In February 2016, Serena Williams joined Helping Hands Jamaica, the Serena Williams Fund and Food for the Poor to erect the Salt Marsh Basic School in Trelawny Parish. She worked alongside local builders, musicians Shaggy and Sean Paul, sprinters Yohan Blake and Warren Weir, and thousands of community volunteers. The project drew 80 preschoolers to a new free learning center.
The school delivers a 40‑hour weekly curriculum that covers literacy, numeracy and life‑skills, opening doors for families who previously had to send children to distant institutions at great cost. Now, 80 children attend a safe environment while parents work or manage household chores.
Helping Hands Jamaica’s model—sending volunteers to the site rather than merely donating—ensures local engagement and ownership. Williams praised the approach in a post‑event interview, saying, "I saw first‑hand how community shapes the build."
The Salt Marsh school remains fully operational, with plans to expand to a primary wing by 2028, and the project has inspired similar initiatives across Jamaica.