There exists in Discovery Bay a dossier of the lives, achievements, and contributions of some of its more outstanding citizens, all of whom have had significant impact on the development of their community.

Discovery Bay is not alone in this undertaking. A number of towns and communities all around Jamaica have on occasion come together to recognise leading citizens where, in the absence of national honours, they pay tribute in a simple and unpretentious manner to the fathers and mothers of their place of origin.

Recognition has not been confined to age. In many cases the young and the middle age have also been singled out for some outstanding act considered worthy of acknowledgement. These community projects are usually carried out during National Heritage Week at parish council functions or in the inner-city version of our rural districts.

They constitute the great untold stories of unsung heroes throughout our history who may never be invited to King’s House for the glitter and glamour of the Governor General’s Awards ceremony. Notwithstanding that, the plaques, the bouquets, the certificates presented at the local level are just as treasured as the Order of Distinction or the Order of Jamaica.

The Discovery Bay function is hosted by the Noranda Community Council, one of the community organisations standing beside the Community Development Committee; the schools’ parent-teacher and past students’ associations; the church organisations; as well as the football, netball and youth club management committees.

The Noranda Community Council ceremony is by no means unique, as parallel organisations also recognise their outstanding individuals at annual presentations, achievement days, at funerals, and so on. The council has, however, kept careful record of the citations read and presented which describe in brief the stories of lives spent in voluntary service in the fields of education, agriculture, religion, business, health, sports, youth and community, and (with regard to corporate contribution) the bauxite industry.

The council has gone deep into the community to highlight contributions made by senior citizens, some in their late 90s, where glowing tributes recall lives spent in unselfish service and dedication to district and community development by nurses, midwives, veteran Sunday school teachers, grandmothers, bush medicine dispensers, and educators. Those elders continue to impart advice and wisdom gained from their experiences with the younger citizens. They have little to show in material wealth, but are satisfied with the love and respect they have earned over the years.

At this year’s presentation the story of Hezekiah Whitehorn, 98 years old, was a revelation to the younger members of the community who were hearing for the first time that the retired church organist from Queenhythe district once sang with the famous East Queen Street Baptist Fraternal, and that his golden baritone voice was once heard regularly on

Radio Jamaica in the 1950s.

“Perhaps,” said the citation, “his greatest legacy to us was when he formed the famous singing group the Trumpeteers out of the choir of the Grateful Hill Baptist Church in the 1970s and 80s. Anyone who has heard the Trumpeteers as they performed all over Jamaica will recall the delight and the thrill felt when those voices rang out in rich musical harmony”.

Anther golden nugget showcased by the council was Daisy Wallace, 99 years old, from Farm Town district, “whose love, warmth and congeniality are evident in her daily discourse with others, and who became a mother, counsellor, and role model to hundreds of persons and generations of years”.

The council also went overseas this year as they honoured Whitfield Stennett, MBE. Stennett, born in Old Folly district adjacent to Discovery Bay, has not only remained a humble person, always exhibiting the good manners and deportment natural to Jamaicans birthed in modest but dignified circumstances, but has also been a stalwart providing cricket gear and sports gear and other charitable donations to his elementary school, Discovery Bay, and to his community. He rose to become one of the first black mayors in the United Kingdom.

It was at one of those council functions that I met up with and heard the story of Cynthia “Breezy” Watkis, midwife, who for countless years has been on call to her community for her nursing services, especially in times of dire need. Inez “Dulcie” Duncan, legendary mother, grand and great mother, who walked miles across rugged terrain, where no vehicle could go in the early days, to transport milk and other basics for families and shut-ins.

And where we heard the story of Albert “Bertie” Edwards, who in the 1950s took up the fight to organise the Discovery Bay communities against the landed class that had attempted to keep out Kaiser Bauxite from starting up industry, and subsequent jobs and income generation, in the parish.

There is another rural district in Jamaica, the home of my birth, Four Paths in Clarendon, that has taken the time and considerable effort to compile the story of the village in magazine format.

The publication was put together by Brenda Black and Lauris Goldson in 2012, and as I read it I was surprised at the background stories that I was barely familiar with as a young boy now being brought to full life in the recounting of the facts by those who witnessed the events.

In the pages I found confirmation of some of the accounts of life in a village which had only been learned from elder brothers and friends. Thanks to the writers’ research, I could now relate more closely to the backgrounds of the original families of Four Paths, the Waddells, the Lawsons, the Vassells, the Davises, the Rickettses, the Baileys, the Shimhues, the Howes, the Christies, the McGlashens, the Shouts, the Pennicookes, the Burrells, the Bacchuses, the Webleys, among many others (condolence to the Vassells on the recent loss of Carol).

The introduction to the magazine is instructive, as the writers explain their purpose in compiling the stories.

“Central to our heritage is the revered institution we call family. The family is one of society’s main and arguably the most important social institution, because it serves to socialise individuals to be productive members of society. We all look to our families for guidance, support and a sense of belonging. Sociologists have long argued that the family is not only an institution, but is also a social system with norms and values that are cultivated over many years. These norms and values are designed in order to guide the socialisation of each family member with the hope that they will function effectively in a world that has become more complex with each passing day.”

Black and Goldson chose to focus on two elements in recounting the history of Four Paths, places and people.

And similar to the dossier compiled on Discovery Bay’s personalities and legends, the magazine describes a village typical of many rural villages across Jamaica, with strong foundations centred on the church and school, parental values, discipline, and their own unique history.

In the magazine, Four Paths is proud of its history. Where else, it asks, but Four Paths, could a woman have bowled George Headley on a bet she could do so within three balls — that woman was Daisy Waddell-Lawson. And where else in Jamaica, can you find a village of the size of Four Paths that could produce a Miss Jamaica (Karlene Waddell), three parish beauty queens, and a Miss Jamaica Farm Queen? Where else in Jamaica, but Four Paths, could produce two presidents of the Jamaica Council of Churches: Rev C Evans Bailey and Rev Stanford Webley.

And where else but Four Paths can boast the records of one family producing the head of the civil service, a president of the University of Technology, Jamaica, and a minister of finance — brothers Drs Carlton Davis, Rae Davis, and Omar Davis?

I have learnt a lot about the values of community lifestyles by just referring to the Discovery Bay profiles and to the stories and legends of the founders of my home district in Clarendon. Those of the first generation started the process and then passed on the baton to their heirs and successors with a very important message, “Preserve and protect what has been given to you.”

Lance Neita is a public and community relations consultant. Send comments to the Observer or lanceneita@hotmail.com.