Health ministry to benefit from ‘Messiah’

A concert series titled 'A Season of Hope', which features the internationally renowned Handel's Messiah, is being coordinated by Rodari Simpson and his concert chorale, Stars of Tomorrow, on Saturday, December 17, at the Courtleigh Auditorium.

The concert series, which also features the Jamaica Youth Chorale is a charitable event from which proceeds will be donated to the Ministry of Health and Wellness to assist in establishing a burn unit in Jamaica.

"We had an urge to garner all our talent and efforts to assist in the establishment of Jamaica's own burn unit at KPH (Kingston Public Hospital)," said Simpson. "In the diaspora, our hearts bled when we heard of the [2021] incident of a family in Albion, St Thomas, who suffered severe injury and death after a fire, largely because we didn't have the adequate resources to treat the victims in a timely manner."

The need for a burn unit has been a long-standing feature in Jamaica's public health woes. In 2020, 31 people died as a result of fires, while 89 were injured and needed critical care. Of the 1,640 coroner's autopsies during the 15-year period from January 1, 1983 to December 31, 1997 at the University Hospital of the West Indies, 16.8 per cent involved burns. Flame burns accounted for 90 per cent of burn cases. In September, three brothers in Westmoreland perished in a house fire, while their teenage sibling was transported overseas to receive life-saving treatment as her injuries could not be adequately cared for in Jamaica.

Simpson is a Jamaica-born tenor who has dazzled audiences across America, Europe and the Caribbean. He formally studied music in the US and continues to live and work in New York, while maintaining a strong connection to Jamaica.

"Christmas is a time of hope and to give back. The proceeds from this concert series will be the gift from the diaspora, with hopes that others will come on board to make the burn unit a reality," Simpson said.

Handel's Messiah is an internationally renowned musical which speaks to the Nativity, passion, Resurrection and Ascension of Jesus Christ, with both reflective and entertainment value. Tickets for the event can be purchased on the Eventbrite platform or by visiting the social media pages for physical ticket updates.