The Foundation was created in 1988 as a response to Hurricane Gilbert. Through the efforts of the then members of the board of the Jamaica Association of Montreal, the Foundation began as a way to raise and send money to Jamaica to assist in the aftermath of a natural disaster. Since then, the Foundation has focused  on supporting programs and services offered by the Association, such as the Food Bank and Footsteps Program. At the 2019 Annual General Meetings of the Association and Foundation, the process begun to make the Foundation Board independent and separate from the Association Board in order to expand our mission and grow the Foundation.

As per the letters patent, the Foundation commits to:

  • raise monies to establish, promote, encourage, and operate children’s and educational programs;
  • provide and operate immigration and related services for newly-arriving Jamaican immigrants;
  • raise monies in order to establish, promote, encourage, and operate senior citizen’s programs;
  • acquire and/or possess by gift, purchase, or otherwise to erect, establish, administer, lease, manage, and operate, day and other camps for children and young people; and
  • promote Jamaican culture and folklore in the greater Montreal area for the benefit of all it’s members regardless of their ethnicity.

 

The current Board of Directors are:

 

President: Michael Smith

Vice-President: Kristen Young

Secretary: Richenda Grazette

Treasurer: Aston Mendez

Director: Alain Babineau

Director: Nancy Davis

Director: Lloyd Shaw

Director: Melaine Campbell

Consultant: Ann-Marie Babineau