Miss Jamaica Festival Queen 2024 Omolora Wilson launched the Signed Sealed Jamaica project on April 7 aimed at teaching aspects of Jamaica’s culture through sign language.

The programme will be implemented in school clubs as an extracurricular activity and in churches in New Market, St Elizabeth, from which she hails.

With support from community members, including Mayor of Black River and Councillor of the New Market Division Richard Solomon, schools and churches in the community will partner with Ready To Sign and Sign Clubs of Jamaica for, Signed Sealed Jamaica.

“What we want to do… is to incorporate sign language in our cultural elements such as our folk songs, our poems, our folk tales, just as we have done with our deaf dance, so that students become accustomed to the language and also start to make it a part of their life,” Wilson said.

Teachers of school culture clubs will be trained at least to level one in sign language, as they will, in turn, teach the students the basics of sign language, while incorporating folk songs, storytelling, and other cultural activities.

“It’s not a one-man thing, it’s not a one-community thing, it’s not a one-parish thing. Sign Sealed Jamaica is for Jamaicans all across the board,” Wilson declared.