Hotel workers with a heart - Tryall workers donate $40,000 to help boy facing blindness

The membership of the staff sports club at the Tryall Hotel and Villas in Hanover has demonstrated what it means to have a heart by coming to the assistance of eight-year-old Aldane Harrison, who is on the verge of losing his sight.

Harrison, a grade three student at Hague Primary School in Trelawny, has already lost his sight in his left eye and needs continuous treatment to prevent him from losing his sight in the right eye. He was presented with a cheque for $40,000 by the Tryall workers to purchase medication for the treatment.

"We heard of little Aldane's case. Unfortunately, we heard that he lost sight in one of his eyes, so the members of the sports club decided to assist, and we were able to collect the amount to give to his mother to help in maintaining the health of the other eye with prescription glasses and medication," said Delrose Phillips, the treasurer of the hotel's staff sports club.

After it was discovered that Aldane had detached retinas in both eyes, he underwent surgery at the University Hospital in Kingston, but by then, it was too late to save his sight in his left eye. Doctors have recommended that he wears glasses and takes medication in an effort to save his right eye.

Despite her son's uncertain future, Aldane's mother, Ghinel Lysaith, was delighted with the donation from the hotel workers, which she knows will help with medical necessities, including his regular doctor's visits.

"The medication is very expensive. One eye drop costs about $5,000, and is two of them that he has to be getting," says Lysaith. "At the end of the day, I need the help. It has been a rough ride, a long journey, to ensure that he is OK."

Lysaith said that Aldane is scheduled for another doctor's visit in Kingston in July to collect the prescribed glasses, which are supposed to help in the recovery of his good eye.

The Tryall Staff Sports Club has taken on the project of Aldane's medical attention as one of its "community give-back" projects. Phillips said that while it is a staff sport club project, they nonetheless welcomed contributions from outsiders.