16 and there are approximately 15 members. Membership is free. Goals of the DVGC are to help young women develop self-respect, self-esteem, and empowerment through exposure to homework support, small enterprise activities, service projects, support group meetings, health information and mentorship. The overall goal of DVGC is also to steer young women towards making positive life goals and wise life choices.

To support the Divers Village Girls Club and teach them an example of projects that can raise funds for their group, CHNY coordinated a pizza sale and the girls baked and delivered them to guests at Negril Escape during the week of CHNY2K8.

On February 14, 2008 DeepBlueRipple International proudly donated an enormous quantity of art and educational activities, art supplies, coloring books, recreational equipment and more to the DVGC so that they have ample resources to plan their weekly activities for the upcoming year.

On February 5th, 2009 we were once again able to donate a year's supply of arts & crafts materials for the girls for projects, activities, and fundraising crafts fairs.The club is now approximately 40 members strong!!!

The Divers Village Girls Club welcomes ongoing donations of time, resources, and funding so please contact us if you are interested.

Tia Mandolin Project COMPLETED!!!!

Tia, 15, is a fantastically talented singer and musician that the CHNY Gecko Family met when she was just 8. Tia sings like a powerhouse and performs with her family's band, The Overtakers, whenever possible.

Last year CHNY musician Mark Schimick handed Tia his mandolin and without ever having played one before, she made it sing! This generous musician collaborated with DeepBlueRipple International and surprised Tia with her very own mandolin on stage during a Feat Fan Excursion event at The Grand Lido on February 4, 2008. On March 3, 2008 DeepBlueRipple International received the final donation needed to cover the costs of Tia's mandolin. Thanks to all the generous folks who helped make this project a success and Tia's dreams come true!

School & Art Supply, Book & Backpack Drive

For the last six years CHNY participants have brought a child's packpack full of school supplies, art supplies, and 2 of their favorite children's books. Thanks to the generosity of all those who stuffed their suitcases, our efforts reached hundreds of children who received much needed tools to learn and explore life.

At CHNY2k8 the donation drop off center was located at Negril Escape Resort & Spa. To thank the staff for hosting CHNY2k8 Gecko Family Package guests, each employee of Negril Escape received a backpack filled with books and school & art supplies for their children. The remainder of supplies and books were donated to Green Island High School, Negril All-Ages School, and individual children who were in need.

For CHNY2k9 we returned to Negril Escape Resort & Spa, who once again generously offered us storage space for donation drop off, counting, and sorting. This year the band RatDog joined our donation family. Once again each employee of Negril Escape was given a backpack filled with school supplies in thanks for their hard work and help. Donations this year included: a years supply of school & art supplies for Mt Airy All Ages School and Green Island High School, teaching materials for Mt Airy All Ages, Green Island HS and West Haven, recreational equipment (soccer balls, hula hoops, sidewalk chalk, frisbees, etc.) to Mt. Airy All Ages, musical instruments to Rusea's High School and Mt. Airy All Ages, arts & craft supplies to The Divers Village Girls Club, miscellaneous supplies (toiletries, clothing, incidentals) were disbursed throughout the Divers Village community, 25 African Cabbage Patch Dolls were handed out to neighborhood children, and over 1,000 books were handed out to children and adults in the West End of Negril.

For detailed information on the phenomenal success of the CHNY, Feat Fan, and RatDog donation drives, please contact DeepBlueRipple.

For detailed information on the phenomenal success of the DeepBlueRipple International and the Feat Fan Excursion donation drives, please contact us.

Sustainable Community Tourism

CHNY and DeepBlueRipple International practice and support responsible and sustainable tourism.

Sustainable Tourism aims to preserve, strengthen, and promote tourism-based business practices that support the host country's economic, cultural and environmental needs.

Over the last 6 years we have forged strong ties with the community tourism based businesses in and around the West End of Negril. We actively support, market, and guide our participants to use those local businesses that use sustainable tourism practices. and

There have been several individually and group driven projects over the last six years that have supported local West End Jamaican cottage business through donations of funds & resources.

All CHNY2K8 participants received an informational packet before their trip which included extensive information on sustainable tourism and offered guidelines for responsible tourism practices.

Past and present collaborations with local businesses include: Elvis and Laura's Positive Vibrations, Ras Rody's Ital Catering and Soup Stand, Felix's Serious Chicken Restaurant, Brother Boy & Gracie's cakes and hot peppers, Quinn's wicker and vegan food stand, Linden & Carline's Rough House restaurant and products, Ali's fruit stand and patties, Dimitri Rose's fire performances, Richard's paintings, Knacka's CDs, The Legendary Overtakers' music, Ann's lodging, Josephine's lodging, Alice's Restaurant, Juliet's Sharks Restuarant, Floyd's music and ground support, and many more.

2008 Solar Energy Forum in Negril, Jamaica

When CHNY selected Negril Escape Resort & Spa as the venue for the Gecko Family Package, the donation drop off center, and the heart of CHNY2K8 happenings we wanted it to be a mutually beneficial partnership. Carey Wallace, the CEO of this family owned business, expressed interest in solar power in Negril. Thus the First Annual American-Jamaican Solar Power Forum was born.

On Feb 6th Carey Wallace and CHNY participants Harvey Toub, Paul Diaz, Sunshine Sweetwater Diaz, David Morris, Bobbe Jacobs Toub, Art Hornsby, Stacie Smith held a round table discussion about the feasibility of bringing solar power to Negril. This forum was open to the public and Carey Wallace will make notes from the meeting available to civic leaders in Negril in hopes of generating more local interest and involvement to hold a larger solar power forum during the week of CHNY2k9. If you are interested in attending the 2nd Annual Solar Power Initiative Forum in Jan 2009 at Negril Escape, please contact us.

For more information, please contact us.

Projects in Development

Principal Thompson of Rusea's High School has requested our help in the building of a recreation center for its high school students.

If you are interested in helping, please contact us.

Past projects and events (2002-present)

Research study at Rusea's High School to assess High School age awareness, understanding, and perspectives of the tourism industry and tourists. 2006
Rusea's High School Assembly on Cultural Preservation and Sustainable Tourism by Libre Brousseau, with performance by musical guest Ras Alan. 2006
Backpacks, school supplies and books to Rusea's High School, St. Paul's Middle School, and Negril All-Ages School. 2002-2007.
Magnifying eyeglass drive for the elderly
Visited students at Rusea's Middle & High School campuses to tour librairies & classrooms and speak with teachers; visited student based Cultural Preservation Center; met with school administration at Rusea's to discuss resource needs and Jamaican educational issues and concerns. 2006

Children's School Shoe Drive
Women's Toiletries Drive
Business, marketing and resource support for local individuals developing sustainable tourism based businesses.
Collecting donations on behalf of individuals wishing to help Jamaicans with medical emergencies and funeral costs.
Supporting community tourism businesses through free consulting, local business networking, marketing, and resources.
Cross cultural concerts featuring combined acts consisting of American and Jamaican musicians