ANNOTTO BAY, JAMAICA (GREAT STORY) : Former student, Javaughn Taylor searched months for homeless teacher.... ‘There is hope for Miss Parks to come back’

BY TANESHA MUNDLE Observer staff reporter mundlet@jamaicaobserver.com  Monday, May 16, 2016

When Javaughn Taylor heard that his former Annotto Bay High School teacher was ill and was living on the street in Portland his first thought was that he had to find her, and for over three months he searched diligently.

Javaughn Taylor

The 20-year-old aspiring pastor, who hails from Annotto Bay in St Mary, said there were times when he felt like giving up, but persevered as he could not be at peace with himself knowing that his teacher, Celia Parks, was alone on the streets.

Taylor’s search, which started sometime in January, came to an end on May 3, when he, along with Parks’ older brother, Ruddy, found her inside an abandoned building in Buff Bay. This, however, was after making initial contact April 30.

Miss Parks, when found, had locked herself inside the building and had refused to come out. The police was called to help remove her and she was subsequently taken to the Annotto Bay Hospital where she has since been admitted and is receiving treatment. Taylor, who is not an avid social media user, documented the search on Facebook.

Last Monday the Jamaica Observer visited him at Castleton Primary and Junior High School, where he teaches drumming, and sat for an interview.

“I knew Miss Parks back in 2008 when she taught me integrated science in school. She was a God-fearing person; there wasn’t one day that Miss would not start her lesson without telling us bout Jesus and what he can do for us. She was very God-fearing and we admired that about her and that was one of the things that put me out of my comfort zone to go out and seek for her,” he said.

According to him: “It all happened when I went and looked for a former classmate. Miss Parks taught both of us and we were there talking and she said if I hadn’t heard that Miss had gone literally mad, and I said, ‘No, that can’t be! The teacher that Miss Parks was to us, we really need to go out there and find her and find some assistance for her’.”

Taylor said his classmate agreed, but never followed through, so he went in search of Miss Parks on his own.

“I go to Portland every weekend just to find Miss Parks. One of the times I got fed up and said it makes no sense I’m going out there and not finding her, but I couldn’t keep my heel knowing that Miss Parks is out there and is insane,” he said. more