Halse Hall, Clarendon – It was all about fun and fitness as Jamalco employees from across the company’s operations descended on the grounds of the Jamalco Employees’ Sports Club for the annual “Jamalcoans in Motion” (JIM) Charity event held recently.
The activity, which is used primarily as a charity fitness fundraiser, took the form of a sports day in which
employees participated in fun events such as a lapathon (run/walk), sack, lime and spoon and math races, flip the tyre relays and aerobics marathon. The JIM event was geared towards raising funds to assist with upgrading the sanitary facilities at John Austin All-Age School located in Pennants, Clarendon. The participation of the employees secured a grant valued at J$180,000 to assist the school.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Managing Director at Jamalco, Austin Mooney,
encouraged team members to incorporate physical activity into their daily routines.
“Jamalcoans in Motion is a great activity which is aligned to our EHS goals of promoting
health and wellness, as well as our goal of giving back to the communities in which we
operate,” said Mr. Mooney.
The school, which was nominated for the grant by Jamalco employee, Glossim Jones, secured the majority of the votes from the company’s employees who were asked to participate in the process to select this
year’s JIM grant awardee.
While thanking her colleagues, Ms. Jones explained that she was moved to seek help for the institution because of its dire needs. The school, which has a population of 126 students, has faced numerous setbacks in trying to construct better sanitary facilities for its students.
“The students are still using the pit latrine in an old dilapidated building because efforts to
construct a proper facility have been thwarted by lack of funds and vandalism,” she said.
During the fitness fundraiser, Cheraine Tinglin was crowned champion female for the second
year running after outclassing her peers to cop 7 medals inclusive of 5 gold. Meanwhile, on
the male side, defending champion, Oral Reid proved once again that his athletic prowess
is no sham by snagging 7 gold medals and 1 silver to be declared the top male. The day’s
event culminated with an aerobics session led by a representative from the Jamaica Moves
initiative.
The JIM event is part of Jamalco’s company-wide initiative designed to get its employees
involved in fitness activities while raising funds for charity.