Friends indeed - Four women and a cathedral

The Holy Trinity Cathedral is more than a church. It is the principal place of worship for Kingston's Roman Catholic community, but the building itself is a unique artistic, historical and cultural monument and is one of Jamaica's most important landmarks.The restoration of the cathedral requires the support of all Jamaicans to see it through to its completion. Once the cathedral has been fully restored, it will require ongoing support from the broader community to maintain the edifice and the artwork, and to see to the continued development of the site so that it fulfils its potential as a premier locale for Jamaicans and for visitors to experience it and learn about it.

Enter the Friends of the Holy Trinity Cathedral.

The Friends of the Holy Trinity Cathedral was launched in October 2010 as part of the effort to engender this support for the cathedral, not only among Roman Catholics, but among all Jamaicans and friends of Jamaica. The group was organised by Diana Thorburn Chen, Enith Williams, Carolyn Terrier and Karin Wilson-Edmonds, four Jamaican women who came together because of their shared passion for the cathedral, its beauty and its possibilities.

Struck by its beauty

Though the four women have a shared dedication to the cathedral, they each arrived at their respective epiphanies on their own paths. For Carolyn Terrier it was a trip to Europe, where she visited many cathedrals as a tourist, that prompted her on her return home to go and see just what Kingston's cathedral looked like. She, like many who enter the 100-year-old doors of the unique building, was struck by the beauty of the murals and the frescoes.

She decided to have her daughter's wedding there a few months later, the first of many high-profile nuptials to have been held there recently.

For Enith Williams, a 'Jamerican' who has been back and forth between New York and Jamaica all her life, it was a chance meeting with Monsignor Kenneth Richards, the rector of the cathedral, at Carolyn's weekend home in St Ann, that brought her through its doors. Aside from the sheer magnificence of the structure, Enith, whose career has spanned many different aspects of social and economic development planning and policy, immediately grasped the possibility that the development of the site held for the broader community and for the city of Kingston as a whole.

Diana Thorburn Chen had been peripherally involved in the cathedral's restoration efforts as a director of the NCB Foundation, one of the first donors to the restoration effort, but did not appreciate the scale or scope of what the restoration was uncovering until she visited in early 2009. Even though the immense scaffolding was still up and all the pews from 1911 were outside being refurbished, Diana stood in sheer awe of the artwork that was being revealed behind the thick grey paint. Then and there Diana decided that she wanted to play an active role in making others aware of the marvellous gem in our midst, and towards efforts to maintain its new-found beauty and grandeur.

One of the ways that she went about this was to invite one of her oldest friends, Karin Wilson Edmonds, a devout Catholic and a marketing expert, to mass with her one Sunday. She said nothing specific about the cathedral on the way to the service, but Karin was stunned at what she saw when she entered its doors. She also found it impossible to not be moved to do whatever she could to help.

The Friends of the Holy Trinity Cathedral aims to bring together supporters and volunteers, and structure their activities in an open manner and in a spirit of cooperation with the parent institution, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Kingston, and with the Jamaica National Heritage Trust.

This is the first formal friends group for the cathedral. However, the recent restoration project - thick layers of grey paint were stripped away to reveal the incredible frescoes on the walls and ceiling in 2008, after being covered over for nearly 40 years - was made possible by many other friends. These include Lyn May Lowe, who headed the fund-raising committee; Thalia Lyn, who worked with former Spanish Ambassador Jesús Silva; and Michael Lee-Chin, chairman of the National Commercial Bank, to bring a restoration expert to Jamaica. Many others gave financial and other support that underwrote the massive restoration effort.

Holy Trinity Facts

The Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Cathedral will attain its 100th anniversary in September. This milestone will begin with a rededication and centennial mass for the current edifice on Sunday, February 6. Archbishop Donald Reece sees this 100th anniversary and rededication of the edifice as highlighting the centrality of the cathedral as the mother church for the Catholics of the Archdiocese of Kingston. The occasion will mark the renewal to the mission of the cathedral as the primary place of worship for the faithful of the Archdiocese of Kingston.

The theme of the restoration: 'Restore Our Cathedral and Restore Our City', was symbolic of the civic authority's move to improve the socio-economic and physical environment of downtown Kingston. The economic activity generated by the restoration of the cathedral, enabled men and women from the surrounding communities to provide for their well-being and that of their families. The rededication creates an opportunity to experience the grandeur of its stunning interior artwork - an inspiring encounter for all who visit.

The edifice was declared a National Heritage Site by the Jamaican Government in 2000. It has hosted many state funerals including those of former prime ministers Michael Manley and Hugh Shearer and National Hero, Marcus Mosiah Garvey.

Contributed by communications sonsultant Tamara Williams.