by Nicole Schmidt
On Thursday September 22, 2016 our Latin American and Caribbean Studies class took a fieldtrip to Forrence Orchards in Peru, New York to meet people from Jamaica.
Forrence Orchards hires people from Jamaica to work for them annually during the apple picking season. The season of apple picking generally lasts from August to November. During the season, the workers live and work on the orchard property. Their main job is to pick the ripe apples, which is actually more complicated than one may think.
Our class spends the semester looking at different nations in Latin America and the Caribbean. Our current focus is Jamaica. Jamaica is the 3rd largest nation in the Caribbean Islands. Jamaica has an extensive history with a lot of culture and tradition beyond the glamorous resorts and beaches advertised on television. We learned about Jamaica in class, but we really wanted to gain direct information from those who are actually from the country.
When our class went to Forrence Orchards, the Jamaican workers welcomed us by cooking some Jamaican cuisine. Our meal included jerk chicken, fried chicken, fried corn bread, rice, beans, and chicken soup. After everyone was stuffed to the point of having to loosen their belts, we then more formally met the workers, and had the chance to interview them.
Those we spoke to were from all over Jamaica. Most of them come up and work for four months, and then bring the money they make home to their families. One gentleman I interviewed, Franklin, has one child in Jamaica, with his wife, and one child that moved to North Carolina. Franklin is on his second year working at Forrence Orchards, having worked in Florida for prior years. When the apple picking season is over, Franklin returns to Jamaica, where he does construction work.
Learning about Jamaica, and the poverty there, really raised the question in my mind of how we can help. We hear about poverty all over the world, but it hits home when you form a relationship with someone from a poverty-stricken area. Fortunately for us, Peter Forrence, the co-owner of Forrence Orchards, is also a member of the Board of Trustees for Paul Smith’s College. We hope to do an interview with Mr. Forrence that will be published in the next issue of The Apollos. Dr. Terry Lindsay will be combining powers with our class to collect supplies to ship to Jamaica. Donation boxes will be on campus later in the semester, where anyone can drop off new and used school supplies. Keep an eye out for future information regarding Jamaica and our charity efforts!
Nicole Schmidt
I’m a Fisheries & Wildlife Science:Wildlife Concentration major and a Biology minor. I’m in the Class of 2017. I am a peer educator in the counseling center, a peer tutor, President of the Wildlife Society PSC chapter, and a head intern/liaison at the Adirondack Wildlife Refuge.