Tag: Jamaica

FFP DONATES OVER $400,000 WORTH OF BLOOD PRESSURE KITS & STETHOSCOPES TO THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH

On August 24, Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica handed over medical instruments valued at over $400,000 to the Ministry of Health as part of the charity’s ongoing support for the health sector in Jamaica.

The donation of 400 single stethoscopes and 400 blood pressure kits with stethoscopes was accepted by the Minister of Health, Dr The Honourable Christopher Tufton, in a ceremony held at FFP’s office in Ellersie Pen, St Catherine.

TUFTON’S BLOOD PRESSURE CHECKED
Following the handover of new blood pressure kits and stethoscopes for free distribution in health care facilities in Jamaica, Susan Moore (left), Director of Recipient Services at Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica, uses one of the instruments to check the blood pressure of Minister of Health Dr The Honourable Christopher Tufton at the charity’s Ellerslie Pen, St Catherine offices on Wednesday, August 24. Witnessing the moment are (from left) FFP Jamaica’s Executive Director, David Mair and Director of Distribution Services, Nakhle Hado.

David Mair, Executive Director of FFP, said this donation signals a continued commitment of the non-profit organization to play their part in improving Jamaica’s health system.

 

“Food For The Poor is pleased to provide this kind of support to the Ministry of Health as part of our continued efforts to improve patient care. We recognize the importance of good health and so we want to maintain the partnership with this donation of blood pressure machines and stethoscopes,” said Mair.

 

Minister of Health, Dr Tufton expressed gratitude to FFP Jamaica for their commitment to the ongoing partnership with the Ministry of Health and said the support would be beneficial to patients islandwide.

 

“The Ministry of Health appreciates this kind of partnership with Food For The Poor that will significantly benefit the Jamaican people. A number of patients are examined on a daily and yearly basis hence this type of top class equipment will be a useful addition,” Minister Tufton said.

 

He added, “We have over 320 clinics and over 23 hospitals plus hundreds of medical practitioners who utilize blood pressure machines and stethoscopes on a daily basis so the items will definitely be needed.”

 

This donation closely follows a contribution earlier this month by FFP Jamaica of  105 electric hospital beds and 250 wheelchairs to the Ministry of Health for distribution among hospitals across the island.

FFP TRAINS 50 STUDENTS AT SUMMER BAND CAMP

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Executive Director of Food for the Poor (FFP) Jamaica David Mair (right) engages in conversation with a student and parent who participated in the annual summer band programme. Band Director Jeffrey Brown and Sandra Ramsey (2nd left) FFP prison ministry administrator, look on .

THREE weeks and 16 lessons, that’s what it took for Food For The Poor(FFP) Jamaica’s Annual Summer Band Camp programme to transform 50 students from musical novices to trained musicians, after playing instruments of their choice.

The participants were trained to use drums, saxophones, flutes, trumpets, clarinets and trombones between July 18 and August 11 at the summer band camp, which was held at FFP’s headquarters in Ellerslie Pen, St Catherine.

David Mair, executive director at FFP, said the band camp, which is in its eighth year, was an important initiative for the charity organisation.

“The annual band camp is a very special aspect of our ministry here at Food For The Poor and one that is anticipated by both the participants and FFP staff. Music unifies us so every year we look forward to hosting the children and celebrating with them during their graduation,” said Mair.

He added: “Another amazing aspect of this programme, which we fully endorse, is the fact that past students actually return to assist and they also serve as an inspiration to the new crop of students.”

Attendees at the awards ceremony, which included several proud parents, were treated to multiple music pieces which the participants learnt over the three weeks. One proud parent, Sharonette Walker, whose son Nathan has been participating in the camp for two consecutive years, sang nothing but praises for the musical programme.

“For the past two years, I have been assisting with the programme in terms of monitoring the students. It has been an inspiring journey because you see the growth these students experience and how much they love what they do,” she stated.

During the graduation ceremony held on August 11, the participants were filled with much excitement upon receiving the news that they would be awarded with the instruments they used during the camp.

Band campers Christeena Henry and Daniel Myers expressed gratitude to band camp organiser and administrator for the prison ministry department, Sandra Ramsay, as well as music instructor Jeffrey Brown.

“We couldn’t have done this in three weeks without the dedication of Mrs Ramsey and Mr Brown. They constantly pushed us to be better even when we didn’t see it for ourselves,” they said.

Ramsey announced that on the last Saturday of each month, the 50 youngsters can return to the grounds of Food For The Poor to practice and better develop their musical talents and skills. They will also be given the opportunity to learn other musical instruments.

This year, Food For The Poor’s Summer Band Camp hosted students between six and 16 years of age. Since the programme started eight years ago, more than 200 participants have been trained.

Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/FFP-trains-50-students-at-summer-band-camp_71463

GraceKennedy 94th Anniversary Week of Celebrations Ends on a High Note

Sister Sledge’s ‘We Are Family’ was the closing number for the Crowning of GK’s Karaoke Kings and Queens held at GK’s head office on Friday February 19.  The song, delivered in energetic karaoke style, was delivered by a group of GK employees in a spirit of true camaraderie and fun, closing out a week of activities commemorating GraceKennedy’s 94th Anniversary on February 14.

The highly-entertaining karaoke competition saw many hopefuls with talent, bravado and confidence, vying for the grand prize of $9,400.00 each.   At the end of the day, Randy Anderson and Kelly McIntosh, both of GK Foods Supply Chain Unit, were crowned the winners.

In mid karaoke session, GraceKennedy Group CEO Don Wehby cut the company’s Anniversary cake with Anicee Gray-Brown of GK Foods Central, who joined GK in 1994.

The week started on Monday, February 15, with an outside broadcast of RJR 94FM’s Jamaican Morning with hosts Allan Magnus and Paula-Ann Porter Jones.  In his interview, Mr Wehby spoke to the growth of GraceKennedy over the years, the Group’s global expansion while continually supporting Jamaica’s development, and the continued commitment to downtown Kingston including the construction of a new Corporate HQ, which coincidentally started that same day.

 

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GraceKennedy Group CEO Don Wehby (right) discusses his company’s 94th anniversary with Allan Magnus (left) and Paula-Ann Porter Jones, hosts of RJR 94FM’s Jamaican Morning during an outside broadcast on February 15, 2016

 

On Wednesday February 17, approximately 60 GK employees took to the waterfront in downtown Kingston for the ‘Harbour Haul’, a voluntary effort aimed at cleaning up a section of the coastline.  In less than three hours, they removed over 1,000 lbs of garbage and plastics from the Kingston Harbour’s coastline.

Cleaning Up

Throughout the week, there were daily giveaways for the company’s employees.

“It’s been a great week. We celebrated as a family, knowing that that is what got us to 94 years, and will take us to 94 more,” said Mr Wehby. “We thank all of our customers for their support of GraceKennedy.”

GRACEKENNEDY FOODS JAMAICA SHOWS STRONG GROWTH FOR THE FIRST NINE MONTHS OF 2015

GraceKennedy Foods is reporting that its Foods segment in Jamaica has seen significant growth for the nine months ended September 30, over prior year. Areas specifically highlighted for mention included the company’s manufacturing and retail (Hi-Lo) segments, as well as Grace Foods & Services through its major consumer promotion for 2015.

“We refer to GK Foods – Jamaica, as the fortress of our business. This is where it all began and so we are firmly committed to ensuring that the fortress not only stands strong but continues to grow,” said GraceKennedy Group CEO, Don Wehby. He continued, “It is a fiercely competitive environment, but we have the right people in the right places, who are executing well on our strategy and we are seeing the results.”  Mr Wehby added that the focus for 2015 and beyond was to win the hearts and minds of customers, through great people. “Re-engaging our customers is a consistently high priority and we continue to work at this every day, because we know without our valued customers, we have no business,” he said.

 

GraceKennedy’s recently released third quarter results showed that the Food Trading segment  had revenue growth of 17% over the corresponding period last year. The company saw significant positive impact of its “Grace on the Move” promotional campaign in Jamaica.

 

The Group CEO also spoke to the strength of GK Foods Jamaica’s manufacturing arm, which was boosted by strong demand for products manufactured in Jamaica, efficiency gains, yield improvements and favourable commodity prices. All these factors combined resulted in higher profits when compared to prior year.

 

Grace Agro Processors (GAP), the company’s processing plant in Hounslow, St Elizabeth has been performing well despite the challenge of severe drought this year. As at the end of September, GAP had exported 38 metric tonnes of pepper mash. According to Mr Wehby, the 2016 outlook for GAP’s export business was expected to grow significantly, which would directly benefit local farmers with whom GAP partners.

 

“We are also very happy with what we have seen happening in our Hi-Lo stores,” said Mr Wehby. He noted the investment made in the chain through renovations completed in its Barbican and Manor Park Stores to the tune of J$265M. As a result of those investments, says Mr Wehby, Hi-Lo continues to deliver improved results not only in the renovated stores, but across the chain. Customer feedback has been very positive, he noted. The total amount to be invested by GraceKennedy for further Hi-Lo store renovations is J$1B.

 

“We’re looking forward to the Christmas season, as we know how popular our Grace hams are, and we believe that’s an area we will do really well in. Our aim is to finish the year by sustaining the strong performance and growth we have seen so far,” said Mr Wehby.

GRACEKENNEDY GROUP AND ISSA FORM JOINT VENTURE COMPANY TO MANAGE MEDIA RIGHTS FOR ALL ISSA SPORTING EVENTS

The GraceKennedy Group has announced the formation of a joint venture company with the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA), which will manage the media rights to all of ISSA’s sporting events for the next 15 years.

In explaining how the joint venture came to be, Dr. Walton Small, President of ISSA said, “We wanted to maximize the revenue opportunities from secondary school sports in Jamaica to fund the development of those sports and high school athletic programmes overall. We have a long, rich history with GK, and decided to partner with them to make this happen.”

The strength of the GK/ISSA partnership was underscored by Steven Whittingham, Managing Director of GK Capital Management, the investment arm of GraceKennedy, which will oversee the investment on GK’s behalf. “We have built a very strong relationship with ISSA, and have enjoyed working with its Executive team of Dr. Walton Small, Colleen Montague and Keith Wellington. Both entities are excited at the prospects that exist from this joint venture,” Mr Whittingham said.

He explained that the joint venture company  called ‘Greenfield Media Productions Ltd’,  has acquired  the media rights for all ISSA’s sporting events by virtue of a long term licence. ‘Greenfield Media’ will manage the sale and distribution of the television, radio and internet rights locally and globally.

GraceKennedy Group CEO, Don Wehby, said that the GK Group’s earnings from the joint venture will be used, in part, to increase GK’s support to education in Jamaica through the Grace and Staff Community Development Foundation. “GraceKennedy has always invested in the education of Jamaica’s youth, as we know that this is a significant nation building tool for Jamaica. This initiative will increase that investment significantly, and I am very proud of that,” said Wehby.

Under the joint venture with ISSA falls the entire portfolio of High School Boys and Girls sports, which includes Boys and Girls Championships (‘Champs’), Football, Cricket, Netball, Basketball (Boys and Girls), Volleyball, Swimming, Table Tennis, Badminton and Hockey.

The joint venture aims to increase the development of media content for traditional and non-traditional sports and expand distribution in the local and international markets. There will also be human interest content generated, about athletes and institutions which will promote Brand Jamaica’s sporting offerings, accomplishments and prowess to the diaspora and the world.