Sheryl Lee Ralph, Adam Stewart honoured at AFJ gala

Emmy Award-winning actress Sheryl Lee Ralph says Jamaica’s national anthem represents a source of inspiration and pride for her and has encouraged others to play their part in the country’s development.

She made the appeal on Friday night as she accepted the International Humanitarian Award at the American Friends of Jamaica’s (AFJ) 45th anniversary Hummingbird Gala at The Plaza in Manhattan, New York.

Ralph sang the anthem while delivering her speech.

She described the anthem as more than a patriotic song, calling it a prayer she had carried with her since childhood.

“For all of the friends of Jamaica, I want to share with you not just a beautiful anthem, but a beautiful prayer, which I learned as a child, one foot in America, one foot in Jamaica,” she told the distinguished gathering, which included Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness.

She recalled learning the anthem as a child in preparation for Jamaica’s first Independence Day celebrations in 1962, when she was expected to sing and dance.

Then, in a moving moment, she began singing Eternal Father, Bless Our Land, bringing her Jamaican heritage to the forefront of an evening celebrating philanthropy and achievement.

But Ralph’s tribute did not end with the anthem.

“Don’t just love Jamaica for your vacation. Love Jamaica for the people. Love Jamaica for our culture, love Jamaica for our food, love Jamaica for our music,” she urged.

“Love Jamaica for being that place you come back to one time, not two times, not three times, but over and over again.”

Fellow honouree Adam Stewart, executive chairman of Sandals Resorts International, who received the International Achievement Award, used his moment in the spotlight to celebrate the Jamaican people and the vision of his late father, Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart.

In a light-hearted acknowledgement of Ralph’s performance, Stewart assured the audience that he would not attempt to match her musical contribution.

“I am not going to sing with you,” he joked.

Instead, he reflected on the journey of Sandals, which began in 1981 with a 99-room hotel in Montego Bay, St James, and grew into an internationally recognised Caribbean hospitality brand.

For Stewart, the company’s greatest achievement is not simply its international expansion, but its ability to demonstrate that Jamaican talent could compete successfully on the world stage.

“Our business today is 20,000 team members, of which 97 per cent of them were born in the Caribbean, and the platform is Jamaica,” he declared.

“Anytime we need to do something new, elevate, evolve, we bring in the Jamaican army, and we show the entire world the magic of Jamaica.”

He also paid tribute to his father’s decision to establish the Sandals Foundation in 2009, acknowledging the organisation’s humanitarian work and the employees and corporate partners who have supported its mission.

Stewart described the present as an extraordinary moment in Jamaica’s development, pointing to improvements in the country’s economic indicators.

“It is the absolute best time in the history of our country to be a Jamaican,” he declared.

For his part, Holness congratulated both awardees, describing their achievements as examples of Jamaica’s growing international influence.

“Their achievements take different forms, but both demonstrate how far Jamaican excellence can reach and how much good it can do,” he said.

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com

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