When Shivaun McLymont approached his 40th birthday, he bypassed traditional celebrations in favor of a different kind of milestone: hosting a fundraising dinner to support vulnerable children. What began as a singular act of personal gratitude has since blossomed into McLymont’s Helping Hands Children’s Foundation, a dynamic non-profit driving real change across borders. From funding the Durham Breakfast Club in Ontario to donating life-saving medical gear and hundreds of school supplies across the parishes of Jamaica, the foundation is actively dismantling the financial barriers that keep youth from thriving. In this exclusive interview, we sit down with the founder to discuss the psychological power of a new backpack, the crushing weight of modern inflation on low-income families, and the communal network making it all possible.
Tell us about McLymont’s Helping Hands and the core mission behind the foundation.
A: McLymont’s Helping Hands Children’s Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated entirely to inspiring and enriching children’s lives and helping them reach their full potential. We focus our primary resources on supporting children in low-income communities and those who are in urgent need, because we firmly believe that every single child deserves an authentic opportunity to thrive, regardless of their background or current circumstances.
What started as a personal milestone has grown into something much bigger than I ever anticipated. On my 40th birthday, instead of throwing a traditional birthday celebration for myself, I decided to host a fundraising dinner. I used that personal milestone to raise money to help vulnerable youth, and that experience deeply touched me. It inspired me to continue giving back on a larger scale, which ultimately led to creating this foundation.
Today, we are proud of the tangible impact we have made across borders. This includes donating a vital cardiac patient monitor—valued at over $1 million JMD—to the paediatric ward at the May Pen Hospital to track children’s vital signs and blood oxygen levels. Locally, we also fund and support the Durham Breakfast Club.
“Parents are working around the clock just to keep the lights on while their cupboards remain completely empty, and their children are forced to head to school without breakfast or lunch.”
There are so many hard-working families out there right now who have to make the painful daily decision between paying a utility bill or buying basic groceries. This means parents are working around the clock just to keep the lights on while their cupboards remain completely empty, and their children are forced to head to school without breakfast or lunch. For me, this foundation is about much more than just charity—it is about restoring hope, removing immediate systemic barriers, and reminding these kids that their current environment does not have to define their future.
Fueling education: A look at the vital food supply donations bound for the Durham Breakfast Club, helping ensure local children don’t have to learn on an empty stomach.
What inspired you to start this foundation, and when did you officially launch?
A: The ultimate spark was a deep desire to make my 40th birthday milestone about something far greater than myself. I didn’t want a standard party; I wanted to channel that energy into a fundraising dinner to provide immediate resources for children who were hurting. That initial experience really touched my heart in a permanent way. Sitting in that room, I realized that there were thousands of children who needed consistent, long-term support and structural opportunities. I knew right then that I wanted to do something far more sustainable than just a one-time gesture. I wanted to create an institution that could build a lasting, multi-year impact. That specific vision was the official launch and foundation of McLymont’s Helping Hands. Everything we have built since flows directly from that initial commitment to turn a personal milestone into an enduring promise to support low-income families and children facing difficult circumstances. We operate under the structural belief that we are ultimately Blessed to be a Blessing to others.
Why is the back-to-school season such a critical focus for your team right now?
A: The annual back-to-school giveback is an absolute priority for our team because we see firsthand the financial anxiety families experience during this time of year. Preparing a child to go back to the classroom can become an overwhelming financial burden for a low-income household. People sometimes underestimate how a seemingly minor thing can alter a young person’s educational psychology. For a child, something as simple as having a brand-new backpack and their own basic school supplies can completely change how they view themselves. It makes them feel confident, prepared, and genuinely excited to learn. We never want a child to walk into a classroom on day one feeling left behind or marginalized simply because their family couldn’t afford a pencil case or notebook. That is why we distribute over 500 backpacks every single year. It isn’t just a materials giveaway; it is a direct investment in a child’s dignity. By removing those immediate financial barriers, we protect their confidence and remind them that their community believes heavily in their potential.
What is the geographical scope of your foundation? Do you focus your efforts strictly in the Pickering/Durham area, or can you tell us about your active connections and projects in Jamaica?
A: Our foundation maintains a broad, international geographical scope. While we are proudly rooted right here in the Pickering/Durham area and remain deeply dedicated to supporting vulnerable families in our local Canadian neighborhoods, our humanitarian work extends actively into Jamaica. Jamaica is deeply woven into our foundational roots, and we recognize that there are several severely under-resourced communities there that desperately require external aid. Beyond the $1 million JMD cardiac patient monitor donation to the May Pen Hospital pediatric unit, we have injected $100,000 JMD directly into the renovations at the Coats Pen Basic School to help update their learning facilities. Furthermore, we provide ongoing monetary assistance and essential personal effects to various children’s homes across the parish of Clarendon, alongside direct, case-by-case aid to struggling families in the region.
“Our vision is never restricted by physical geography. Wherever we identify a gap where we can step in and change a child’s developmental trajectory, we will extend a helping hand.”
Our vision is never restricted by physical geography. Wherever we identify a gap where we can step in and change a child’s developmental trajectory, we will extend a helping hand. To do this effectively, our team structurally assesses the shifting needs of different communities across Jamaica each year. We pinpoint the specific area experiencing the highest level of resource deprivation and then route our annual School Drive directly to that community, ensuring that thousands of essential supplies reach the students who need them most.
Is the need great this year? What specific school supplies are families hurting for the most right now?
A: Yes, the need this year is exceptionally high. We are continuously meeting parents who are working incredibly hard and doing everything humanly possible to provide for their households, but the cumulative cost of basic school preparation has become entirely overwhelming due to inflation. The specific items families are hurting for the most are the everyday educational tools that many take for granted: durable backpacks, notebooks, pens, pencils, pencil cases, lunch bags, and water bottles. These individual items might look small on a store shelf, but when a parent has two, three, or more children to prepare for simultaneously, the math adds up to an impossible sum very quickly. Our back-to-school initiative is designed to step into that exact financial gap. We want to lift that immense pressure off the parents’ shoulders so that their children can walk through those school doors focusing entirely on their education, rather than worrying about what they are missing compared to their peers.
Tell us about your partners who help make this specific drive possible.
A: This drive is a massive, collective team effort. We are incredibly grateful for the network of individuals, local businesses, community organizers, and hands-on volunteers who sacrifice their time and resources because they believe in the core mission of McLymont’s Helping Hands.
Our partners keep us moving forward in a variety of vital ways—some provide corporate financial sponsorships, some coordinate supply donations, and others physically volunteer their hours to manage logistics and distribution. This year, we are incredibly honored to be partnering directly with the Claremont Moravian Church in St. Elizabeth, Jamaica, to execute our back-to-school drive. Through this specific partnership, we are expanding our scope to also distribute emergency groceries to vulnerable families throughout the community of Ginger Hill, Jamaica.
Looking forward, a major goal of ours is to continually expand these strategic partnerships across different sectors. What I appreciate most about our network is that they don’t look at our work as a simple checklist charity giveaway. They understand deeply that we are protecting the future of these children. We could not distribute hundreds of fully stocked backpacks every year without their raw generosity, and it truly shows that it takes an entire community to make a lasting difference.
Mobilizing hope: Crowds gather as the McLymont’s Helping Hands team prepares to distribute more than 500 fully stocked backpacks to students ahead of the new school year.
How can local individuals or businesses donate supplies or funds, and where can they go online to support your work?
A: There are multiple accessible pathways for individuals and corporations to join our mission. You can donate physical school supplies, make a direct financial contribution to help us purchase items in bulk, or partner with us through a formal business sponsorship or in-kind service donation. We warmly welcome anyone who has a heart for youth. Whether you can afford to donate a single backpack, a single box of supplies, or a financial gift, every ounce of support scales our reach to help another child. To review our historical programs, see photos of our global distributions, or securely back our initiatives, you can visit our main digital hub at mclymontshelpinghands.com or email our administrative team at info@mclymontshelpinghands.com. We are also highly active on social media, and you can find us on Facebook and Instagram under @McLymontsHelpingHands. We strongly encourage people to follow our accounts, engage with our updates, and share our content across their networks to help us amplify our message. It takes a village to change a life, and every single helping hand allows us to reach another child who is waiting for hope.
How You Can Help:
You don’t need corporate backing to alter a child’s life trajectory. There are several ways to support McLymont’s Helping Hands Children’s Foundation. You can donate school supplies, make a financial contribution, or partner with us through a business sponsorship or in-kind donation.
Whether you give one backpack, a box of supplies, or a financial gift, every bit of support helps us reach more children. To learn more or get involved, visit McLymontsHelpingHands.com or email us at info@mclymontshelpinghands.com. You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram @mclymontshelpinghands to help spread the word.
“It takes a community to make a difference, and every helping hand allows us to reach another child.”
Editor’s Note: The work of McLymont’s Helping Hands is a powerful testament to what happens when personal gratitude transforms into collective action. By meeting families right where they are—whether on a doorstep in Jamaica or a school cafeteria in Durham—this organization reminds us that a child’s environment should never restrict their future. But as the need continues to grow under the weight of rising global costs, the foundation relies entirely on the generosity of people like you to keep moving forward.
Judy McNeil
A passionate voice in the JMC Media community, sharing stories that matter.
