St. Thomas Volleyball Association Now A Reality
The parish of St Thomas has, in recent years, established itself as a hub for the development of volleyball in Jamaica, boasting the repeat champions of the JaVA U-13 competition, runner-up finishes in the ISSA U-18 competitions and champions of the one-off JaVA inter-parish U-15 competition.
On Wednesday 28 January 2015, the parish further anchored itself in Jamaica's volleyball history by becoming only the third parish to establish a Volleyball Association, behind long-standing Westmoreland and recently established St James. The St Thomas Volleyball Association (STVA) was formalized by JaVA President, Rudolph Speid, during a meeting at Lyssons Primary School on the said date. An interim Board comprising of President - Lesia Dennis-Jackson, Vice President - Elvis Goode, General Secretary - Myton Worrell, Treasurer - Itego Campbell, Coaches Manager - Lester Bernard, and Competition Manager - Kevin Raymond was formed.
Parish President, Dennis-Jackson, stated that the new Board will seek to maintain its momentum by actively organizing a community and under-age competition withing the coming month.
On Friday 15 January 2015, JaVA formed the St James Volleyball Association (SJVA), the first in a new wave of such parish-level organizations to be established, as Speid spearheads JaVA's institutional strengthening efforts. Plans are well advanced for the formation of similar structures in St Ann, St Catherine, St Elizabeth, Hanover and Portland within days to weeks.