The Gordon Town Citizens Association through partnership with the Social Development Commission (SDC) is committed to meeting the needs of its community members, while using the opportunity to render services to those who so require.
The Gordon Town Citizens Association Rental Services, now a registered company, offers event planners a range of services including the rental of the community centre, equipment to include PA system, screens, projectors and laptops; and furniture such as chairs and tables.
President of the Association, Angela Knight, said the company provides packages at a discounted rate to meet the customers’ needs. There are also party packages for children and adults, weddings packages, dance packages, water parties, among others.
Ms. Knight says in addition the support given by the Social Development Commission for the registration of the business, the organization also assisted with business plans development.
“SDC was instrumental in hosting seminars with us to help us with formulating our business plan. Also the sessions helped to increase knowledge in areas such as social media management. As a result, we’re now on facebook and Instagram which has help with the business promotion,” she informed.
Apart from the rental services, the association caters to the social and educational needs of the community through facilitating a homework centre, helping the elderly with packages in addition to a yearly treat for the elderly.
Miss Knight said several grants were received from the SDC to aid these ventures.
“We were able to purchase an industrial stove from SDC LED Grant valued at two hundred thousand dollars. Because we have these annual pineapple festivals, we needed a stove for the community to come in together and use. The stove that was there wasn’t helping us so some of the persons had to be preparing stuff from home. The stove we got thanks to SDC is a big improvement for what we want to do,” she explained.
She noted that in the long term, the stove will be used for cooking lessons at the centre.
The administrative grants received from the SDC on a quarterly basis are typically used also used to provide stationary materials for the centre to aid its services to the community. She said a grant was also received to help with sanitation work at the annual pineapple festivals.
The centre also engages in other activities aimed at facilitating small business productions. These include soap making, wine-making, jewellery making, and pastry among other things.
Miss Knight highlights that the community members have proven the strong community service impact that the SDC has on small businesses and communities.
“SDC is really helpful in the development of communities and they see the need of members in the community and we appreciate that, without their help I don’t think we would have reached so far with what we are doing,” she expressed.
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