ST JAMES, Jamaica – The 22nd annual staging of the Montego Bay Sister Cities Health Mission –renamed Vin Martin Memorial Health Mission – will return to the St John’s Methodist Community Action Centre today.

A group of 49 volunteers, inclusive of medical doctors and nurses, will arrive in Montego Bay to participate in the event that will run until October 7.

The communities of Barrett Town, Green Pond, Lottery, Maroon Town, Somerton, and John’s Hall will also host community outreach programmes that will run simultaneous to the activities at St John’s Methodist Community Action Centre.

“Since 1972, the cities of Atlanta, Georgia and Montego Bay, St James, have shared a formal relationship that has benefited both our citizens in varied ways. I feel proud knowing that our union has blossomed into this valuable initiative,” said Mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Glendon Harris.

The Vin Martin Memorial Health Mission – renamed in honour of the late Jamaican Honorary Consul to Atlanta who passed away in 2014 – will feature a cadre of specialists in the field of ophthalmology, gynecology and obstetrics, paediatrics, internal medicine, dentistry, nursing, and pharmacology.

The public will be able to access free health services between 8:30 am and 4:00 pm daily.

The Atlanta team, led by Dr Yvonne Smith, will be hosted by the local Sister Cities Committee, chaired by businessman Fred Smith, under the auspices of the St James Parish Council. 

Over the past two decades, the mission has served approximately 50,000 patients in St James and its neighbouring parishes.

Mark Cummings