Jamie Boneparth

Professional writer Jamie Boneparth balances his career with international charity work. Based in Boston, Jamie Boneparth works as a self-employed writer and author and is currently focused on developing a book of short stories. This book will comprise many of his original writings, including pieces written during his travels to the impoverished African island of Rodrigues. When not working on this anthology, he studies writing and poetry at various local venues, including the Boston-headquartered creative writing center GrubStreet.

Jamie Boneparth fondly recalls his visit to Rodrigues, an autonomous district of the Republic of Mauritius located in the Indian Ocean, an experience that made a major impact on his life. Home to many single mothers and their children, Rodrigues offers little in the way of employment to its residents. Some of the women work for a local factory owned by the nonprofit Association pour l’Education des Enfants Defavorises (APEDED). However, this one factory fails to meet local needs, and many women and children living on the island go hungry.

APEDED plans to construct a modern USD $50,000 factory to replace its existing outdated facility and to provide more jobs to the area. During his visit to Rodrigues, Jamie Boneparth was touched by the people there and saw firsthand their struggles and indomitable spirits. Mr. Boneparth now helps raise funds for the APEDED initiative and has donated hundreds of dollars to it himself.