Maya Angelo has a powerful statement. “ I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel”.

Usually, we apply this sentiment to how we relate to others outside of our family. Imagine with me if we embrace this principle to those closest to us.

Well, a father planted the seed of this sentiment in the heart of young Kalpesh Patel.
A mother nurtured the sentiment through the practice of her faith.
Jamaica is beginning to experiencing the first fruits of this parental investment in the life and initiative of Kalpesh Patel, founding member of the LAJ foundation.

The Laj Foundation is a small but quickly growing Miami-based foundation is working on lessening the financial burden on Jamaica’s parents by providing their children with necessary school supplies to make sure each student in Jamaica receives equal educational opportunities.

Founded in January 2009 by University of Miami by finance major Kalpesh Patel, the LAJ Foundation is a Christian non-profit organization based on the principles of love, altruism and justice. LAJ’s mission is to aid and facilitate educational resources in Jamaican inner city schools, through funding and donations from strategic partnerships with businesses and persons in the local and international communities.

We had the opportunity to catch up with this busy young man to get a sense of what drives him and his band of committed volunteers.
Click here to listen to his passion about caring.

Since 2009, two successful projects have been launched to advance LAJ’s mission: a school supply drive called “The Street Alternative Initiative” (S.A.I.) and a cricket benefit match called, “The Inter-Collegiate Cricket Benefit” (I.C.C.B.).

Both projects acquired considerable donations of money and school supplies. LAJ is currently working with three inner city schools based in Kingston – the Pauline Gentles Basic School, Youth Reaching Youth and Liberty Academy at the Priory to conduct a needs analysis and will distribute the donations accordingly.

We are several means of responding to this knowledge.
We can decide to do something for our country and encourage these young people with our diversity of investments.
We can plant seeds of giving in our children hearts.
We can decide to bury passivity, and become engaged in some community building enterprise.
Let’s move it!