Adventists in East Jamaica Conference Among those Awarded For Their Service

On Monday October 17, 2022, 221 Jamaicans were recognized  for their contribution to Jamaica’s development in various categories during the Ceremony of Investiture  and  Presentation of National Honours and Awards  at King’s House in St.  Andrews and among them were seven  members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in East Jamaica Conference.

 

Of the ten individuals invested with the Order of Jamaica by Governor  General Sir Patrick Allen,  one was  ‘The Honorable’ Audrey Sewell (OJ)  of the North Street SDA Church in Kingston. She was recognized for distinguished contribution to the Public Service. Elder Sewell currently serves as a member of the East Jamaica Conference Executive Committee and has been a baptized member of the SDA Church since 1982.

Sewell has been serving in the public sector for more than 40 years and has developed an impeccable reputation  in all the ministries she has served. Her journey   to being bestowed with the country's fifth highest honour was however not an easy road.  According to Sewell, there were difficult  times when she even contemplated quitting her  job.

 

“My journey was one where I experienced many challenges along the way. There were disappointments with various aspects of my life and there were times  when I felt so discouraged to the point that I thought about quitting my job and just starting all over again.”

 

Life’s challenges however pushed her into the arms of God  and over time  she saw the hand of God guiding her along the way.  

 

“ My faith in God has been strengthened day after day because I learnt along the way that when family, relatives and friends turn their backs on you, God will always be there with you guiding your path,”  Sewell shared  with  the EJC Communication Director after she received  her award.

 

“Be faithful to God and He will open the storeroom of blessings that there shall not be room enough to receive it,” she  said in a bid to encourage people who might be facing challenges in life. “The blessings do not have to be monetary but we should spend time to recognize God’s  blessings in our lives,” she added. 

Professor, ‘The Honourable’ Alvin George Wint  (OJ)  was another of the ten Jamaicans who was inducted into the Order of Jamaica  for distinguished service to the development of Public and

Private Institutions and Academia in Jamaica on October 17, 2022.   He currently worships at the Andrews Memorial SDA CHurch in Kingston  and has been a baptized member of the church for over 51 years.

Wint is Professor Emeritus for International Business at the University of the West Indies (UWI)  and has been recognized with several awards  for his work in academia but his love for God and his church shines bright in his heart wherever he goes.   He was  just thankful to  God for  giving him the opportunity to be of service to his country and for the love and support he continues to receive from his church family.

 

“I thank God for the opportunities and capacities He has given me that have allowed me to be of service to the Nation I love," said Wint. "As a second generation Seventh-day Adventist, I have always welcomed my weekly sabbatical from work where I have been able to join with my sisters and brothers at Unit 6 and the wider Andrews Memorial church family in praising  God in song and Bible study. I thank my SDA family across Jamaica and at the Boston Temple SDA church for their support," he added.

Professor Aarlington Colin Gyles (CD) was inducted into The Order of Distinction, Commander Class for contribution to the field of Academia.  He has led a successful career as a lecturer, multidisciplinary scientist and academic administrator for over 30 years and currently serves as Acting President of the University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech, Ja.) since April 2020.

 

A baptized member of the SDA Church from 1978, Gyles is also a member of the Andrews Memorial Church and says he was humbled yet satisfied after receiving his award. He was clearly happy  that God had given him the opportunity to impact  humanity through the field of education.

 

“When one undertakes to serve, not thinking about receiving recognition, but simply seeking to add value and improve the lives of others, it does give a sense of satisfaction that ones contribution is appreciated. As children of God, committed to serving humanity, for me, service in the field of education creates a lasting impact not only for time but for eternity. So, I am overjoyed that the little that I have been able to do, by God's grace, is considered worthy of national recognition.”

Elder Desmond Dennis Young was bestowed with a Badge of Honour for Meritorious Service  (BH{M}) for outstanding contribution to the Energy Sector. Young worships at the Meadowvale SDA Church  and serves as a member of the East Jamaica Conference Executive Committee and Chairman of the Conference Wide Development Committee.  He is a past president of the Jamaica Institution of Engineers (JIE).

 

Elder Desmond  Young has  impacted the lives of thousands of individuals  both inside and  outside the Seventh-day Adventist Church in East Jamaica Conference through  his  leadership  and  mobilization of architects and engineers across the Conference.   

 

For Young,  “how you start doesn't determine how you will finish.”  His advice to people is for them to “keep focus on solutions, not on problems,” and  that as people of God we should “be confident that God will see you through.”

Among the Adventists who were recognized during the Ceremony of Investiture and Presentation of National Awards was Dr. Princess Marie Viola Thomas Osbourne. She was bestowed with the Badge of Honour for Meritorious Service (BH{M}) similar to Elder Desmond Young. A member of the Hagley Park SDA Church.

 Sis.  Karen Gayle Miller is the third of the four females in the group of Seventh-day Adventist members who were recognized on Monday and was awarded a Badge of Honour for Long and Faithful Service (BH{L})  for over thirty-three (33) years of distinguished Public Service. A member of the Shortwood SDA Church in Kingston, Miller  now sings the praises of her father for sending her to Adventist schools where she had gained a solid education. 

 

“My tenure at the Bureau of Standards Jamaica, Kingston commenced in July 1989.  Prior to this, my academic experience from preparatory school through high school to the tertiary level was almost entirely in Seventh-day Adventist  Schools. I fussed about this especially when my father, who was a pastor in the SDA Church,  insisted that this be done at the tertiary level, but today  I am most grateful. I wouldn’t have it otherwise.” 

 

Miller remembered how fearful she was of the future in the early days and how the words of a song buoyed up her spirits and gave her reason to go on.

 

“During my early years in Kingston, I was frightened, insecure, afraid of the future and many times overwhelmed and actually crippled by my fears and insecurities.  One Sabbath afternoon, I listened to a group at Shortwood SDA Church singing “I don’t know about tomorrow.. but the one who feeds  the sparrow is the one who stands by me’. This song boosted my spirit and fueled my courage to  press on.  In the  ensuing years I had mountain and valley experiences but God has walked  with me in every step of the journey  guiding, forgiving, being patient with my weaknesses, protecting, defending and providing. He is more than wonderful.”

The seventh and last member of this  special group of  Seventh-day Adventists  that received special awards was Sis Ivy May Elta Hill  who was awarded the Badge of Honour for Long and Faithful Service  (BH{L}) for outstanding contribution to Politics and Community Development.  Hill is a member of the the Stadium Community SDA Church in Kingston where she serves in the Community Services and Women’s Ministries Departments.

 

Hill was recognized for her  long years of service in politics, having served for over 50 years working with several Members of Parliament. “I have been a constituency secretary for 25 years and a Justice of the Peace for 6 years and all this does not hamper me from participating in the programs of the church and more so  in the Community Service Ministry, as each enhances the other,” she said  after receiving her award. “ So while I break bread and deal with some personal needs of the community, I get to share and spread the love of our Lord and Saviour,” she added.

 

Hill expressed gratitude to God for his mercies to her  and confessed that that while she grew up in the faith, at one point she departed. “ In 2008, I renewed my vows with my creator  and was  rebaptized. I thought at the time  that I would have lost my Job but God in His mercies have kept me there and I am able to spread His love.”

 

Sis. Ivy Hill enjoys her job which she says takes her to every parish across the island . “ I don’t have to hide my identity.  I am a servant of God and a friend to man and have been loved and respected for that,” she added.