A Place of Safety is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization I felt compelled to establish in 2001 after many years of personal trips to the Island of Jamaica. During my visits I did what few very tourists would do: I left my comfort zone to find desperate young children begging and sometimes living on streets in their poverty-stricken communities. I was overcome with sadness as to how these children try and survive while having all the food and drink I wanted back at my hotel. I promised myself that I would return to help the children with education and living conditions. Twenty years later, after battling cancer and raising my son alone, I decided it was time to keep that promise.

I started A Place of Safety to bring awareness to the living conditions on how these children live and the visible poverty that many who visit this beautiful Island choose to ignore. My goal then, and still is, to discover a renewed sense of purpose for these youth. We work and bring supplies to children's homes and schools. We started at Copse, a remand center for boys, and over the years have traveled across Island to places including West Haven for the disabled. Each trip we bring 20+ duffels of much needed supplies. We have provided housing, small-scale construction projects, and education as some communities have grown more violent and this is the only saving grace for these children. It's unfortunate that some remain on the streets without any other options.

I have grown wiser each time I visit, realizing it's not how hard we work, but working smarter to develop the intervention programs that are needed. Stimulation, nutrition, and education have the greatest impact, along with unconditional love.

There is an ongoing need for additions and more space to provide for the vision of each new child we meet. Saving these children will not change the world, although the world in which they live will change. Please explore our website to find out more information and how you can donate.

• • Financial target for 2023: $32,000
• • Continue support of Jamaican hospitals and clinics for COVID-19 relief efforts
• • Continue successful shoe drive that has been running since 2014
• • Collect general supplies (view our wish list) or donations, particularly to support the great work at the community center in Litchfield, a rural area in Jamaica.
• • Working towards permits, licenses, and down payments to acquire the property Place of Safety would like to provide for the children in need. The property I pray for is in Kingston, and would provide a transition home for abused women and children.
• • Purchase solar panel kits for Robin's Nest to keep youth safe and educated. Portable solar panel kits, costing as little $100 USD, can provide electricity without use of deadly kerosene.
• • Working to expand the Theodora Project in Negril, which is a non-profit, educational facility that caters to youth at risk of human trafficking.
• • Delivering much-needed supplies to children's shelters in Turks and Caicos.

Monetary Goals and Uses

• • A monetary donation of just $5.00 can provide FIVE new pair of shoes for children!
• • $1875.00 for used bus to drive children to and from school. 95% of children depend on cabs for transportation and if the money is not available they cannot attend class.
• • Continue funding for additions to Pastor Scarlett’s Ministry that takes in high-risk youth.
• • Continue funding for various orphanages and schools we support. The cost to run these organizations depends mainly on outside resources.
• • Gently used luggage bags, shoes, clothes, and purses. A large bag or piece of luggage is what many use to store their personal items; furniture is seldom an option in one-room shacks shared by families.
• • Funding and musical instrument’s needed for the music school to continue the work main of Vinton Haughton to keep high-risk youth off the streets and lead to a brighter future.
• • Sponsoring children and adults that have gotten lost in the system to attend classes to read through the Jamaica Jamal program. The cost for one person is $530.00 a year not counting transportation due to limited locations on the Island.
• • Shipping and customs for 25 pounds of goods from U.S. = $125 per shipment! Additional funds needs for extra luggage costs when traveling (see pictures).
• • My "Family" in Jamaica, who are vendors, needs a permanent site to sell their goods. Even though permits and licenses are up to date, these supplies are illegally confiscated and they are left to start over and never get ahead. It is a struggle to make a living like this but this is their only way of survival and all they know.

Impact from our recent Brazilian Day Fundraiser!

Testimonial from Yemanja Brazil regarding our recent contributions:

"As promised I took a donation from Place of Safety to the Spartan Social Project outside of Brasilia D.F. In a small town called São Sebastião.

This Jiu Jitsu school currently has 150 children, it completely based on donations, the professors donated their time and they don't receive any government assistance. Some of the children have special needs.

The beauty of this project in my opinion is that it teaches a discipline, an art, creates community and family for those who don't have much. Most of all it keeps the young off of the streets and out of the life of drugs and crime."

2023 Brazilian Day Fundraiser and Raffle

We are currently collaborating with Yemanja Brazil, a local St. Louis restaurant, to host the annual Brazilian Day Festival on September 9, 2023 from 12–8pm. Come join us for an exciting day to support a great cause. Location: 2900 Missouri Ave, St. Louis, MO.

This is a huge event that gets attention through several media outlets. This year, proceeds will go to the refugee families in St. Louis, the Theodora Project, and the Spartan Social Project. The Theodora Project is an organization in Negril, Jamaica, that provides an educational facility and safe house for youth that are at risk of human trafficking and other forms of exploitation due to lack of education and employment opportunities.

We are requesting any contributions to our raffle, monetary or gift certificates, to help our cause. As a gesture of gratitude, we will mention your business through our website and media events.

For our raffle, enter to win gift cards with the combined value over $2,000 from local restaurants, raffle baskets, sporting events, and local venues. Need not be present to win!

Tickets are $5 each, or 6 tickets for $20. Purchases of 6 tickets or more are also automatically entered into an additional drawing for a free night at any Drury Inn in the country with a welcome basket valued at $425. You may make your tax-deductible contributions for your raffle tickets via Venmo @PlaceOfSafety or our direct donation link here.

2021–2022 Projects

In 2021, we observed on the ground only a slight recovery since the Covid pandemic upended the world in 2020. This is a sobering reminder those with the least resources are the most affected by this disaster, and that the pandemic will continue to have long lasting impacts on these marginalized and orphaned children.

In September 2022, Place of Safety was able to bring in a large load of desperately needed supplies to Provo Children's Home in Turks & Caicos. Please see the below note of appreciation from the home's manager, Kissia:

Dear Roni,
Thanks very much again for your support to Provo Children's Home. I can tell you the shoes and bags and everything meant a lot to us. Your donation was very important to us. Please see attached pictures.
Best regards,
Kissia

Thanks to all our sponsors and friends that made our trip a success! Customs was welcoming and went smoothly. The supplies we brought were greatly appreciated and much needed. This could never be achieved without the donations of those who believe in our passion! Blessings to all.

Reflecting back on 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted life across the globe in almost every way this past year. Statements such as "we're all in this together" don't take into account the less fortunate for whom the most basic of needs such as food, water, sanitization, and electricity are simply not available.

Moreover, it has been incredibly difficult for people living in slums and isolated areas like Jamaica and parts of the Caribbean. Bans on activities like fishing, direct services, or street vending -- for which a large majority of the population work -- have crippled household incomes. "Social distancing" is nearly impossible to achieve.

While developing countries rely on outside help for aid, this year children's homes and shelters were not allowed to have outside teams come in with supplies, creating tremendous hardship. As a result, Place of Safety had to cancel our scheduled trips to deliver supplies, but sent the remainder of monetary donations to purchase goods locally for children's shelters.

Here you can find a letter from Jamaica Hospital Medical Center thanking us for one of our financial donations this year.

Dear Veronica,
The Administration, Board of Trustees, and employees of Jamaica Hospital Medical Center greatly appreciate your generous donation.This most meaningful of gifts, for which no goods or services were received in return, directly supports our efforts to provide the much needed care our patients rely on during this critical time. Your generous contribution will help support the mission and vision of Jamaica Hospital to serve our patients and the community by providing the highest quality, most cost effective medical care, which is accessible and sensitive to all our patients’ needs.
Sincerely,
Nadine MonteCarlo,
Director of Development
Jamaica Hospital Medical Center

We are praying to continue with our work in 2021.

Summer 2019 Update

Place of Safety expanded our horizons helping the less fortunate children in Turks and Caicos. Our first trip was very successful! Customs was accommodating and thankful for all the supplies we brought in.

During our first visit, we established local connections (communications and logistics) in multiple locations throughout the island. Our first visit was to the S.N.A.P. Center's Special Needs Unit.

Our second stop was Provo Children's Home, where we delivered shoes, dry goods, and clothing essentials for the children there. Below you can find photos of us there sorting donated shoes and food items.

In need of funds for outside playground / recreation equipment:

Our next stop was South Caicos High School, where we brought in duffel bags and backpacks containing school supplies such as pencils, paper, etc. We also donated bundles of hygiene items including soaps and deodorants which the children were lacking.

"I have to say you have made the lives of these kids a lot smoother with these gifts and for that I must say thank you abundantly. We really appreciate them. They will go a far way." -- Mr. Buchanan, Guidance Counselor at S. Caicos High School

We also donated to Potcake Place, a non-profit rescue center for stray dogs, which keeps stray dogs healthy and off of the streets. Tourists can volunteer to walk them and can even adopt them and take them home!

Shoe Drive Update / Summer 2018 Update

So far in 2018, Kim and I have shipped over 9550 pairs of shoes! An enormous thank you to Hazzard Moving and storage for allowing us to store the shoes as well as their help on a weekly basis. We appreciate all who donate so we can help the less fortunate both here and across the pond!

Peace and Love,

Roni and Kim

2017 Trip

A Place of Safety - 2017 Jamaica Trip from A Place of Safety on Vimeo.

1. Distributed supplies from our 25 duffels to children's homes throughout the island

2. Theodora Project Housekeeping

Place of Safety donated a training room and supplied furniture for housekeeping for the Theodora Project in Negril.

Thanks to all who helped with the Theodora Project in Negril. It is a non-profit, educational facility that centers to youth who are at risk of human trafficking and other forms of exploitation due to a lack of educational and employment opportunities.

We raised funds to furnish a room for the students to train to work in the hospitality industry. We look forward to continuing our work with the Theodora Project.

3. Brought Solar energy to community center in rural area of Trelawny

We bought solar panels and electronics supplies for rural community center that we helped build.

4. Delivered much-needed supplies Robin's Nest children's home.

2016 Trip

View full gallery of photos from the trip

Day 1: Arrived in Montego Bay. Visited Robin's Nest Children's Home in the hills of St. John, delivering much needed clothing and supplies including many shoes collected from our shoe drive.

Watch thank-you video from Miss Joy who I've known for 15 years, who ensures the children are fed daily at Robin's Nest.

Day 2: Met Kimroy Bailey, who drove us to Trelawny to help design and finish building the first renewable energy community center in a rural area of Jamaica. Having recently completed an electrical engineering degree, he is spearheading the effort to build solar energy and wind turbines for the center, instructing children about engineering and robotics in the process. The community center is expected to facilitate a 6 month skills training program for unemployed persons in and around the area. Courses include house keeping, computer literacy, and traditional high school courses. The fact that the community center will utilize renewable solar and wind energy is important because electricity is not common in these remote rural areas.

Watch a video from Kimroy Bailey, explaining the importance of technical education.

Currently the community center is under development, requiring additional work such as painting, tiling, and installation of desks, computers, and basic office supplies.

Day 5: Delivered supplies to Muirton Child Care Facility in Portland, Jamaica. During the trip, we delivered at least 15 duffels of much-needed supplies to 3 different Children's homes.

Early 2015: Sponsorship

Sponsor a Child - Suezene, Kamarly, or Miguel Jr. (left to right in photo)

To sponsor a child for food, health care, shelter, and educational opportunities, contact Roni Reichold directly at 314-324-9973. You will have direct contact with them through your sponsorship.

July 2014 Trip

Traveled from Kingston up the coast northwest all the way to Negril distributing supplies. I am now beginning to work with the Community Resource Centre in Sav-la-Mar, Westmoreland who teaches youth reading and computer skills. I am also working with a group called the Theodora Project, a non-profit organization located in Negril that works to empower young people at risk of being exploited in human trafficking and the commercial sex trade by offering opportunities for education, skills training, and personal development. Since our trip, several boys have graduated from the HEART program and found jobs. We will continue to support this special organization in the future.

I am also involved with the Rock House Foundation who transforms the places where Jamaica's children learn and supports the people who teach them. This foundation directly impacts the lives of thousands of children and their families everyday.

2014-Present: Shoe Drive

Approximately 630 million pairs of shoes are thrown away each year that end up in landfills. These shoes contribute to a long-term methane gas problem as they compost. Instead of throwing these shoes away, they can contribute to the uplifting of people all around the world through “A Place of Safety.”

Current Progress: 10,000 / 12,000 lbs of shoes collected

We are collecting shoes in any condition, and need your help. Your contribution will accomplish a number of things. First, recycling worn shoes reduces toxins in our environment. Second, it puts shoes on people less fortunate who are in need around the globe. For example, thongs on children in Africa can prevent tape worms. In many places, you cannot atttend school without a pair of shoes. Ultimately, we create "shoe banks" at these schools. Therefore, the child that has no shoes will receive a pair when they enroll. And when they outgrow them, they turn them in for the next size. The original shoes get cleaned up and ready for the next child. This creates a hand-up, not a handout! And thirdly, the shoe drive builds micro-enterprise partners as these shoes are distributed around the world, helping improverished people to grow enterprises to feed, clothe, and house their families. In developing nations like Haiti, Africa, and Jamaica, Micro-enterprise means survival for many families. It is the only possibility for self-sustainability.

Please help “A Place of Safety Charity,” my passion, to provide for orphans and homeless children in Jamaica. This fundraiser is a win for everyone! Jamaica’s national motto is “Out of Many, one People”. Let’s unite as one to help not only the children in the U.S., but those of developing nations as well!

We need drop off points in your home, office, school or place of worship. We will provide boxes and posters that can be used for collection days (or weeks). We will then pick them up. Additionally, we can provide you with a customized video for YOUR organization that promotes your business as well as our shoe drive, which we will also feature on our website. For example, see the video created for Ursuline Academy's shoe drive.

Gather footwear that is no longer useful and pass it on. Reduce toxins in our environment. Lend a hand to people in impoverished countries. Assist “A Place of Safety” in this drive to help provide scholarships and supplies to orphans in Jamaica.

Questions? Please call Veronica Reichold at 314-324-9973 or Kim Fogertey at 314-322-9212.

Right Image: Rubber flooring made from chipped shoe soles.

Click here for a growing list of drop-off points!
Click here to download a flyer for the shoe drive, or listen to our 30 minute radio spot on The Metro Show for more info.

2013 Trip

My last trip, I was fortunate enough to bring in 13 duffel bags filled with much-needed supplies, along with 6 walkers and 2 wheelchairs. I travelled across the island over a 7 day period, visiting 4 different shelters along the way. View photos from the trip here.

Providing education, school supplies, uniforms and transportation for children. Many times just having shoes determines if a child can attend school! This program tracks individual students through personal letters and progress reports.

Based on responses of children regarding what precipitated their situations, we have collapses the several causes into the following “Push Factors”:

• • The consequences of actions of parents, such as neglect, migration, or directly sending their children out onto the streets
• • Physical, sexual, or emotional abuse by parents/guardians, leading the children to be forced to survive on their own
• • Destitution, being forced to supplement the inadequate income of the household, which deprives them of education or skill training
• • Parents assuming that government-run organizations provided better care, which leads to an existence of sometimes inhumane surroundings as addressed
• • In spite of international standards and Jamaican laws that forbid such treatment, children as young as 12 are detained for long periods in filthy and overcrowded police lockups. Often they are held in the same cells as adults accused of serious crimes, vulnerable to be victimized. These children have not been detained on criminal activity, but have been locked up only because they are in need of “care and protection.”
• • A 2014 article explains how Jamaica's poverty rating has continued to worsen.

Since 2001, we have provided Jamaican youth with safer environments and education. Some are now living in States and have grown into accomplished young adults. In Jamaica I have been to courts, shelters and jails for children that have been caught up in the system with no defense, which sometimes led me to dangerous and difficult situations.

• • Constant distribution of supplies, which include: education materials, medicine, clothing and shoes, hygiene products, and musical instruments.
• • Helped build Pastor Scarlett's Church in Norwood Jamaica. Scarlett mentors and takes in youth at risk and gives them aid.
• • Bought water tanks and constructed wells to provide running water at boys home.
• • Funds went to provide building of Jakes House, a separate room for boys, at Robins Nest orphanage.
• • Assisted in providing education visa for several boys whom are now in United States.
• • Continue to provide shelter for families that were once living on the streets.
• • Raised funds for the Theodora Project, where we furnished a room for the students to train to work in the hospitality industry. We look forward to continuing our work with the Theodora Project.

View our Photo gallery to see examples of our work!

“Saving a child will not change the world, although the world in which they live will change.”

There is an ongoing need for additions and more space to provide for the vision of each new child we meet. Saving these children will not change the world, although, the world in which they live will change. Place of Safety exists because Veronica Reichold and friends feel it is their privilege to serve the less fortunate children of Jamaica. This was only possible through God's grace and the many who support and believe in their cause. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation for the following causes.

Place of Safety is a a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Please consider making a secure donation to our cause. Any amount allows us to continue reaching our goals! All donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.

*Individual donors: If you would like to be recognized for your donation, please email us to give consent to list your name on our website.

If you would like to support a specific goal, please send us a message after donating to direct your gift toward a specific cause.

Click on one of the section labels below to view more photos. Additional photos can be found on our Facebook page.

• All Photos
• Most Recent Trip
• Shelter
• Music
• Ryan
• Kevin
• Projects and More

Community Sponsors

• • A special thank you to Genesys and to ARCO Construction.
• • Special thanks to Mark Travel / Funjet for letting us bring much-needed supplies in.
• • To all of our community donors that continue to help with the shoe drive and supplies
• • To Kirkwood and Brentwood YWCA for our continued drop-off points for shoe drive.
• • To Dave Marty with Hazzard Moving and Storage for letting us store these donated shoes and supplies. (and to Roger and Lance there)
• • To Ruth Siteman for her loyal support

A special thanks to my family and friends in Jamaica who have always "watched our backs" and gave me the wisdom to get through my many adventures of tears, frustration, and joy.

• • Pastor Bernard Scarlet and family
• • Pearl Crooks
• • Michelle Robinette
• • Vinton Haughton
• • Avenja & Fabian

Thank you to my dedicated cab drivers and dear friends who took me places that no others would go, and most of all for their ear along our journeys.

• • Avenga
• • Fabian
• • Jeffrey
• • Big Dread

Thank you to all our generous sponsors who make our entire operation possible! Most of all thank you to the co-founder of Place of Safety, Kim Fogertey. I could have never accomplished the changes we made without her zeal and her travels with me to areas of the Island that most would never venture. Thanks for your patience and for keeping me grounded.

Board of Directors

• • Veronica Reichold - Founder & President
• • Kim Fogertey - Vice-President and Treasurer
• • Desmond Reichold - Executive Director and Music Director
• • Barb Moore - Volunteer
• • Janet Ferry - Volunteer
• • Debbie Kotraba - member-at-large
• • Tammy Romer - member-at-large
• • Luke Reichold - Web Administrator

Questions? Please call Veronica Reichold at 314-324-9973 or Kim Fogertey at 314-322-9212.

Your email address:

Your message:

Press and Radio

• In the Webster-Kirkwood Times
• In the St. Louis American
• In the St. Louis Post Dispatch
• 2013 radio spot on The Metro Show
• 2014 radio spot on The Metro Show
• 2016 radio spot on The Metro Show