Portlanders Enjoyed ‘Salute to the Parish’ Honour

Portlanders who turned out for the first ever ‘Salute to the Parish of Portland’ have sung high praises for the event.

They deem it an honour for their picturesque 300-year-old parish to be featured in such a manner.

The event, held recently at Titchfield High School, featured a bevy of exhibitors and artisans, most of whom are native to the eastern parish.

Entrepreneur and operator of the family-owned Naythan’s K&R Products, Kerry Baugh-Orr, told JIS News that the parish of her birth was a fantastic choice for the Institute of Jamaica (IOJ) and the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo) to bring the Salute to the Parish series.

“We are so deserving; look at Portland, the greenery… the people. The people are the best thing about Portland,” said Mrs. Baugh-Orr, who operates her business alongside her children Kerrisa and Reshawn Orr.

They specialise in castor oil infused with natural herbs such as moringa, rosemary and peppermint.

Mrs. Baugh-Orr, who plants and reaps the beans and processes the oil, believes that female entrepreneurs in Portland are truly “showing up”.

Supporting this theory is owner of Joy-C Sweet Treats and Hope Bay native, Claudia “Joy” Allen, who displayed some of her delectable products during the event.

Her business offers gizzadas, jackass corn, coconut drops, potato pudding, Christmas cake, plantain bread, banana bread, juices, porridge mixes and almond drops.

She told JIS News that she was glad for the opportunity to come on board for the event, adding the experience was not disappointing.

“I am comfortable with what is happening. Portland is a quiet parish; it’s a farming parish; and if you decide to put your shoulders to the wheel, you will have food on your table,” Ms. Allen said.

Published Author, Beverly Carey, was also an exhibitor at the event, and according to her, “one has to congratulate the IOJ for the initiative because the parish wasn’t recognised before”.

In his address, Member of Parliament for Portland Western and Minister of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Transport, Hon. Daryl Vaz, spoke fondly of the beauty of interacting with residents of the parish, due to “their demeanour, their respect, their honesty and their genuine love for one another and, of course, their parish”.

“I want to impress upon all of us to keep that going. With all the other negatives that are happening all around the world and in Jamaica. We need to make sure that we keep Portland as the best piece of paradise, not only in Jamaica but in the entire world,” Mr. Vaz said.

Since 2016, the IOJ’s Salute to the Parish heritage series has been highlighting the national significance of each parish and the contributions they have made to Jamaica’s culture and heritage.

Portland now joins the parishes of Westmoreland, St. Ann and St. Mary that have been honoured under the series.