financialassistance

For Tameka Barrat, losing her twin sister was losing the person she describes as her “other half.”

Now, as she tries to come to terms with a loss that came suddenly and tragically, Barrat is asking the Bahamian community for help giving her sister, Toniquea Gilot, a final farewell.

“Help us lay our beloved twin sister, Toniquea Gilot, to rest,” Barrat wrote in a GoFundMe campaign launched on Monday.

Toniquea was among 10 people killed in a plane crash on July 10, Bahamas Independence Day, while travelling from Nassau to San Andros.

She was also a singer with the Pond Band, bringing music and her own presence to the lives of those who knew her.

For her twin, however, Toniquea was family and her other half.

And now Tameka is facing the painful reality of having to bury her.

“Losing my twin sister is a pain that is difficult to put into words,” Barrat wrote. “She was not only my sister, but my other half, and her sudden passing has left an enormous hole in our family.”

The family is now trying to raise $7,000 to help cover the costs associated with Toniquea’s burial, including a burial plot, casket, funeral arrangements and other necessary expenses.

For a family already dealing with the shock of losing a loved one in such a sudden way, the financial burden can make an already painful period even harder.

Barrat is therefore turning to relatives, friends, strangers and anyone willing to help.

“We are reaching out to family, friends, and anyone who feels moved to help us during this incredibly difficult time,” she said.

“Anything will help,” she later wrote on Facebook.

It is a small request carrying a heavy weight. The family wants to give Toniquea the peaceful and dignified farewell they believe she deserves.

“Forever loved and forever missed, forever my twin,” Tameka wrote.

Click here to help: GoFundMe

The unemployment benefit will decrease from $150 to $100, as announced by Minister of Public Service and National Insurance Brensil Rolle.

This is not the first time reduction has occurred. The benefits have undergone reductions prior. When the program was launched in March to assist people left unemployed by the coronavirus pandemic, the weekly payment was $200 but decreased to $150 on July 1st.

Is it enough?

While the $100 may be meager, Brensil Rolle believes it still provides a level of income for people who are without as the country grapples with a depressing economy for the last six months.

It is certainly not what people are accustomed to making.

“We want to make sure that individuals have the ability to make assistance. We don’t see ourselves as the instrument that provides the Rolls Royce. We are down to a Toyota.  When it reaches December, it will be nine months of continuous assistance to individuals,” Rolle said.

Why was it extended?

The program was intended for people left unemployed by the COVID-19 pandemic and was scheduled to run for 13 weeks. However, as the lockdowns persist, the need for continuous financial assistance remains great.

The assistance is also extended to people who would not normally qualify for the benefit.

“The government continues to provide assistance to individuals who we know are, maybe, desperate… We are doing our best to provide assistance and some income support to those individuals at this time,” Rolle said earlier this week.

“The first extension, as you may recall, was in July when we thought that we were going to reopen.

“We took individuals up to July and then we didn’t open, we added this program was to be 13 weeks. Now that we have the lockdowns, we extended the assistance through December.”

The big picture

• During the COVID-19 crisis, the government-funded unemployment assistance Programme for Self Employed persons – $15.61 Million to just over 7,000 recipients. Recipients were paid $200 per week for up to 12 weeks.
• $56.1 million have been paid to 30,788 persons as of October 11, under the  Unemployment Extension Programme. This programme is still on-going for persons still unemployed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Persons were paid up to $150 per week for an additional 13 weeks.
• The ordinary NIB unemployment benefit for contributors to the NI Fund – $91.6 million for just under 37,061 claimants. This program is on-going for eligible beneficiaries. Beneficiaries are paid at the rate of 50% of the insurable wage for up to 13 weeks.