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Aken­nie Mc Leod nev­er knew the warmth of a fa­ther’s love and grew up de­ter­mined not to let his chil­dren feel that same void.

“I know what it’s like to grow up with­out a fa­ther, and I promised my­self that my chil­dren would nev­er go through that,” Mc Leod said, his voice heavy with emo­tion as he stood out­side the gal­va­nized and ply­wood struc­ture he calls home in Beck­les Trace, Es­per­ance Vil­lage, San Fer­nan­do.

Now a fa­ther of six, Mc Leod does all he can to up­hold that promise. Along­side his wife, Lin­da Li­ma, he rais­es their chil­dren in a makeshift dwelling con­struct­ed from rust­ing gal­vanised sheets and sal­vaged ma­te­ri­als.