There is a shift happening in St. Thomas. A quiet but steady pulse of progress and pride. As I take on the honour of representing my home as Miss St. Thomas Festival Queen 2025, I feel a sense of duty to highlight not just where we are going but where we have come from.
Related Post: I am Miss St. Thomas Festival Queen 2025: A Journey of Growth & Grace
This post marks the beginning of a new blog category I call Culture Growth. A space where I will reflect on Jamaica’s rich heritage, with a spotlight on St. Thomas. Through stories, traditions and forward motion, this series will explore how culture isn’t just something we preserve, but also grow. Afterall, culture is everchanging.
Honouring The Roots of St. Thomas
St. Thomas has always stood for strength and resistance. It is the birthplace of National Hero The Right Excellent Paul Bogle, whose leadership in the Morant Bay Rebellion symbolizes the fierce spirit of our people. The Morant Bay Rebellion, right here in St. Thomas was also a catalyst of change for Jamaica!
St. Thomas is also home to the popular Bath Fountain, in the community of Bath, where it is alleged that healing waters flow from the earth. It is said to have been discovered by a run-a-way slave in the 1690s.
St. Thomas on the Move
Today, St. Thomas is more than a place of legacy. It is a parish in transition. A renaissance.
One of the most visible signs of this change is the Morant Bay Urban Centre. A major development, set to house government offices, business hubs, education centers, eateries and recreational facilities. It is undoubtedly, a promising symbol of accessibility and empowerment.
In addition, in the heart of Morant Bay, Public WiFi has been introduced at the Rudolph Elder Park. This has been helping to bridge the digital divide, especially for young people, students and small entrepreneurs.
Undoubtedly, the highway, has transformed the way we commute! Not only are we able to commute more comfortably, but also more efficiently. There are people who use the road daily for leisure and or business, and the ease and pace of commute have truly transformed.
Similarly, the newly constructed highway has made it more feasible for the deployment of Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) buses in the parish. A move that many parishees have been yearning for over the years. Travel is more comfortable, affordable and predictable. This is especially welcomed by our students, who often face discrimination on other transport, by virtue of the value of their fares, often leading to them not being stranded on the road.
Even something as simple as the beautification of the Morant Bay round-a-bout sends a powerful message: we are paying attention to how we look. feel and show up as a parish. Parish pride is high these days and well deserved.
These are not just cosmetic improvements, they signal that the people matter, our spaces matter and our future matters too.
St. Thomas: Culture is Growth Too
Development must walk hand in hand with culture. Roads and buildings are not enough if we forget our language, music, rituals and even the stories that brought us up to this point.
As a result, growth for us as a parish should also look like this:
- More youth engaged in traditional artforms. This can be explored through the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) which champions cultural unearthing, discovering and preservation through arts, literature, cuisine etc.
2. More heritage sites restored and honoured. Of a fact, the National Heritage Trust does a wonderful job at preserving our heritage. With talks of turning the now Morant Bay Town into a museum, in the wake of the Urban Centre, they will have their hands full with this task.
3. More community led parish pride projects that remind us of who we are. At the local level, we the people can make this happen. I know the residents of Spring Garden and Stony Gut in St. Thomas are prideful about the home of Paul Bogle, Stony Gut, and commemorate every every October, his legacy and impact.
St. Thomas in Bloom !
Thank you for coming along on this new series Culture Growth on the Rooting For Growth with Fiona DaCosta blog.
I hope you will stick around and find the posts helpful.
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