House Mother, Paula Hinds, accompanied by camp counsellor Rasheed Drakes, who is also a police officer, discuss the negative consequences of uncontrolled anger with the Project SOFT campers.
Project SOFT campers learnt how to deal with their anger, to facilitate more positive outcomes.
Project SOFT campers recently got a lesson in anger management, as they took part in an activity session scheduled as part of the one-week residential camp, designed to prepare them for the critical transition from primary to secondary school.
When The Barbados Advocate visited the campers on location at Marian Retreat House, Verdun, St. John this week, House Mother, Paula Hinds and Camp Director, Makeada Bourne, were in an active drama session, taking the youngsters through several engaging activities, to show them the negative consequences of uncontrolled anger.
The campers also got some anger management tips from camp counsellor and police officer Rasheed Drakes. Hinds later revealed that such a session was fitting, given the level of aggression and violence being seen in local communities to date.
“We have seen a trend in our communities, with even our elderly folk, who are out of control and we want this generation to understand that the Word of God says “Be angry and sin not”. So God understands that you can get to a point of anger, but he warns you not to react. Don’t follow through with it,” Hinds said, in relation to the morning’s session.
“When you see [negative] things happening in our society, you must grab a generation and try to take it back, try to instill critical values, so in terms of controlling anger, we are giving them ways to do it,” Hinds – known more for her beautiful singing voice, than her talented drama skills – indicated.
Revealing that the residential camp hosted by the National Council on Substance Abuse (NCSA) for 11 year olds is run at a cost of about Bds$60 000 with minimum costs to parents, Hinds noted that she, along with Bourne and camp counsellors, have stressed the need for the young campers to get along with each other, since they will also need to display anger management skills at their new schools and eventually in the world of work. (RSM)
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