JCJ Honours Community Servants At Atlanta Fundraiser

ATLANTA, Georgia - Two Jamaicans recognized for their contributions to community development and service were honored by Atlanta-based charitable organization Jamaicans Caring for Jamaicans (JCJ) as it raised funds to support its dental missions to Jamaica.

Jamaica’s Honorary Consul to Atlanta, Dr Elaine Bryan (second right), shares a light moment with, from left, Dr Joseph Dove, Dr Yvonne Smith Blake, CEO of the Montego Bay-Atlanta Cities Committee, Dr Christopher Parker, research associate professor and director of Population and Global Health at the Georgia Health Policy Center, Georgia State University, and JCJ president Junior Taylor at the organizations’ annual fundraising event, All Schools Jamm, held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis on Saturday, October 10. DR. Smith Blake and Dr. Parker were recipients of JCJ’s Contribution to the Culture Award. (Derrick Scott Photo)Dr Christopher Parker, Research Associate Professor and Drector of population and Global Health at Georga Health Policy Center at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University and vice-president of Atlanta-based Integrity Children’s Fund, and Dr Yvonne Smith Blake, CEO of the Montego Bay-Atlanta Cities Committee, received the organization’s Contribution to the Culture Award in recognition of their respective contributions and continued service.

The awards were presented at JCJ’s annual fundraising event, All Schools Jamm, held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis on Saturday, October 10. The event, staged under the theme “Disco Inferno”, attracted a strong turnout of patrons who embraced the spirit of the 1970s, arriving in colorful Afro-inspired outfits and retro fashions.

With music provided by DJs Migraine and Gaddafi, guests danced into the early hours of Sunday morning, while Jamaican singer Gem Myers delivered a command performance that added to the evening’s entertainment.

The event, held under the banner “Party with a Purpose”, was organized to raise funds for the organization’s annual dental missions, which provide essential oral healthcare to underserved communities across Jamaica.

Jamaica’s Honorary Consul to Atlanta, Dr Elaine Bryan, congratulated the organization and commended its members for their longstanding commitment to helping less fortunate Jamaicans.

She noted that the dental outreach programmed was making a meaningful contribution to healthcare in Jamaica by bringing much-needed services to people who might otherwise struggle to access professional dental treatment.

The work of JCJ, she said, extended beyond the provision of dental care, reflecting the importance of service, compassion and the diaspora’s responsibility to support communities back home.

In her acceptance remarks, Dr Smith Blake expressed gratitude to the organization for its recognition, describing it as both humble and an encouragement to continue serving others.

She said that, for more than 30 years, she had been privileged to serve communities in the United States and internationally, but Jamaica remained especially close to her heart.

While many people associated her work with medical missions, she explained that service went beyond healthcare to include access to food, shelter, education and opportunities for people to live with dignity.

“True service is not measured by what we say, but by what we are willing to do,” she said, emphasising that the real value of service lay in the lives touched and the burdens lifted rather than public recognition.

Dr Smith Blake also reflected on the importance of personal integrity, saying that her commitment was guided by her faith and a desire to remain faithful to the work she believed she had been called to do.

She thanked JCJ for the honour and pledged to continue serving for as long as she had the strength and opportunity.

Dr Parker also expressed gratitude for the recognition, speaking about the importance of Jamaicans looking out for one another and supporting organizations that serve communities at home and abroad.

His remarks reflected the spirit of collective responsibility that underpins JCJ’s work and the wider Jamaican diaspora’s contribution to national development.

A DECADE OF DENTAL OUTREACH

The theme Led by President Junior Taylor, has spent the past decade bringing dental professionals and volunteers to communities across Jamaica, including St Elizabeth, Hanover, St James and Trelawny.

The organization’s roots date to 2012, when Taylor, then living in Jamaica, joined friends in Montego Bay to discuss ways of helping less fortunate residents. Their early initiatives included wellness outreaches to elderly people and shut-ins in rural St James, providing transportation to health clinics and distributing care packages.

The initiative expanded in 2015 when the group assisted with a medical mission from Jacksonville, Florida. During that mission, Taylor met dentists Dr Joseph Dove and Dr Anthony Polk, who expressed an interest in returning to Jamaica to conduct dental-specific missions.

Within a year, the team launched its first dental mission in St James, serving more than 500 Jamaicans in just two days.

What began as a small community effort subsequently developed into a sustained dental outreach programme addressing the needs of people in rural and underserved areas, where access to professional oral healthcare can be limited.

The missions provide treatment and pain relief while educating patients and families about preventive care and the importance of maintaining good oral health.

In July 2026, the organization’s mission in Montego Bay provided dental services to more than 450 patients, with the value of the services and supplies estimated at J$4 million.

Over the past decade, the missions have delivered more than J$50 million in dental services, supplies and related assistance to Jamaicans.

The organization’s mission is to improve the health, dignity and quality of life of people in rural Jamaica by providing compassionate and accessible dental care to those who need it most.

The annual All Schools Jamm is central to sustaining that work, bringing together members of the Jamaican diaspora and friends of Jamaica for an evening of entertainment, fellowship and fundraising.

For Taylor and the volunteers behind the initiative, the objective remains clear: to continue bringing essential dental services to underserved communities and improving the quality of life of Jamaicans, one community at a time.