ROSE HALL, St James – Westwood High School fifth form student Adeija Mcbean now wants to become a graphic designer, having originally set her sights on becoming a member of the Jamaica Constabulary Force.

So it was a bit of coincidence when she copped the top prize in the first Police Civilian Oversight Authority (PCOA) Transforming Our Police Service (TOPS) poster competition.

Mcbean, who entered the competition just over a month ago, was declared the winner during the PCOA awards ceremony for the Police Area One held at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St James last Wednesday.

Second place went to Jacob Smith of Muschett High School and third place to Kiara Woozencroft of Spot Valley High School.

“I did not feel confident that I was going to win because I saw very beautiful pieces in the calendar that I was given when I entered the building. However, when we arrived at the first and second runner-up, I was like, ‘Okay, I am not going to get a prize because I don’t believe I am going to win.’

“However, when they announced that a female was the winner, I look around and said, ‘Maybe it is the pretty girl from Spot Valley [High School] going to win,’ ” said Mcbean after she was annouced as the winner.

“Hey, I was very excited. I actually did not believe it. My teacher was so excited, and I was like, ‘I actually won,’ ” as she added that collecting her prize was an overwhelming experience.

Mcbean, an art student who received a cash prize of $50,000, a computer, and a trophy, told the Jamaica Observer that it was her art teacher who introduced her to the competition.

“But being shy, you really don’t want to enter competitions like that,” said Mcbean as her visual arts teacher Petrina Wright enjoyed the moment.

“I am elated and proud of her. I am very happy to know that we are number one and we are at the top. Great going; congratulations, Adeija! [I am] very proud of you,” said Wright.

During the PCOA ceremony, performance awards were also handed out to a number of police stations in Area One.

The top station award went to Bluefields in Westmoreland, while Freeport Police Station was awarded for being the top prisoners-in-custody station.

Sub-officer in charge of Bluefields Police Station, Sergeant Monique Leslie Hamilton, told the Sunday Observer that the award came as no surprise based on the work they put in. For the victory the station was presented with $200,000 and a trophy.

“It is not a one-off thing. We try to continuously do what is expected of us. So I was… happy and elated, but it was not that I did not expect our station would be recognised in this competition based on the requirements that were met,” said Leslie Hamilton, who took up duties at the station in June.

She added that her team is looking forward to next year’s competition.

“We will continue to do what is expected of us. What we haven’t mastered we will continue to improve on it and we will just keep being ‘A Force for Good’,” said Leslie Hamilton in reference to the JCF’s mantra.