SHAGGY PLANS CONCERT FOR CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL

                                                                         By Baldwin S. A. Howe

In light of the help needed to improve the conditions of the Bustamante Hospital for Children, situated on the Arthur Wint Drive, in  St. Andrew; internationally renowned reggae megastar, Shaggy, is in the process of planning to stage a concert in early 2009; in attempt to raise over US$2 million to purchase much needed equipment for that institution.

Shaggy first charitable assistance to the Children’s Hospital came about a few a years ago when he discovered that a son of a popular record producer, Tony Kelly, was a patient at the institution.  During this period, he became aware that the hospital did not have the necessary required equipment to help Kelly’s young son.  Armed with this knowledge he then made the commitment to assist by providing as much help as he possibly could for the Children’s Hospital.

Since initiating his assistance programme the Bustamante Hospital for Children, Shaggy has expanded his charitable work by expanding his assistance endeavours to encompass various other charities.  He said, the idea for this current project came to him while he was on a recent visit to the Children’s Hospital.  He said, during his tour of the facility, a man came up to him and requested if he could spare the time to visit with his 8-year-old daughter who had a bullet in her head, and was in the intensive care unit.  Shaggy later learnt that the life-support machine the girl was on was one that he had bought.

FOUR-HOUR DIALYSIS MACHINE ROTATION

While on the same tour Shaggy was also informed that the young patients at the hospital who had kidney ailments were systematically rotated off dialysis machines, every four hours so that as many as is possible could gain access them.  Shaggy had also donated those machines to the hospital, and the institution’s current situation made him realize the necessity for more to be done for the Bustamante Hospital for Children.

Shaggy told Reggae Times that, “I realized I had to do something more so I called some of the best corporate sponsors to a meeting in my living room and basically said we are going to do this concert on the third of January.”  He further stated that this drive would form part of his campaign to raise money for the Children’s Hospital and to also raise awareness of the problems the institution faces, so that more people can come aboard.  He mentioned that the US$2million, (approximately J$154 million), is what is needed to acquire much needed equipment for the institution.

Shaggy’s Bustamante Hospital for Children” charity concert is tentatively set to be staged on the lawns of Jamaica House, January 3, 2009.