The Gleaner's Chairman and Managing Director, Hon. Oliver F. Clarke O.J., received this year's American Friends of Jamaica (AFJ) award for humanitarian efforts.
The presentation took place at the second annual South Florida Black Tie Gala and Auction at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables.
Some 350 guests including Jamaican diplomats, businessmen and leading members of the South Florida community were in attendance. Diageo, the world's leading premium beverage producer and owner of Jamaica's Red Stripe Beer, was also honoured.
The AFJ is celebrating its 25th year of philanthropy for the benefit of Jamaican charities. Each year, the funds raised are distributed to Jamai-can institutions.
Organisations benefiting from last year's fund-raising included the University of the West Indies, the Jamaica Society for the Blind, the Mona Rehabilitation Foun-dation, the Montego Bay Hope Medical Centre and 11 other non-profit groups. Since the AFJ's founding, over 60 Jamaican organisations have received grants totalling over US$10 million in cash and kind.
