Now in her mid-40s, Dalyn Taylor-Dennie is enjoying life to the fullest. Now a telephone operator at the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, she has had a new lease on life ever since enrolling in the Jamaican Foundation for Lifelong Learning (JFLL), the adult literacy organisation, formerly called JAMAL.

Taylor-Dennie started working as an office attendant at the ministry, using her vast experience as a household helper. On her way to work one morning, she noticed a sign on the East Street facility and decided to check it out. She went in and found out about the programmes offered and picked up an application form. However, that form would remain in her bag for a year.

"I was having second thoughts because I didn't want people to see me going and saying I can't read or write because that was the stigma attached to it," she said.

From Long Hills in Westmore-land, she left Kings All-Age School at grade nine knowing only the basics. At 16, she got her first job in Kingston as a babysitter. For almost 30 years, she worked at several places as a helper.

But she was not happy. She recalls that one of her employers searched her bag every evening before she left the house. She decided that it was time to do something about it.

So scared

Taylor-Dennie finally submitted the JFLL application form. She recalled her feelings on her first day. "I was so scared, I didn't know anybody there. I liked English but when it came to mathematics, I cried."

Maths was always a problem for her but, after three tries, she finally passed the Jamaica School Certificate.

"I was on top of the world. I moved on to level four; we did the same subjects but they were harder," she told The Gleaner. "It was at this level that they prepared us for the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) and I wanted to do it."

Though she wanted to do it, it was at the encouragement of one of her supervisors that she tried CXC English language. "I went to the University of the West Indies among high-school students. Can you imagine? Me, Dalyn Taylor-Dennie? I got a grade two and not even cloud nine could hold me. I was so happy.

"Now, I see that if you want something bad enough, you can go for it and get it. I'm so proud of myself," she said, noting that her mathematics training has enabled her to help her nine-year-old granddaughter, Cheyenne, with her homework. Her future plans involve becoming a social worker or an early-childhood officer.

The Jamaican Foundation for Lifelong Learning can be contacted at 928-5181-6.