Janet Silvera

WESTERN BUREAU: At the age of four, Tegan Vincent-Cooke was placed on a horse as a form of physiotherapy.

It was the anguished cry from Cooper's Pen, on Saturday morning as residents, some already homeless and others fearful that their houses could be next, returned to the streets demanding intervention and relocation in the wake of a demolition exercise that has shaken the Trelawny community.

WESTERN BUREAU: At the age of four, Tegan Vincent-Cooke was placed on a horse as a form of physiotherapy. Twenty-one years later, the young Jamaican woman living with cerebral palsy and dystonia rode onto one of equestrian sport’s biggest stages with three letters beside her name: JAM. For Vincent-Cooke, Jamaica’s first para dressage rider to compete at the FEI World Championships, getting to Aachen, Germany, was about far more than scores and placings. “For the first time, I rode onto this world stage with JAM beside my name,” the 25-year-old said.

WESTERN BUREAU: “Where are you, Mr Prime Minister? Where are you? We need help.” It was the anguished cry from Cooper’s Pen, on Saturday morning as residents, some already homeless and others fearful that their houses could be next, returned to the streets demanding intervention and relocation in the wake of a demolition exercise that has shaken the Trelawny community. Dressed in white and armed with placards, the residents gathered along the North Coast Highway from early morning, insisting that they are no longer looking merely for temporary assistance.

WESTERN BUREAU: “Where are you, Mr Prime Minister? Where are you? We need help.” It was the anguished cry from Cooper’s Pen, on Saturday morning as residents, some already homeless and others fearful that their houses could be next, returned to the streets demanding intervention and relocation in the wake of a demolition exercise that has shaken the Trelawny community. Dressed in white and armed with placards, the residents gathered along the North Coast Highway from early morning, insisting that they are no longer looking merely for temporary assistance.

Romulus Deenah just wanted to take his new friends sailing. But there was one problem: some of them couldn't swim. It was an ironic, though not uncommon, reality on an island surrounded by the Caribbean Sea, where many Jamaicans grow up without learning to swim. But helping his friends clear that hurdle set something much larger in motion. Nearly four years later, Stellar Gents has evolved into the Stellar Foundation. This summer, it welcomed six students from Mount Alvernia High School in Montego Bay as its first cohort of girls.

WESTERN BUREAU: For years, Nadean Rawlins has been opening doors for other people. As producer, director, talent manager, and head of RAW Management, she has pushed Jamaican actors towards auditions, encouraged young creatives, fought for opportunities, and worked behind the scenes to help build an industry she believes Jamaica deserves. So, when Possession – the new Sky original supernatural thriller – came calling, Rawlins was doing what she normally does, trying to get Jamaican actors into the room.

WESTERN BUREAU: For years, Nadean Rawlins has been opening doors for other people. As producer, director, talent manager, and head of RAW Management, she has pushed Jamaican actors towards auditions, encouraged young creatives, fought for opportunities, and worked behind the scenes to help build an industry she believes Jamaica deserves. So, when Possession – the new Sky original supernatural thriller – came calling, Rawlins was doing what she normally does, trying to get Jamaican actors into the room.

Jamaicans are being challenged to break the culture of silence surrounding the abuse of children, with Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert, minister of state in the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, declaring that communities often see the warning signs long before the police do.

WESTERN BUREAU: Jamaicans are being challenged to break the culture of silence surrounding the abuse of children, with Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert, minister of state in the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, declaring that communities often see the warning signs long before the police do. Dalrymple-Philibert’s impassioned appeal came as 10-year-old Shani Coke, who was raped and murdered in her community of Troy, Trelawny, was being laid to rest.