Karen Madden - Sunday Gleaner Writer

Workers reaping the first crop of onions since the passage of Hurricane Melissa on Andre Dyer’s five-acre onion farm in Mountainside, St Elizabeth, on February 16.
March 1, 2026 by Karen Madden

ONION TEARS

Frustration laced his voice as Andre Dyer, one of Jamaica’s largest onion farmers, bemoaned how the importation of onions is threatening the livelihood of local farmers, even as the traditional…
Right: STETHS Principal Keith Wellington.
February 22, 2026 by Karen Madden

Route design, not dancehall

Two rural principals are pushing back against the Ministry of Education’s explanation for sluggish uptake in the Government’s rural school bus programme – and they say the main problem is route…
Third-generation farmer Carlington McCook, who is also a police officer with the Jamaica Constabulary Force, told The Sunday Gleaner that he lost approximately $1 million worth of  lettuce, pak choi, and cabbage to Melissa’s fierce winds and flood rains.
January 18, 2026 by Karen Madden

Bog Hole’s green basket under strain

If you enjoy green, leafy vegetables, chances are some of what is on your plate came from Bog Hole, a farming community near the St Ann-Clarendon border, home to farmers spanning generations. Located…
Alesha pumping gas at at Willis Gas Station in Cave Valley, St Ann, last week. She recalled that days after the passage of Hurricane Melissa last October, all she could see was water when she looked down at the town.
January 18, 2026 by Karen Madden

Mentally draining, but Cave Valley rebounds from Melissa

It is a fight that has exacted physical, mental, and emotional pain, but business operators in Cave Valley, St Ann, are clawing their way back following devastation when Hurricane Melissa dumped…

Athlete, entrepreneur and philanthropist Yohan Blake admires one of his many awards received over the years. This one he received for partnering with Food For The Poor to build at least 10 houses annually for families in need.
December 9, 2025 by Karen Madden

Running for a greater cause

World champion, Olympic medallist, and a key part of Jamaica’s sprinting legacy – Yohan Blake’s accomplishments in athletics are well-documented. But in recent years, it’s his YB Afraid Foundation…

Donovan English, father of late national footballer Irvino English, said he is proud of Fraser-Pryce’s achievements.
December 9, 2025 by Karen Madden

‘Look at wi road now’

EXCITEMENT HAS been permeating Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce Drive in St Andrew, renamed for the little girl who ran on the former Ashoka Road, now celebrated as the greatest female sprinter of all time.…

Gender and development practitioner Judith Wedderburn.
December 9, 2025 by Karen Madden

Real power shift needed

Despite a marginal increase in the number of women that will sit in Lower House when it resumes, at least one gender advocate believes the country is still falling short in its representation of women…