BUILDING COMMUNITY BLOCK BY BLOCK - Rohan Tait returns to uplift Robertsfield

Thirty years ago when Rohan Tait migrated to the United States of America in search of a better life, he vowed that he would one day return and help the people of Robertsfield, a quaint farming community located in east rural St Andrew, where he grew up.

Tait, 42, resides overseas but often returns to the island. He established a block-making factory in the community 18 months ago, which currently employs 20 persons.

"I always try to do business here. I went overseas and I gained a bit of success from working in the construction field, so I decided to return and share it with my fellow community members. During one of my trips back to Jamaica, a guy came up to me and said he was begging me to buy a block machine. I thought about it for a while, because there are times when persons will approach me and say let's do this, and when I put my all in, it fails. But this one was quite the opposite. Even now I can't believe how successful it has been," Tait said.

As he glanced over to where the men are working, he stated that while making a profit is a plus for him, his biggest satisfaction comes from knowing he is giving back to his place of birth.

"The profit is one but in reality, this business is not even for me. It is for the youths, as they are the ones in charge when I am not here. Even when I am here, it's them. I'm just like an overseer, really. It is a good feeling to know that I am able to make a difference in the lives of the youths by giving them an avenue to make an income and better themselves," he said.

A block factory in Robertsfield is somewhat of a misfit. The community, located just outside Mavis Bank, is known for farming, with Blue Mountain coffee being its biggest product.

"A lot of times we see young people moving out of Robertsfield because there aren't many opportunities for them here, and this is what I am hoping to stop. Not everyone is going to want to be a farmer or go in the coffee business. There are some persons who will ask me why I don't put my businesses in the more urban areas, but I always tell them no, because I want to develop my community," he said.

When THE STAR team visited Tait's factory yard on Tuesday, a group of young men were hard at work trying to produce enough blocks to fill an existing order.

"To be honest, even with 20 persons working, we can't make enough blocks for sale. All of what you see in the yard here is already sold, and we are like 15,000 behind. We supply persons who are doing development in the community and beyond," he said.

The returning resident said that he started the block-making business with one employee, and he forecasts that, at some point in the near future, he will be able to at least double the number of people he has working.

"If I knew that it was going to be so successful, I would have started it a long time ago," said Tait, who also has a coffee business and has plans of building a mini plaza in his community.

"I just want to invest in the youths, instead of giving everybody $500 or $5,000 in their pockets. As the saying goes, 'It's better to teach a man how to fish than give him a fish', and this is what I am doing," he said.