UJAA’s 35th Anniversary Luncheon to honor education champions from Jamaican diaspora

Thirty-five years of its hallmark staunch commitment to advancing education will be celebrated by the Union of Jamaican Alumni Associations (USA) Inc. (UJAA), with an awards luncheon on Sunday, September 14, 2025, in New York.

Slated for the Greentree Country Club in New Rochelle, the much-anticipated UJAA  35^th anniversary event will also honor exceptional leaders and organizations in Jamaica and the diaspora, whose work reflects the UJAA spirit of dedicated service to education.

“This milestone is not just about looking back—it’s about doubling down on our promise to support education for generations to come,” said Donovan Wilson, President of UJAA. “Our honorees embody the spirit of service, excellence, and community that has fueled UJAA for 35 years.”

This signature event occurs every five years and is the 7^th quinquennial celebration, which the Jamaican umbrella alumni group uses to recognize diaspora- and Jamaica-based individuals and organizations aligned with the UJAA  vision and mission.

The alumni coalition’s highest honor, its Lifetime Achievement Award, goes to the Union’s immediate past president, Samuel Lesleyann. This year’s other UJAA Family honorees are R. “Perry” Bloomfield, Honorary Consul Christopher Chaplin, Melanie Forrest-George, Evelyn Godden, Hubert Guscott, Norma Jarrett, Colet Pinnock Watkins, Gloria Thompson, and Cherika Wilson.

Hon. Derick Heaven, the then Jamaican Consul General in New York, at whose initiative the Association was formed in 1990, features among the Community Honorees, alongside Dr. Garfield Clunie, Dr. Trevor Dixon, Dr. Karren Dunkley, Dr. Leo Gilling, June O’Connor, Naala Royale-Holder, Joel Webbe, and Sarah Williams.

Hon. Alsion Wilson, the current Consul General in New York, is the patron for the celebration, which will feature a cocktail reception at noon. This will be followed by entertainment, lunch, dancing, and the presentation of awards, with Irwine Clare, Sr., as master of ceremonies.

Founded in 1990, UJAA is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization and the leading volunteer coalition supporting education in Jamaica and the diaspora, through scholarships, sponsorships, and strategic programs.