Caribbean Students Gather for AUC Prayer Vigil as Hurricane Melissa Continues Path of Destruction

Atlanta may feel distant from the impact of Hurricane Melissa, but for some Caribbean students at Spelman College, Morehouse College, and Clark Atlanta University, the storm is impossible to escape as they balance classes with news updates and missed calls and messages from home.

Reports after the hurricane made landfall Tuesday were devastating, with news that storm surges in Jamaica reached 13 feet in some areas of the island. Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness said his nation was “ravaged” by the Category 5 hurricane’s 185 mph winds and torrential rain, and declared the entire island nation a disaster area. There have been 23 reported deaths in Haiti and five in Jamaica, but across Caribbean nations, the death toll is expected to rise.

And while the storm, one of the most powerful on record in recent years, has stretched the emotional distance between Atlanta and the islands, a prayer vigil Wednesday night hosted by Vybz, the Caribbean Student Association, helped bridge the gap for students at the Atlanta University Center.

Under the leadership of Vybz President Jaedyn Clarke, a senior biology major at Spelman, the group hosted an evening of prayer, reflection and solidarity with Caribbean flags lining the walkway.  

“This is about community, resiliency, and showing that we are stronger together,” Clarke, a Queens, New York, native with family in Jamaica, told Capital B Atlanta.

For Isoke Taylor, a senior economics major at Spelman with family in Jamaica and Guyana, every hour since the hurricane made landfall has felt like an eternity. Flooding reached her family’s community, and several relatives still have not been able to make contact. Between campus lectures, the Washington, D.C., native scrolls through her phone, refreshing for good news that never seems to load fast enough.

“It is worrisome,” Taylor told Capital B Atlanta. “But I have been keeping faith and staying in touch with my family as much as possible.” 

As vice president of the student association, Taylor said this week has been a reminder of what it means to be there for one another.

“Even if people do not fully understand what we are going through, they still show up,” she said. “That means everything.”

For many students, Vybz has been more than a campus organization. It’s a support system, a space to vent, pray, and lean on one another when home feels far away.

At Morehouse College, Adon Gray, a junior computer science and marketing major from New York with family in Jamaica, said the storm has revealed just how connected the AUC really is.

“It is not just Caribbean students feeling it. It is everybody,” Gray said. “We make sure no one has to go through this alone.”

Gray said that being Caribbean at Morehouse can come with challenges. But in moments like this, he feels the pride of where he comes from even more strongly.

“Once you are confident and remember that Jamaica brought you here, no one can take that away from you,” Gray said. “That is what keeps me standing tall.”

That same mix of pride and worry has followed Kiyanna Hamilton, a sophomore criminal justice major at Clark Atlanta who was born in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Her family   locked down their home and closed her mother’s business as Melissa moved closer. 

“Being away from home is hard,” Hamilton said. “But having people here who understand what I am feeling makes it a little easier.”

As the social media chair for Vybz, Hamilton has been helping to share storm updates  while also finding comfort in the very community she supports.

Vybz plans to continue raising funds and awareness for families affected across Jamaica, Haiti, Cuba, and other islands in the coming weeks. Clarke said watching students come together during such a difficult time reaffirmed the strength of the Caribbean spirit.

As the storm continues its path across the Caribbean, the worry in the AUC lingers, but so does the hope. 

“We take care of our own, no matter where we are,” Clarke said.

Finley Warren is a junior political science major attending Spelman College. This article is part of Capital B Atlanta’s journalism partnership with HBCU reporters.