Atlanta-Montego Bay Sister Cities Committee Lauded for Nearly 30 Years of Service

Jamaica’s Ambassador to the United States, Her Excellency Audrey Marks, has lauded the Atlanta-Montego Bay Sister Cities Committee for nearly 30 years of service to the City of Montego Bay and parish of St. James.

In a message delivered by Information Officer at the Embassy of Jamaica in Washington, DC, Derrick Scott, to the Committee’s ‘Dance for Health’ fundraiser at the Atlanta Airport Marriott Gateway Hotel on September 24, Ambassador Marks noted that its “outreach has touched more than 60,000 people in St. James over the years, and for the last 28 years, your monetary and in-kind contributions have surpassed J$750 million dollars. This is a remarkable expression of love for Jamaica”.

The Ambassador pointed out that last year, 15 schools in St. James, Trelawny, and Kingston, as well as three health centres in western Jamaica benefitted from donations.

“These donations comprised personal protective equipment, scholarships, tablet and laptop computers, valued at J$18 million, for our schools, and well-needed high-flow oxygen delivery devices and oxygen concentrators, valued at J$11 million for our health centres,” she said.

Ambassador Marks informed that scholarships valued J$300,000 each were also awarded to two medical students at the University of the West Indies.

“A further three scholarships, valued at J$75,000 each, were given to students from the St. James and Montego Bay High Schools in honour of the late Vin Martin, the longstanding Chairman and Founder of the Atlanta-Montego Bay Sister Cities Committee.

“Diaspora organisations such as this Committee remain a valuable component of our national development strategy, and the initiatives mentioned are tangible examples of the activities that characterise the strong bond of friendship between Atlanta and Montego Bay, formalised in 1972,” Ambassador Marks said.

Meanwhile, in her remarks, Global Engagement Manager for the Mayor of Atlanta’s Office of International and Immigrant Affairs, Meredith Steinmetz-Rodriguez, noted that “for decades, [the] Atlanta-Montego Bay Sister Cities Committee’s exceptional fundraising efforts and the hard work of dedicated volunteer physicians and nurses have served as an invaluable pillar of support to the Montego Bay community”.

She noted that Montego Bay and Atlanta have the second longest sister city relationship, dating back to 1972.

“This was not by chance. Montego Bay and Atlanta share many things in common, one of them being their major role in the development of the civil rights movement in the US,” Mrs. Steinmetz-Rodriguez stated.

She pointed out that “economically, both of our cities punch above our weight… Montego Bay is pivotal to Jamaica’s economy as Atlanta is pivotal to Georgia’s”, further noting that the “two focus areas that bring both of our cities together is the commitment to our… communities and health”.

She explained that “the Atlanta Montego Bay Sister Cities Committee Health Programme’s mission is to expand support for health programmes directed to the… residents of Montego Bay by assembling the most qualified team of health professionals and delivering the most competent level of health service to the less-privileged residents of Montego Bay.

“The work being done by the Atlanta-Montego Bay Sister Cities Committee, does just that. You are standing in the gap and impacting the lives of thousands of residents in the work that you do,” Mrs. Steinmetz-Rodriguez said.

Committee Chair, Dr. Yvonne, Smith in recommitting the organisation’s mission to help improve the levels of education and healthcare in St. James, announced that its 2022 mission will not be held in October this year, and assured that it would resume next year.