Empowering women of destiny
Former Miss St James Festival Queen dedicated to elevating inner-city women
Published:Sunday | August 27, 2023 | 12:09 AMMark Titus - Sunday Gleaner Writer
Miss St James Festival Queen 2017 Olivia Shaw-Lovell has always been proud of her place of origin and was determined that her address as a resident of the volatile inner-city community of Mount Salem in Montego Bay would not shape her journey.
Like many such communities in Jamaica, she had seen the dangerous subculture, where women accepted physical abuse as a show of love. Women suffering in silence and forced to accept what others determined for their lives was all too familiar in her community and she was resolved to change that narrative.
Speaking with The Sunday Gleaner last week, Shaw-Lovell shared that she journeyed down a path of depression during a seemingly insurmountable and challenging period for her family, but she found solace in prayer and her willingness to be guided.
That experience pointed the Chevening Scholar to her true purpose and on a path of volunteerism that has been fulfilling and far-reaching, when Women of Destiny Jamaica officially opened for business in October 2016, in her community.
“We started this journey in 2015, but the competition in 2017 heightened the platform to get the word out about the work that we were doing and this allowed me to be connected to more persons in the St James space and we got connected to more persons to establish our programmes,” she explained.
Shaw-Lovell said she was always a loner, so to open up to offering herself as a shoulder to cry on, a listening ear, or finding a solution to solve problems for those in need demonstrated the hand of God in her life.
SIMILAR CHALLENGES
In 2020, Women of Destiny Jamaica launched its advocacy programme to support survivors of gender-based violence and engaged other women of influence as mentors.
“What we would discover very early was that most of the challenges were the same. 90 per cent of the women we served had experienced some form of sexual violence in their lifetime or endured domestic violence through their parents or their partner,” she stated.
Shaw-Lovell saw the need to build her capacity as a leader, a gender specialist and a mental health provider, as more women began to open up about the challenges they were facing.
She gained experience as a community development officer at the Social Development Commission, and worked on the United States Department Fellowship programme as a victim’s advocate in Minneapolis. She also received graduate-level certification from George’s University in community and executive leadership.
She also partook in training opportunities through the Jamaica Social Investment Fund and USAID.
WORKING TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE
With the needs great and dire, Shaw-Lovell recruited several prominent females across all spheres of society as mentors for the marginalised females.
“The ladies are very receptive and we were very open so the relationships worked well,” said Joy Clarke, a volunteer with Women of Destiny. “One of my mentees was very surprised when I told her that I have never seen my father act aggressively towards my mother.”
Shaw-Lovell said in a few instances some of the victims resisted the push to change their circumstances, but would later return to the programme with a change of heart.
In the early stages, the initiative was self-funded but as the demand increased, they began receiving support from public and private sector.
Recently, Women of Destiny received a cash donation of $658,000 from Montego Bay businessmen Jason Russell and Dwight Crawford from proceeds of their annual event, Twist.
“We are aware of the work of Women of Destiny and how it has been transforming lives and we wanted to throw our support behind this initiative, and we call on all responsible men to do the same,” the organisers told The Sunday Gleaner.
According to Shaw-Lovell, the donation will assist with a scholarship fund for the top female student at the Mount Salem Primary and Junior High School, and will also boost the coffers should there be a need to offer financial support to other beneficiaries.
To offer support to Women of Destiny, donations can be sent to:
Jamaica National Bank (JN Bank)
2 Market Street, Montego Bay, St James
Account #05300541
Or contact
Phone: 876-567-8182/876-824-6448