Jamaicans in Washington DC Region Give Thanks at Emancipendence Church Service Sunday
By: , July 26, 2025
Photo: Contributed
Ambassador to the United States, His Excellency Major General (Ret’d) Antony Anderson.
Photo: Contributed
A section of the large congregation of Jamaicans and friends of Jamaica lift their voices in song, at last year’s Jamaica Independence Thanksgiving Service held at Sligo Seventh-day Adventist Church in Takoma Park, Maryland.The Full Story
Jamaicans in the District of Columbia-Maryland-Virginia (DMV) will give thanks for the nation’s 187th anniversary of Emancipation and 63rd year of Independence at a special church service on Sunday (July 27).
The event will be held at the Sligo Seventh-day Adventist Church in Takoma Park, Maryland, beginning at 10:45 a.m.
Under the theme: ‘Be Proud, Be Bold: God Is Doing a New Thing,’ the service will be a vibrant display of cultural pride and community spirit, and will include the presentation of awards for sterling contribution to the Jamaican community.
The service will feature the reading of a message from Prime Minister, Dr. the Most Hon. Dr. Andrew Holness, and Ambassador to the United States (US), His Excellency Major General (ret’d) Antony Anderson, will give his first major address to the Jamaican diaspora in the DMV.
Members of Washington DC’s diplomatic corps, and local, state, and federal government officials, are expected to be in attendance.
Ambassador Anderson said that this year’s theme is a reminder of the “deep meaning held within the colours of our national flag – a powerful daily expression of who we are as a people. The black speaks to the strength and creativity that have sustained us through both triumphs and adversity; the green reflects the hope and abundance our beautiful land; and the gold captures the warmth of our sunshine and the richness of our spirit as a nation.”
Jamaican-born professor of New Testament Studies and a former associate- and interim dean of Howard University School of Divinity, Dr. Bertram L. Melbourne, will preside over the service.
He will be assisted by Canon Rev. Dr. Kortright Davis; former pastor of William Knibb Baptist Church in Falmouth, Rev. Eron Henry; and Bishop Stanley Murray of Baltimore.
The sermon will be delivered by associate minister at Covenant Baptist United Church of Christ in Washington, D.C, Rev. Sylvia McDonald Kaufman. Music will be provided by Voices of Excellence, with Dr. Garnett Mowatt conducting.
Four community members will receive the DMV Jamaica Diaspora Awards in recognition of remarkable contributions to the cause of Jamaica and the diaspora.
They are Johns Hopkins University Professor Emeritus, Dr. Franklyn W. Knight, who will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award; Esther Sanderson of Richmond, Virginia, the Individual Award; Marguerite Chinn/Negril Eatery, the Institution/Organization Award; and Elda Devarie/EMD Sales, the Friend of Jamaica Award.
“This is the third year that the Committee is conferring these awards on DMV individuals, who have made sterling contribution towards keeping Jamaica’s flag flying high,” said Chairman of the awards subcommittee, Ian Edwards, who noted that “this year’s honourees are well-deserving.”
The offering collected at the service will support the Hanover Infirmary.
Over the years, various diaspora organisations and Jamaican clergy in the DMV area have partnered with the Jamaican Embassy in Washington to organise this grand celebration.