MONTEGO BAY, St James — DESPITE the weekend’s gloomy weather forecast, the Flow team beat the odds and staged their second successful Flow/Discovery Back-to-School Fair at the Old Hospital Park in Montego Bay on Sunday.

The event organisers delivered on their promise to make the event bigger and better than it was last year, at the inaugural staging.

Eagerly waiting patrons flocked to the venue shortly before

12 noon, the official starting time, in anticipation of all the back-to-school treats that were on hand.

The NCB Insurance Health and Wellness Zone was a must-attend for many of the patrons who came out, as they immediately bee lined to the area where they were able to get free haircuts for children and full medicals.

By midway through the event, over 200 children got their medical certificates, giving them a clean bill of health for school come September.

One patron, Lisa Blair, who also attended last year’s fair, was very happy with the event and is already looking forward to the third staging, next year.

She shared: “There are more activities this year and the turnout is even better because of the promotion of the event and the discounts that were made available by Bryan’s Book Store and many of the other sponsors,” she said.

Another patron shared her experience.

“Last year was good, but this year dem tun it up because there are lots more for the children to do and for us parents in MoBay. We actually now have an event that we can attend as a family and have fun, while still getting back-to-school bargains,” she stated.

This year’s host, Elva Ruddock, engaged the patrons in giveaways, one-on-one interview sessions punctuated with many laughs, as she walked around the venue. The highlight for many of the children on hand was the appearance of the Discovery Kids’ official mascot, Doki, who danced, interacted and took pictures with eager fans.

Nicole Campbell, sponsorship manager at Columbus Communications, was happy with the overall event.

“The turnout was spectacular! We really want to continue to demonstrate our commitment to the people of Montego Bay and look forward to exceeding their expectations again next year,” she remarked.

Campbell added that “despite the rain, we think that patrons were able to capitalise on all the offerings of the event. We were happy that we were able to help so many parents and children with many of the items on their back-to-school list.”

The communications provider has already indicated their intention to expand the Flow/Discovery Back-to-School Fair in coming years.

The Jamaica Observer, which was one of the partners for the event, provided free back-to-school gifts for children, had on sale on books in the Jamaica Observer Lecture series and hosted a kiddies corner, offering face painting and a colouring zone for the children.