MANDEVILLE, Manchester — Chair of Candle in the Dark Empowerment Centre Dr Wendy Freckleton is calling on health authorities to give greater attention to the mentally challenged living on the streets in this south-central town.

“The state of the homelessness in Manchester is nothing to smile about. I drove through the town of Mandeville and I saw the persons who are on the side of the road who are mentally challenged,” said Freckleton while addressing the official hand over ceremony for a solar system by the JN Foundation to Candle in the Dark on Wednesday.

“We really must call on our authorities, the Southern Regional Health Authority [and] in particular the Mental Health Department to pay more attention to homelessness and the people who are mentally challenged in this town.

“We cannot have a town in Manchester and a facility like Candle in the Dark while the persons who are on the side of the road are not taken care of on a daily basis…We have people who come here and get breakfast and lunch, but there are many other persons in the town who really need that type of care and they really don’t have the mental ability to walk to Candle in the Dark,” added Freckleton.

She told educational, civic and community leaders that some mentally challenged people need guidance to facilities like Candle in the Dark.

“They will practically need somebody to assist them to get here and that is the responsibility of the Mental Health Department,” she said.

Freckleton reiterated her claim that there has been an increase in the number of homeless people in Manchester in recent time.

“As volunteers we do our best, so we call on the Government to do the rest, it is important that we take care of those who need it the most,” argued Freckleton.

She expressed gratitude to JN Foundation and FosRich for the donation and installation of the solar system resulting in the drop-in centre’s electricity bills being cut in half since June.

“We already have seen benefits from the solar system, it was installed in June and the electricity bill we got, it was reduced by 50 per cent. Our aim is really to bring it down to only 10 per cent of what our electricity bill used to be,” she said.

“Since we are powered by the sun. We can assist our clients a little bit more with their laundry,” added Freckleton.

She explained that in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl in July, the drop-in centre remained fully functional with electricity.

“I can’t help but to recall the trying time that persons faced with the passage of Hurricane Beryl, so the storm was fierce and the challenges were many. I can tell you that Candle in the Dark stood strong — true to our name. While others around us battled with darkness and lack of connectivity, the solar system provided the electricity that we needed to keep the centre going,” said Freckleton.

Candle in the Dark, which was started more than 25 years ago, caters to the needs of the homeless in Mandeville and its surrounding environs.