LORRAINE Johney is a seamstress, and this holiday period, she is quite busy because she has some bridesmaids’ dresses to complete for a wedding on Boxing Day and another on New Year’s Day.

She is a resident of Perth Village, Branch Road, Mahaicony and a mother of two; she is very friendly and down to earth, but shy.

The 48-year-old told the Pepperpot Magazine that she relocated to her home village over a year ago and has been adjusting well.

After marriage, she left the village 24 years ago and was living at Zeskenderen Village, Mahaicony and moved to her sister’s house, a year ago.

Her nephew lives in the upper flat of the edifice and she occupies the lower flat of the huge two-storey house.

Johney stated that she is doing quite well because the people of Perth are very supportive of each other and they have given tremendous support in terms of her small business as a seamstress and all the dressmaking she would do for the locals.

The seamstress has designated a section of her house where she has her sewing machine and spends all her free time sewing, based on dressmaking work she has to complete for certain times.

Being a seamstress is all about pleasing the customers and giving them the exact fit to make a statement in the fashion industry, and for them to feel extra special while attending the event to which they were invited.

Johney manages her time well and has found a way to do all her housework before sitting at the sewing machine to get outfits made according to specifications.

With some years under her belt, she has made a name for herself because her work speaks for itself and she has amassed her clients from both within the village and its environs.

She takes her time to get it right at the sewing machine, which makes her one of the best in her trade.

“Living here is good, the people make it worth the while and I don’t feel like I don’t fit in,” she said.

Deon Ross, the poultry farmer
Meanwhile, the team also met Deon Ross, a poultry farmer, who was plucking some fully grown meat birds to sell to a wholesale buyer right in Perth Village, Branch Road, Mahaicony.

The 34-year-old stated that he likes being self-employed and would ensure his meat birds are fed and have enough water before he does anything else, because it is his ‘bread and butter.’

Ross is a very simple man who would rear meat birds to sell. He would also do all the plucking before he takes it to the shop.

He was at the time plucking 12 fully grown chickens and had an early start that morning because he had other chores to complete.

Ross explained that he would buy the baby chickens from the hatchery in quantities that he could manage and after six to seven weeks, when they are full-term, he would sell to earn.

He also rears some ducks and creole fowls and is also a cash-crop farmer who is using the land space in his backyard to plant bora, plantains, and coconuts, among other crops of fruits.

Clensford Watson, the farmer and ‘jack of all trades’
The team also encountered Clensford Watson, a local of Perth Village, Branch Road, Mahaicony, who was at that time waist-deep in a drain at Middle Street, cleaning it of weeds.

The 49-year-old told the Pepperpot Magazine that he was doing that job for a few hours and he would be paid about $3000.

Watson is a cash-crop farmer and he would also do all kinds of jobs in the community to bring in extra income.

He sells his produce right in the village and he is supported by the people, who would buy whatever is in season to prepare meals for their families.

Watson has his plot of farmlands at #10 Village and he has crops of fine thyme, bananas, plantains and cassava.

From the looks of it, he is a very hard worker who does many things to earn honestly and provide adequately for his family.

“It doesn’t matter what job you do. Once it is honest, it is alright and no one should look down on you for that,” he said.