Brad Raymont employs nine migrant workers from Jamaica
An Ontario farmer collected donations to support members of his staff affected by Hurricane Melissa.
Brad Raymont employs nine migrant workers from Jamaica to help harvest strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries at Raymont’s Berries in Cottam.
“Our farm wouldn’t exist without these guys,” Raymont told Farms.com. “The workers who leave their families to come work on our farm or any farm across the country, to make a living to improve their lives back home, are so unbelievably important to us and are part of our farm family.”
Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica on Oct. 28, bringing wind speeds close to 300km/h.
The World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank estimate physical damage to Jamaica is around CAD$12 billion.
By the time the storm hit, some of Raymont’s employees had already travelled home and others were trying to get back.
“They were scheduled on a flight that got postponed, and then cancelled, and you could see the worry in their eyes,” Raymont said. “They’re showing me videos of water up to the eavestroughs of the houses, or houses with roofs torn off. It almost makes you speechless.”
That’s when Raymont turned to the community to raise money for these workers.
It started with a social media post, and the community took it from there, raising more than $4,000 in less than a day, and more than $15,000 overall.
“The community response has been awesome,” Raymont said. “Some businesses we deal with started doing their own fundraisers to help us out, and the community just rallied around these guys.”
Since the storm passed, all of Raymont’s employees have made it back to Jamaica safely.
He’s checked in with his workers, who are in good spirits despite some of the work ahead of them.
“You ask them all how they’re doing, and their response is everyone is okay, so everything is good,” Raymont said.
Anyone interested in contributing to the fundraiser can send an e-transfer to raymontsberries@live.com.
Top photo: European Union, Copernicus Sentinel Imagery.