VICTORY Academy, a small private school in St Andrew, will be hosting its inaugural awards dinner In Honour of Excellence, to pay tribute to outstanding Jamaicans who have excelled in their respective fields, whilst maintaining their integrity, honour and Christian values.

The event which will take place on Saturday, May 15 at the Devonshire in Kingston at 7:00 pm will be under the patronage of Lorna Golding, wife of the Prime Minister.

Drawing from the school’s motto, anchored in honour and excellence, principal Dianne Clarke said: “We felt that this would be a wonderful gesture to identify and honour these persons, as we feel that for too long the focus in Jamaica has been on violence, corruption and moral decadence… it has become difficult for young people to identify successful role models who demonstrate integrity and excellence.”

The school also felt that many of Jamaica’s young people are of the belief that they can’t achieve anything in life without some kind of illicit activity. This awards dinner, they pointed out, will seek to not only acknowledge the recipients, but to expose young people to successful Jamaicans who have excelled by hard work, respect for others and Christian values.

This year’s awardees are Robert Levy of Jamaica Broilers Limited; Donna Duncan-Scott of Jamaica Money Market Brokers; Victor Edwards, past principal of St Jago High School and a past president of the Jamaica Teachers’ Association; and Dr Ruth-Ann Sterling, past student of Victory Academy (formerly Covenant Christian Academy).

Among the outstanding entertainers will be Jamaica’s songbird Karen Smith, and Robert and Jenieve Bailey.