ALBERT TOWN, Trelawny-

The Southern Trelawny Environment Agency (STEA), organisers of the popular Trelawny Yam Festival, will honour Custos of the parish, Royland Barrett, at this year’s staging of the annual event on Easter Monday.

According to STEA’s chairman, Hugh Dixon, the 70 year-old Custos will be recognised for his outstanding contribution to the parish.

“We believe that Custos Barrett is an outstanding person who has impacted on the parish and deserves some accolades,” Dixon told the Observer West.

He added that Barrett who springs from humble beginnings, has a command of the history of the parish and has served with dignity.

Custos Barrett who was invested with the Commander of the Order of Distinction (CD) for service to the parish and the wider Jamaican society almost six years ago, will join noted journalist and environmentalist, John Maxwell, and former University of the West Indies Vice chancellor Professor Rex Nettleford, as Trelawny natives who have been honoured by the 13-year-old STEA.

Custos Barrett received his early education at the Falmouth Elementary School, and then went on to Excelsior High in Kingston, where he was successful in the Senior Cambridge Examinations.

After working at the Criminal Division of the Resident Magistrate’s Court in Kingston for a few years, he was later admitted to Lincoln’s Inn, London, to study law. He was called to the Bar in 1964.

A former People’s National Party (PNP) councillor for the Falmouth division, Custos Barrett founded the Falmouth Restoration Company, a non-profit organisation for the restoration of the buildings in the town.

He was appointed Justice of the Peace in 1979, and installed as Custos Rotulorum for the parish of Trelawny just over 17 years ago.

He has served on the executive of several organisations including the Trelawny Cricket Association and the Cornwall Bar Association.

Dixon said the Trelawny yam festival which is being staged at a cost of $4 million, under the theme ‘One Parish, One Family, One Festival’, will this year be held over two days.

He said, on day one- April 11- the event will be held at the Troy High School in the parish and will move to the Hague Agricultural Showgrounds on Easter Monday.

The first day of the festival will feature a yam farmers’ field celebration, a song, poetry and dance contest, and the ‘Yam King and Queen’ pageant.

“The celebrations will highlight a range of fun events depicting the culture and traditions of yam farming interspersed with lots of food,” Dixon said.

On Easter Monday, the event continues with a culinary yam competition showcasing professional chefs from hotels and resorts, as well as individuals and groups.

A ‘Roots Village’ will highlight Rastafarian delicacies made from yam and the holistic culture and lifestyle of the community.

There are also plans for a cultural concert, a best-dressed donkey parade and most importantly, vendors will be on hand with an array of yam, and delicacies made from the tuber.