PAREDOS celebrates 50th Anniversary

Barbadians may soon have tangible evidence to quantify the degree of impact of the Parents Education for Development in Barbados (PAREDOS) over its five decades of existence.

Vice president of PAREDOS, Sheila Stuart made this announcement during the 50th anniversary church service held at the St. Leonard’s Anglican Church, Westbury Road, St. Michael this morning. 

Stuart said that in collaboration with a University of the West Indies student, research will be undertaken to track past students of the agency’s early childhood programme to examine the role the foundation at PAREDOS played in their development and achievements.

Stuart believed this was key to understanding PAREDOS’ contributions and would also serve to help them determine whether their model was indeed sustainable and outstanding, what works well and how the model could be improved. A model Stuart noted is currently being sought out by other Caribbean governments.

PAREDOS is a non- profit organisation that was launched to inform and educate parents and guardians in parenting skills.

Speaking to an audience that included former PAREDOS directors Marva Springer, Marcia Graham and Cecily Clarke-Richmond, Reverend Dr. Sonia Hinds, while delivering her sermon, applauded the work of such agencies as an important and much needed support system for parents and guardians.

“[They] are helping us to see that there is more to happen in this Barbados than what is presently happening. That the gaps need to be filled, that we need to pay more attention to our children, to their parents [and] their guardians. That something has to lead us in that direction and therefore when Jesus says to proclaim repentance and forgiveness of sins, what Jesus is guiding us to understand is that we are always in need of a new way of being, a new way of doing … It is really necessary for us to applaud the work of agencies such as yours that are trying to bring this message of hope. Repentance and forgiveness then lead us to a new way of understanding how hope in Jesus can guide and direct us as we guide and direct our children,” Reverend Dr. Hinds said. (KC)