Ocho Rios High Honours Silver Medallist Danny Mcfarlane

Students and staff of the Ocho Rios High School paraded the streets of that town on Friday, October 15 in celebration of the success of Olympic silver medallist Danny McFarlane, when he paid a visit to his alma mater.
It was a proud moment as the procession came to a halt in the school’s auditorium and Mr. McFarlane was ushered to the stage by assigned students. Various persons paid tribute to the Olympian including Chairman of the School Board, Cannon Glen Prince, Principal of the Ocho Rios High School Monica McIntyre, teacher Rhona Spence- Brown, and student Camille Cain.
Others showed their respect and appreciation through drama and dance presentations as well as citations and musical renditions. When JIS News interviewed Mrs. Rhona Spence -Brown, who is a former teacher of the Mr.McFarlane, she said, ” I taught Danny, not in an actual classroom setting but in counselling sessions. That is how the student /teacher relationship began. I am very proud of him because he has taken the name of Ocho Rios High School beyond our gates and we stand in praise of him.”
Students at the school said they were also proud of the Olympian and past student, and held him in high esteem as a product of the school they now attended.
“He makes us feel proud and allow us to believe that we can achieve anything in life. He hails from “little” Ocho Rios High, not like any big schools in Kingston and he has caused us to realize that it doesn’t matter a person’s background. We can become someone great if we try,” student, Sylvia Williams told JIS News.
Mr. McFarlane thanked the teachers who had helped to chart his course and charged the student body, particularly the athletes, to strive for excellence and to let education be first and foremost in their lives. “It’s not all about sports. You have to possess some education with it in order to make it,” he said.