Merl
Grove High School Past Student Assoc. North Eastern American
Chapter
West Indian Times Report & Photos
On Saturday, June 30th, 2007, West Indian
Times attended the 3rd Annual Reunion for Jamaican HS Merl
Grove which was held at Unity Christ Church in Gaithersburg,
MD. The reunion focused on the need of the organization to
continue to assist the Board of Directors of Merl Grove High
School in the pursuit of their goal towards furthering the
welfare of the school through both financial and personal
assistance.
The packed hall was continually
entertained and enlightened by a full schedule of events
which included:
Welcome by
Paula Cole Howard
US National
Anthem by Ashley Tracey
Jamaican
National Anthem by Nathan Davis
Blessing of
food and evening by Mary-Ann Nichols
Music by
Steel drummer Wentworth Richardson
Welcome from
MC Denise McCalla Creary
Message from
Alison Champagnie ‘Lady Cham’
Message from
President of Canadian Chapter Claudette Cameron Stewart
Fever sung by
Ashley Elizabeth Tracey
Message from
NEAC President Andrea McDonald-Black
Performances
by Actress Nadean Rawlins
Denise
McCalla Creary & The Merl Grove Chubblemakers
Also homage was paid to three teachers,
who have together served the institution for 106 years. They
are Vice Principal Veta Rowe for 26 years of service and
retired teachers Enid Robotham and Joyce Taylor for 37 years
and 43 years, respectively.
Former
Jamaican Ambassador to the United Nations, Curtis Ward, was
the Keynote Speaker for the evening and urged the Jamaican
Diaspora to form partnerships with the government to help
improve the country’s education system. "The reality is that
no government in the history of Jamaica has ever been able
to provide all of the resources needed to create the
standard of education required to fulfill the educational
needs and to take full advantage of the potential of
Jamaica’s youth. "There is an urgent need for the Diaspora
to join hands with the government to seriously look at ways
to support the educational system, which in the long run,
will be beneficial to our country," he stated.
One of the current projects that the Past
Student Association is working on is the Shakara Harris
Bridge Fund which was developed out of the unfortunate death
of one of MGHS’s first formers on January 23, 2004 by a
speeding motorist on Constant Spring Road. This little girls
premature death was the subject of much public debate with
the NWA and other government agencies. The Board of MGHS
gained its desired result when the NWA agreed to construct
an overhead pedestrian bridge on Constant Spring Road to be
named in Shakara’s honor. As part of the fundraising effort
a portion of the proceeds from the sale of "The Merl Grove
Story" by Dr. Alfred Sangster will be donated to the "Shakara
Harris Bridge Fund." The Association is also funding full
scholarships for 12 students at Merl Grove and the
Association is calling on all past students, faculty and
friends to support this fundraising effort by picking up a
copy of "The Merl Grove Story." Inquires should be made to
Dr. Sangster at
asangster@utech.edu.jm
Also
in attendance at the reunion was Jamaica’s Ambassador to the
United States, His Excellency Dr. Gordon Shirley who has
stated that the Jamaican Embassy stands ready to work with
the Merl Grove HS PSA tosecure the well-being of fellow
Jamaicans here in the Diaspora and at home.
Visit Merl Grove HS PSA NEAC online at:
www.mghspsaneac.org
or email the President of the Association, Andrea
McDonald-Black at
abmissmack@aol.com for information on how you can
help this very worthy cause.
