Church groups call on Enterprise residents not to cower in fear

Church group in Enterprise, Chaguanas used prayers to combat evil and gang violence during a rally on Saturday which was triggered by the murder of a nine-year-old boy on October 15.

The event was hosted by the Church in Action Foundation (CIAF) which began at Esmeralda Sports Ground in Cunupia.

The walk started at around 10 am in Cunupia and ended at the African Recreation Grounds where Jomol Modeste was shot dead where he had gone to play football.

Chairman of the foundation Natalie Paul-Harry said the foundation's vision "is to establish Enterprise as a modern community.”

She said the idea was to “bombard the atmosphere with prayers and praise.”

The group made up of mostly children and teenagers wearing white stopped at six recreational grounds in the community sharing the word of Christ.

They were accompanied by members of the police service and defence force.

Paul-Harry added, “Our weapons are not physical because we understand that there was spiritual dimension to the pervading issues.”

Deborah Jeffery, a member of the foundation, said aside from the walk, the foundation also offered counselling and ministering to families who were affected by violence in the community.

“Families are hurting, families are definitely hurting, but it’s not just families who were affected directly as the community is hurting. You have been seeing people not going out as they would have normally done. People are feeling a sense of insecurity, so this particular initiative is to bring back a sense of security.”

Jeffery said in her eyes, the reason the group stopped at all of the groups in the area was to give residents a sense of comfort and help them “take back” the nation.

At the foundation's last stop, pastor Colin Jack of Proballo Evangelical Ministry echoed Jeffery's words. He said since members of his congregation live around the area, he noticed how they and their children have been second guessing their outdoor exercise time.

“Obviously anything happening to one child could have happened to any one of them because at the time, it was a simple football match. We’re accustomed to having loads of football matches at this ground (African Recreation Grounds) where we instil a sense of purpose in the young people, so for something like that to happen to Jomol, it would have affected each and every child within the community.”

Though Modeste’s family was not present, Jack said members of the group and the church had reached out to the family to give support.

“We who are the strongest ones at the moment will show up and we will do what we can to ensure there are no other young people that will suffer to the fall of senseless acts.”

He added, “It’s time for us not to sit down or be fearful. It’s for us to ensure that we can live our lives as normal, do what we are accustomed doing and we are stronger together.”

Jack said Enterprise is a great place for people to raise their families and he added that there are other initiatives for the development of the community that people can look out for.

The Christian leaders sentiments were echoed by a Pan Trinbago official, on Friday night, when two Enterprise-based single pan bands opened the preliminaries in this category for Panorama 2023. The bands were Pan Angels of Badase Street and New Age Trendsetters of Francois Street.

Supporters, among them many young people, came out to the panyards to cheer on the bands, prompting Pan Trinbago PRO Whitfield Weekes to declare in a Sunday Newsday interview, “Pan is the answer to crime."