Our Work
ABC Breakfast Program
The Children of Abaco have been through a lot in the last three years. Many families are still struggling to put food on the table due to the devastating impact of Hurricane Dorian and a Global Pandemic in a tourist driven economy. As a result, children in Abaco often come to school without the benefit of a healthy breakfast.
The Abaco Strong Breakfast for Children Program provides breakfast for almost 200 children in attendance at The Coopers Town Primary School in North Abaco in order to improve the chance of academic and personal success for each child.
Health and Education form the foundation on which to build when it comes to raising strong children that have an opportunity to be successful as they grow and mature into adults and productive citizens. A nutritious breakfast for each child will help to increase school attendance, improve alertness, concentration, mood, and behavior, and improve overall nutrition and development.
Research has shown that access to breakfast for school-age children can significantly improve their ability to concentrate throughout the school day and positively impact their academic performance.
Farmer’s Market
Home Repair Program
It is estimated that 90% of the homes in Treasure Cay were destroyed and uninhabitable after the hurricane. In February 2020, Abaco Strong was able to bring a team of experienced carpenters and tradesmen to make several of the resident’s homes inhabitable again.
The coronavirus pandemic temporarily delayed our home repair initiative, however, we have resumed the program and are working with local contractors in Abaco to repair Bahamian resident’s homes in the Treasure Cay area. The needs range from roof repair, to mold remediation, drywall, electric, plumbing, windows and door replacement, and more. Our goal is to provide safe and healthy living conditions fo the residents of Treasure Cay.
Backyard Farming
In response to the urgent need for lowering food imports and household food bills in these economically hard times, the Ministry
of Agriculture and Marine Resources has embarked on a ‘Backyard Farming Program’ for householders in The Bahamas. We have over 200 families participating in back yard farming in Northern and Central Abaco, and Abaco Strong is providing support by providing, seeds, seed starters, pots, fertilizer, top soil, and educational materials.
Community Garden
Abaco Strong in partnership with The Blue Atlas Project is sponsoring the first Aquaponic Community Garden in Abaco. Twelve Bahamian Families in Treasure Cay are currently participating in the project and successfully growing their own food. The Aquaponic System consists of a 410 Gallon Fish Tank and 34 Aquaponics Grow Rafts that hold 600 plants.The Community Garden will act as a demonstration garden in addition to providing organic vegetables for participating community members.
Abaco Youth Baseball
The families in Abaco have been through a lot in the past two years, and opportunities have become little to none for the children of the island. As the dust began to settle from the hurricane, the members of the community in Central Abaco took it upon themselves to create opportunities for their children by starting a baseball league in Abaco.
Abaco Strong is supporting AYB by providing equipment, scholarships and helping to rebuild the sports facility in Murphy Town.
Sleep Soundly Abaco
In 2020 and 2021, our amazing volunteers distributed over 300 mattresses and bed frames, along with pillows, sheets and blankets to residents in Northern Abaco, including Treasure Cay, Crown Haven, Grand Cay, Green Turtle Cay, Spring City, The Farm, Murphy Town, Blackwood, Fire Road, Marsh Harbour, Central Pines, Dundastown, Sandy Point, Cooperstown and Moores Island.
Many thanks to The Lyford Cay Foundation, TCCF, The Rotary Club of The Bahamas, Bahamas Ferries, and City Furniture who have made this program possible.
Community Events
Treasure Cay Community hosted Taste of Treasure to provide hot meals for all members of the community in the months following the hurricane when resources were few and spirits were low. We have continued to provide take away meals on special occasions during the pandemic, observing health and safety protocols.
Abaco Strong sent over 300 gifts to the children of Abaco to help make this Christmas a memorable event. We provided a Christmas Tree to The Coopers Town Clinic and and to the Treasure Cay Community Center to help keep spirits high during these trying times. It was a smashing success with a golf cart parade, tree lighting and gift distribution complete with a visit from Santa himself.
These events help to bring the community together and provide a break for those that are still struggling to recover from the damages of the hurricane and COVID19.
Learn more about what we have been up to...
Abaco Strong was formed in January of 2020 in response to the needs of the communities in Abaco, shifting from disaster relief to rebuilding assistance. We received our nonprofit status in July of 2020, and have implemented a number of programs to enable the people of Abaco to return to their homes and to rebuild their lives. Click on the overview to learn more about the work that we have been doing.
