Robert Lalah, Assistant Editor-Features

Looking out at the serene waters of the Kingston Harbour, Edward Dixon took a moment to gather his thoughts. He had spent the last few minutes reflecting on the sacrifices his parents had made to cover his school expenses over the years.

"So when I think about all of that, there's no way I could really turn my life to crime or anything negative. I have to really do something with my life that will make my parents feel proud," he said.

Dixon was raised in Tredegar Park in Spanish Town, St Catherine. His mom was a dressmaker, his dad a correctional officer. Money didn't exactly come easily to the family, but education was a priority.

"Even when times were hard, I can remember my mother emptying a container that she used to save coins to pay my school fee that year. She always believed that nothing is more important than education," said Dixon.

That's one lesson he learned from his mother that has stuck with him over the years.

So, through hard work and a lot of late night study sessions, Dixon successfully completed a three-year stint at the University of the West Indies, Mona, graduating with a degree in international relations. Now this was not easy. Growing up in Tredegar Park where gang warfare threatened to disrupt life at any moment, Dixon had to contend with the temptations of gang life and the lure that the easy money often associated with this kind of life presented.

"I think that one of the main factors that helped me stay away from the violence was the fact that I lived with both my father and mother. I know that this is not normal. For me, every morning I woke up, my father was there and just being in a stable home, I think, really helped me stay on track. But don't get me wrong, it still was not easy," said Dixon.

All around him, people he grew up with were being killed in a vicious gang war that made sleep an elusive luxury.

"A guy I grew up with, played football with was stabbed to death over a $10 bet. He was playing dominoes, an argument developed and he lost his life because of it," Dixon said.

Events like this were seared into Dixon's memory and caused him to make a decison that would affect the rest of his life.

"I decided that I had to give my life to doing social work to change what's happening in Tredegar Park and all the other communities in Jamaica that are going through the same thing. I can't turn my back on these places, I feel like I have to help bring change," the 25-year-old said.

Youth Empowerment Officer

So after graduating from university, Dixon got a job as a youth empowerment officer with the National Centre for Youth Development. He spent his days travelling across Jamaica, rallying young people to join service clubs and to become active in the development of their communities.

"Doing that work opened my eyes to so many things. I met many young people who showed a lot of promise. You could see it in their eyes, but they felt like they were stuck in the cycle of mediocrity, so they didn't believe they had a chance to succeed. I realised that what they needed was a positive role model, a person to encourage them and let them know that they can achieve whatever they want," he said.

It was while doing this work that Dixon saw himself as a role model for the first time. It was a responsibility he was uncomfortable with at first, but soon took it as his life's work.

While on the job as a youth empowerment officer, Dixon met two young women from Portmore who were, as he put it, on a path to self-destruction.

"You could see that something bad, like teenage pregnancy, was in their future. These were young girls with promise who were told every day by family and neighbours that they were worthless, that they would amount to nothing. They started to believe it and I felt a sense of duty to show them that their family was wrong about them," Dixon said.

So he stepped in. Dixon started to counsel the young women daily, giving them advice even when they said they didn't want it. What meagre earnings he had, he would put towards financing the girls' education. Today, both girls are on a different path, one in her final year of nursing school.

"That makes me more proud than I can tell anyone," Dixon said, his pride showing on his face.

With his sights set on doing more work in troubled communities, Dixon will be leaving Jamaica in September to begin a programme at Holland's Institue of Social Studies. It's a master's programme on development studies.

"When I complete that, my plan is to come back to Jamaica and put it to good use. Jamaica has a lot of negatives but far more positives. It is just for us to start helping each other to achieve the best that we all can," said Dixon.

robert.lalah@gleanerjm.com