Allen-Shaw Foundation, Inc.

02/28/2026

“…Ms. Lacks’s cells were the first to reproduce in a laboratory, outside the human body, and have been used in groundbreaking research, including to develop vaccines for polio and Covid-19 and treatments for cancer, Parkinson’s and the flu. “

Ms. Lacks’s family accused Novartis of profiting from her cells, which were taken from her without her consent in 1951, when she was dying of cervical cancer.

02/27/2026

In a word: Incitive. When a way must be made out of no way, you bank on resilience —you outline the foundation and begin again, at the beginning.
The residual rage of Hurricane Melissa is still evident and, unfortunately, will be for some time. Yet the family the Allen-Shaw Foundation, Inc. supported with building materials is now on a restitutory path—framing not just a structure, but the resolve and action required to begin again.
The Jamaican diaspora remains active and will continue to be on the ground until our people are covered.

01/20/2026

UPDATE: Mr. Wedderburn received his bed!!! (see January 8 post)

01/10/2026

I passed through fields of scallions, thyme, beets, and eggplants in St. Elizabeth, and their fragrance became biological, passing through my whole being! An overwhelming sense of occhiolism crept in—the heat, the labor it takes daily to maintain such vastness, the immensity of it all. I wondered if there was any fallow land here at all, or if the soil simply insists on being fruitful.
I was here to collect pineapples, apples, and grapes for Westmoreland—the opposite of what I was walking through. My Goddaughter farms in this area, and somewhere between the rows I got a quick lesson in planting thyme. Ojay packaged apples and grapes as a duet and left the spiny pineapples to stand alone. Prickly tops, you see.
I thought the children would want apples and grapes, the adults the pineapples. I was wrong.
“No miss, pineapple please…” while simultaneously gobbling grapes and biting apples!
The idea to bring fruit came during morning meditation. It felt a little odd, but I followed it—and it became such a gift. Who knew? God did. Even in the small things.
And so, in the physical, my time of giving back at home in Jamaica comes to an end—made possible by people who cared. May the clothing, funds, and every item you donated be perpetuated in the lives they touched.
May they find hope again!

01/09/2026

It’s amazing how the brain shifts perspective to soften shock. In the middle of what once was a home, I noticed the prettiest little duck—hopping from one flattened board to the next.
I was in Westmoreland, where board homes became matchsticks to Hurricane Melissa. I came with two purposes: to distribute clothing and fruits (yes—pineapples, grapes, apples). In my spirit, I felt that if the storm could drag away bees, ducks, vegetation, and even reshape the landscape, then fruits might be a small but sweet relief.
I was also there to help a young couple with three adorable children secure building materials. For now, they’re staying with family—many people crowded into a not-so-destroyed home, as is the case all over. You can accuse me of stealing those children in my heart. No school yet because of the situation, though the oldest daughter is now enrolled. Supplies are scarce, but Mitchell offered a simple, procurable solution: materials collected as they become available through a credit agreement with a local hardware store.
Another providential appointment. Hope and faith still live. As Michael Fletcher from the local church retold the “chance” meeting—sometimes it’s as simple as a lone man on a bicycle pulling up while you’re searching for someone else, quietly pleading, “Boss, mi need help with mi house.”
His response was just as simple: “Show me.”
Grateful for the hearts behind this project: Yvette, Rhoden, Fletcher, Michael Fletcher, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation President’s Grant Fund of the Princeton Area Community Foundation.

01/08/2026

There are just some things you don’t want written next to your name in the Book of Life. Stealing the bed of an amputee—especially after he rebuilt his one-room house with his own hands after the hurricane flattened it—should be high on that list.
Mr. Wedderburn arrived at the distribution site, skillfully navigating slippery, rain-soaked ground on his crutches. A humble man, I’m told that even after losing a leg, and before Hurricane Melissa, he was regularly seen cleaning the streets in his community.
He gently asked if he could speak with me, and in the most urbane, unassuming tone, he asked if I could help him get a bed back. For now, he’s kotching at someone else’s home—grateful, but displaced.
I am ordering a bed for him!

01/06/2026

I may have disrupted the adorability of little Miss—she was having none of me at first. But the moment the massive music boxes roared to life with their organ-jerking rhythm, she couldn’t resist. A tiny jig followed… and then a smile.
Young, old, and everyone in between gathered from neighboring districts for the much-anticipated annual New Year’s Day celebration, graciously sponsored by a local business family, Henry Wright. The perfect formula for the Foundation: no stones needed when every bird is already in attendance.
The lady in yellow, in full supplication for a particular purse—she actually spoke to it—saw her wish manifested. And once again, the stuffed animals were the real winners.
May your walk—or run—into this new year be not caliginous, but emancipatory and filled with light. My wish for myself is that the light I am holding onto will not die.
Thank you all for your continued support. Community members are the true building blocks of service. Team members , Rohan Mitchell, Ojay from the (b)eehive and my constant my Sister Marleen!

Grateful for the continued support from my supporters, Colgate-Palmolive Company and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation President’s Grant Fund of the Princeton Area Community Foundation.

01/01/2026

Happy New Year! We are setting up for you!! Henry Block Factory, Grove!!

warwick and all surrounding communities

12/26/2025

He said that when he was finally able to leave his house after the hurricane and check on members of the community, he found himself spelling roof as “foor” for days. As if his brain could only register the inversion of nature-allowing him to truly see what it means when nature turns itself inside out. Houses of every geometry-square, hexagonal, rectangular-stood suddenly topless, and exposed.
We distributed personal care packages, food, and clothing on the grounds of the Petersfield Seventh-Day Adventist Church, in Westmoreland, under the shade of their new church still under construction. The temporary structure they had worshipped in was flattened. Churches across the region had been destroyed by the storm, from what I could see-new ones and grand old stone churches alike. Their colorful stained-glass windows cracked, but still reflecting their identities.
Let me say it again, Jamaican people are strong, a teeny bit of drama this time, but mostly levity and comedy. Nick2 from the (b)eehive crew only had to take off his glasses twice, yvette was stalked by a persistent suitor, whom I dubbed “the politician” because he was in everyone’s business and knew everybody! He even told us which feminine hygiene product to give to one woman-and why!! A lovable character! (yes it took 45 minutes to usher him away from the table, one minute for him to return to his spot…to attempt proposing to Yvette). Somehow, somehow he secured a box of care packages for another community! In spite of why we were there, the energy was thankfulness and I wished I had more and could do more. Before leaving we were prayed over by an Elder and we were grateful for the spiritual incentive which would release us from the lassitude that would envelope us as we drove by the destroyed and roofless homes and businesses. We said our goodbyes to Mr. Politician and watched him hand over the box to the rep from the other community, wheeled his brown tapestry carpet bag away, while clutching his care package tightly to his chest. His job done! “Even without roofs, gratitude found shelter.”

12/25/2025

Dear Supporters,
This holiday season, my word and wish for you is eucrasia, a balanced state of health and well-being. I want to sincerely thank you for your generosity and support. Because of you, I have been able to provide support to our communities and wish to continue to make a real difference in the lives of others.
Your belief in the work of the Allen-Shaw Foundation, Inc. means more than words can express (or can with my hobby of trolling rare words). I am truly grateful for your partnership and continued commitment.
Wishing you a joyful holiday season and a renewed New Year.

12/23/2025

Waterfront Raconteur-We were wondering what was taking Yvette so long to hand over the care packages to the elderly gentleman sitting in his doorway in a wheelchair. She called out, “He’s telling stories.” Say less—I hopped out of the car.
Meet Mr. Newman of Culloden, Whitehouse. A wheelchair-bound elder, an amputee, and a gifted storyteller who specializes in riddles. As we listened with the respect owed to our elders, I sensed that beyond supplies, he needed company and conversation. He touched my heart. We prayed and blessed one another before I reluctantly moved on, and he reassured me, “Jah got me.”
Culloden is a community by the water that has been deeply impacted-with mountaintop houses now visible because the trees are gone. Care packages were distributed from a resident’s parents’ roofless home, (except for the veranda area) which served as our distribution point. I can wax lexiphanically to describe the state of the area, but in a few words: “Di place mash up bad!!” Yet the people are strong and slowly rebuilding.
What felt like an impromptu stop was providential. Meanwhile, Ojay and Eleck wandered off and ended up by the water amidst the debris, and came back like Joshua spies, to tell us that there are a whole lot of people “back there”. We drove “back there” when we were leaving, care packages in hand. These quiet, unexpected mercies may seem small, but they lift spirits in ways only the spiritual realm can measure.

Grateful for the continued support from Colgate-Palmolive Company and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation President’s Grant Fund of the Princeton Area Community Foundation. Along with my supporters, the Allen-Shaw Foundation, Inc. is able to extend an helping hand where it's needed most.

12/20/2025

Sooo let me tell you about the beneficence of the beehive that swarm my house when I needed the energy for the unpacking, sorting, and repacking of care packages. First there was two-persons team, who patiently sorted donated clothes, made sets , bagged, and tagged them into neat little packages.
When it was time again to unpack, sort, and repack more care packages for the Hurricane Melissa relief effort, yvette showed up with her worker bees—and wow! In no time, boxes were sorted and packed. Then she said, “We still have time… let’s go sort the other donations at the library,” and off we went.
Bagged. Tagged. Packed. Still not done.
Flour, sugar, rice, cornmeal, canned goods—measured, packed, and ready without missing a beat. I kept commenting on their energy, and the young’uns joked about needing “beehive energy” afterward. Turns out… it’s a literal thing (bees dressed up as Brandy VSOP👀🐝).
yvette, Little, and team—you all amazed me with your assembly line energy-Thank you, I would’ve been overwhelmed without you. The buzzing energy and kindness of this benevolent beehive truly saved the day 💛