EFFORTVILLE, Clarendon — Even before the one-room structure being built to shelter him from the elements was finished, Cheddie moved in. As soon as a mattress was placed inside the structure, he made himself comfortable; he was home.

Known only by his first name, he has lived on the streets of Effortville, Clarendon, for years, at the mercy of the elements. Philanthropist Otis James decided to help him.

“Many times I pass him on the roadside under the tree in the rubbish heap right here on Sevens Road. He was sleeping on a piece of cold concrete where rain wet him and sun burn him and so mi feel really good fi can make a difference in a person’s life,” James explained.

Once he made up his mind to act, he asked Delta Shield Group of Companies to help him make life a little better for Cheddie. Delta Shield’s Executive Director Patricia Garib said it was an easy decision to partner with James on the project.

“He reached out to me about the homeless man and I discussed it with my business partner. We decided to undertake it because, over the years, our company has been collaborating with schools through scholarship programmes and we also give back to community members in need,” she said.

Work began on the one-room dwelling on Labour Day and lasted for three days.

“I was really happy that we accomplished what we did. I slept well last night because this is one of the most fulfilling projects I’ve been on. [I] felt it so deep, it moved me. I am overwhelmed and I’m really happy we could do this for him. Tears came to my eyes when I saw the finished product, having witnessed where he was coming from. When we put in the mattress and he laid down in there my heart was full,” Garib told the Jamaica Observer.

Some residents joined the effort but others, according to James, thought he had embarked on a fool’s errand. Some even asked him to give them the material sourced for the mentally ill man’s house, as they thought he would not appreciate having a roof over his head.

“I just shake my head and continue the project,” said James. “If he destroys it, at least he got a chance. Some people are sober and get good chances at life and didn’t make use of the opportunity, so allow this ‘mad man’ — as they call him — a chance too.”

More than $300,000 was spent on material, labour, furniture and a general clean-up of the area to build the structure for the once homeless man.

“I’m really happy to know that we move a person, who has no one to look out for him, out of a rubbish heap. This is what God wants us to do: to love, share with and care for each other. No matter what, we should continue to believe in God because you can slip and fall and, in a minute, your whole life can change because today is for you, tomorrow is for somebody else,” James said.