Cookshop Operator Gets Boost to Restart Following Hurricane

For more than a decade, Adasma Brown, affectionately known as ‘Miss Julie’, operated ‘Cheap but Sweet’ cookshop in St Leonards, Amity, Westmoreland. From 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., Mondays to Saturdays, she served up hearty, affordable meals to her loyal customers, including schoolchildren, who looked forward to her popular chicken and chips and other homestyle meals.

“I just love to cook. My food is awesome, so I have a lot of customers,” Ms Brown declared.

Hurricane Melissa, however, brought her operation to an abrupt halt. The board-and-zinc structure that housed her cookshop was flattened during the storm and several of her pots, pans and kitchen utensils went missing. She estimates her losses at approximately $500,000.

“The only thing I saved was the fridge, but I don’t know if it is in any use now because no light is here so I can’t test it,” she said.

The hurricane also destroyed her home and ravaged the farm operated by her spouse, which supplied callaloo, cabbage, yam and dasheen, among other produce, for sale and for use in her kitchen.

Ms Brown related that the emotional toll was heavy.

“It was devastating, it was heartbreaking. It shattered me. I cried a lot. I just keep focused and say one day I know I’m going to get back ahead,” she shared.

Now weeks after Hurricane Melissa, customers are eager for the reopening of the cookshop.  Among them is Olga Graham, a shopkeeper in the community and a loyal customer of more than 10 years who enjoyed Ms Brown’s menu items.

“I wouldn’t mind if it was today or tomorrow [ the shop reopen]. I really miss her,” Ms Graham said, noting that she has grown accustomed to relying on Ms Brown’s delicious meals daily.

Now forced to restart from scratch, Ms Brown was presented with critical assistance through a grant from JN Bank, aimed at helping her to begin restoring her business. The grant will provide immediate support to purchase essential items as she prepares to rebuild.

“I’m so grateful because I didn’t expect anything. I know they appreciate their customers,” she said adding that she has been a JN Bank Small Business Loans customer for more than 10 years.

Ms Brown, who was one of several small business operators presented with grants, is now in the process of securing a loan to resume operations. She credits Jasmin Cole, client relations officer at JN Bank Small Business Loans, for providing steady guidance and encouragement throughout her recovery journey, noting that the support made a difficult period more manageable and gave her renewed confidence to rebuild.

Jacqueline Jeffers, client relations manager, JN Bank Small Business Loans, pointed out that the grants, which form part of JN Bank’s broader hurricane recovery response, helped to provide immediate relief to vulnerable business operators during their rebuilding process.

“In the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa, we recognised that some of our clients needed urgent assistance that went beyond traditional financing. The grants were designed to give small business operators a jump start to replace essential tools and equipment, restock basic supplies and take the first steps towards reopening,” Mrs Jeffers explained.

“Many of the recipients suffered extensive damage to their premises, equipment and stock, leaving them unable to operate and without a source of income,” she added.

Among the beneficiaries, she noted, are operators in the retail, food service and agricultural sectors.

“By providing grants, we help to ease that initial burden and restore a sense of hope, so they know that we are with them on their recovery journey.”

According to Mrs Jeffers, JN’s response to Hurricane Melissa has included a combination of grants, payment holidays, loan restructuring and new recovery financing, depending on the severity of impact and each client’s stage of recovery.

She emphasised that small businesses are central to Jamaica’s economic and social stability.

“Small enterprises support families and generate employment. When we help a small business get back on its feet, we are strengthening the country’s economic foundation,” she explained.

Mrs Jeffers added that seeing entrepreneurs rebuild after such devastating losses reinforces the bank’s commitment to standing alongside its clients, particularly during times of crisis.

“Our role goes beyond lending. We see ourselves as partners in our clients’ growth. Supporting them after a disaster is part of our responsibility to the communities we serve,” Mrs Jeffers maintained.