Bishop Conrad Pitkin Installed as Custos of St. James

Bishop Conrad Pitkin was on April 5 installed as Custos Rotulorum for the parish of St. James in an official ceremony at the Montego Bay Convention Centre.

A throng of dignitaries and well-wishers, led by Governor-General, His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen and the Most Hon. Lady Allen, were on hand for the occasion.

In his remarks, Sir Patrick said he has every confidence that the new Custos will effectively carry out his role as a servant of the people. He said that the parish of St. James and, by extension, Jamaica stand to gain from his professionalism and dedication to public service.

The Governor-General said that as an impartial leader, Custos Pitkin is expected to build up the parish through effective communication, collaboration and cooperation with citizens and other stakeholders.

He further noted that the new Custos will be required to spread the positive messages of the ‘I Believe Initiative’ (IBI) and create partnerships for the development of Jamaica.

For his part, Minister of National Security and Member of Parliament for North West St. James, Hon. Dr. Horace Chang, said the parish is proud and honoured to establish as its First Citizen “a visionary man of the cloth, a tireless advocate for the voiceless, and a true servant of his community”.

He said that in appointing Reverend Pitkin to the office of Custos, “the parish of St. James receives a man who, to our great benefit, has used his energy to provide sound leadership and make positive contributions to this community and his nation”.

He noted that the new Custos has an impressive track record for service, adding that “when he first started a small church on Princess Street, few would have known that this firebrand would blaze a trail that would soon see his congregation mushroom to one of the largest in Montego Bay”.

“His passion is not limited to his church, however, but extends to the wider community in which he serves. Reverend Pitkin has served as Board Director of the Housing Agency of Jamaica (HAJ), which recently received the Prime Minister’s approval as one of our nation’s most efficient and effective agencies,” he added.

Meanwhile, Bishop Pitkin, in thanking the Governor-General and pledging his support for the ‘I Believe Initiative’, said he was humbled by the appointment, and with “God’s grace, will serve my parish and country faithfully and to the best of my ability”.

He also paid tribute to former Custos Ewen Corrodus for “the sterling service” he had given to the parish over the past eight and a half years.

The IBI is a values-based and service-oriented programme that was launched by the Governor-General in May 2011 to motivate and inspire young people to believe in themselves in order to achieve their God-given potential and also to give service to their country.

Its mantra is ‘there is nothing wrong with Jamaica that cannot be fixed by what is right with Jamaica’. Its projects and activities are centred on three areas of emphasis: family, youth and education.