BLACK RIVER, St Elizabeth — This heritage town is slated to come alive with a host of activities on July 25 with commerce and cultural displays at the 11th staging of Black River Day.

President of St Elizabeth Chamber of Commerce Kadian Myers-Brown said the event has been resilient over the years as she reflected on how last year’s staging was postponed by three months due to Hurricane Beryl.

“Last June we embarked on our first media launch… It was a resounding success. We were in high gears planning the 10th anniversary of Black River Day, but by one week and five days later Jamaica experienced the passage of Hurricane Beryl. We here on the south coast came face-to-face with its full strength… As a result, we had to postpone the staging of the event. We did it in October 2024 and we will do it again this year standing on the theme Rebirth In Resilience-Rebuilding Brand Black River,” she said.

She reminded her audience at a media launch that Black River Day is a national event.

“The rise of south-west St Elizabeth is inevitable, so the Chamber of Commerce we continue to do our part… Resiliently we forge ahead with the 11th staging of Black River Day slated for Friday, July 25, 2025 between the hours of 9:00 am and 2:00 am the following day,” she said.

“For the last three years we boast the event being declared a national one and this confirms that we do take with great responsibility the ethos and main objective of the event [which] is to boost commerce for the parish and the capital Black River. We do know what the festival means to so many who benefit economically from the event each year… so the chamber continues to feature on Black River Day, fun and exciting cultural activities and the need for needy governmental services to be a part of the celebration for our patrons,” she added.

The event is expected to have a cultural yard and displays.

“[A] Revival band, kumina band, Maroon entertainment, stilt walkers, jonkonnu, a vast old Jamaican time sinting Dulcimina, the big back TV, the kren-kren. We will have it all. A live mento band, a working display of the thatch industry, the making of straw hats, baskets, a float parade and more,” Myers-Brown said.

There will also be a health fair and celebrity cook-off.

“[It is] a collaborative effort among the pharmacies of Black River endorsed by the Ministry of Health and other key pharmaceutical companies that will be on display,” said Myers-Brown.