Up until last week, Carl Melville, 28, had been homeless for a year. However, on Tuesday he was rewarded for his voluntary efforts to clean the Kingston Seawall, which have inspired others to do the same.
Melville has since been provided with a place to stay and a new job, which he started on Friday. He described his first day as a “great first day”.
Melville’s efforts are what inspired a number of persons to intervene to make life better for him.
Among them is photographer Dwayne Hackett, who noticed the lone Melville raking at the seawall. When Hackett was contacted by this publication, he himself was out on the seawall cleaning.
According to Hackett, he takes his son out to the seawall as he has been cooped up at home with virtual classes. “It always bothered me seeing the garbage and children playing around the [filth]. On July 27th, I was out on the seawalls again when I saw Carl cleaning the seawalls with a rake and I asked him what he was doing. He said he was doing what needed to be done,” said Hackett.
The photographer noted that he has come to learn that the seawall is a no-man’s land. The city council, he said, claims that it is only responsible for the roads up to the seawall and while the seawall falls under the auspices of the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, it doesn’t do anything about the garbage there.
“The seawall has potential as a tourist attraction. There are two huge hotels nearby”, said Hackett. He questioned which of the tourists staying at either hotel would want to visit the seawall in its soiled condition. He added that it was a tourist who was passing by the seawall and saw Melville cleaning it and told him to put out a cardboard box for persons wishing to make donations. Melville did as encouraged and persons from time to time would make small donations.
After more interaction with Melville, Hackett would learn that the man had been recently employed for four months but was never paid.
Melville told Stabroek Weekend that he was put out of his home last year following a family dispute. He noted that he left behind a one bedroom house that he had built for himself and which was one of three houses that was in the same yard he shared with relatives. Since then, he had been sleeping at the Seawall Bandstand or on the nearby trampolines. During his stay on the seawall, the vendors there would provide him with snacks and food from time to time.
Asked what inspired him to begin his cleanup efforts, Melville, not a man of many words, said, “The environment needed cleaning so I just decided to do it on my own.”
Sharing the story
Don Singh, a businessman, was one of the many persons who was instrumental in sharing Melville’s story. He first learnt of him through a mutual friend of his and Hackett’s, who lives in the United States. The friend, who does philanthropic work, reached out to Singh after being contacted by Hackett to pay Melville a visit and analyze the situation. Singh noted that he visited the seawall about three times and he saw Melville cleaning the seawall. Last Monday he visited again and he saw Melville assisting with painting at the seawall.
After speaking with Melville and learning of his situation, Singh made a Facebook post in which he asked for help in getting a job and a place to stay for Melville. His posts saw more than 1,500 shares, which was how Aurie Henriques learnt of the man. Henriques, the owner of Game Xpress, made contact with Singh and by Tuesday Singh and Melville were checking out an apartment. He moved in the following day.
Henriques also provided the man with a job. “I’m impressed with the work he has done. It looks really good. In all my years, I’ve never seen the seawalls look that good,” Henriques said.
In fact, Henriques was so impressed that not only did he provide Carl with a job but he created one for him as he had no current vacancy. Carl is employed with Game Xpress as a maintenance man and he is paid a fulltime salary though he is only required to work up to 12 o’clock every day. Henriques, who is currently in the United States, shared of a phone conversation with Melville and said he came across as a person who likes working with his hands. Melville is required to work from Monday to Saturday. According to Game Xpress owner, Melville only requested time off in the afternoons to continue his daily cleanup exercise, which he happily allowed.
This newspaper learnt also that Melville is currently sharing an apartment building next door to Game Xpress, which is being rented by Henriques for several of his staff. He doesn’t have to pay rent.
Many people have continued to contact Singh to assist Melville. Someone has already promised clothing. Another reached out to Singh on Friday to provide groceries, an iron and other small household appliances. “Carl is a humble, quiet and simple person. He is not materialistic. He started out doing what he did without the promise of a reward,” Singh said.
Since Singh’s post, numerous persons have joined the cleanup exercise and also sought to help Melville. Digicel, in a Facebook post, wrote: “Meet Carl, he is on a mission to keep the Kingston Seawalls clean. In his words ‘I believe one person can make a difference’ and that is what he is doing. We heard that Carl needed a phone so we went to check on him and sure enough he was working hard. Thanks for you hard work and diligence Carl. You are truly an inspiration….”
Popular Guyanese actor and comedian Chris Gopaul also made a post, saying, “So this guy was caught red handed cleaning up the sea walls by himself because he has this crazy idea that 1 single person can make a difference. The nerve of this guy…. I pray that all people will be more like you Carl Melville.”
Melville plans on saving his salary so that he can have his own place someday soon. “A lot of people are now volunteering to help cleanup. They have also helped in a lot of ways. I want to thank everybody for what they have done for me,” he said.
Getting inspired
Meanwhile, another photographer, Darrell Carpenay, also joined in volunteering to keep the seawall clean. He noted also that after learning of the cleanup exercise his staff has also been volunteering to clean the beach there also from time to time.
“Carl basically started the cleanup process. Basically it shows that change doesn’t have to come in the form of a group of people. Carl himself, though he was homeless, used his own initiative to clean the seawall. I had thought about doing this before but never did. Carl’s enthusiastic way of going out there and getting that done all by himself was contagious. It was easy to jump onboard after that. Carl is humility-oriented, enthusiastic, energetic and a humble individual,” Carpenay said.
Since Carpenay and Hackett joined with Melville in the cleanup exercise, a number of other persons have come onboard. Over the course of two to three weeks, the clean-up crew has cleaned from Camp Street to the Bandstand and now they are presently working from the bandstand to the “round-house” behind Pegasus Hotel.
Speaking of recent visitors to the seawalls, Carpenay said, “I think people get the idea that an effort is being made and they are making a conscious effort to not litter.” Following the cleanup exercise, Carpenay has started a photography page on Facebook called ‘Seawalls and Beyond’ where photos of the seawalls and beaches are being uploaded. Hackett has also been posting numerous pictures of a beautifully cleaned seawall with the hashtag #SeawallCleanedByCarl.
