The Hon. Olivia Grange, OJ, CD, MP
Jamaica’s Minister of Culture, Entertainment, Gender, Entertainment and Sport
Message from the Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Honourable Olivia Grange, OJ, CD, MP, for the Programme for Heritage Singers (Canada) 49th Anniversary Concert
Warm congratulations to the Heritage Singers (Canada) as you celebrate your 49th Anniversary.
As I am now retired, we reflect on the nearly five decades since January 1977, when Grace Carter-Henry Lyons, brought her experience from the Jamaica Folk Singers to Canada, we give thanks for the Heritage Singers who have proudly promoted Jamaican music, culture and heritage in Canada and beyond.
I commend the members, past and present, for their dedication and discipline. Through your performances, singing traditional folk songs, sacred hymns, secular ballads, work songs, and lullabies in Jamaican language, English, French, Spanish, and African dialects you have helped to preserve our rich cultural traditions while strengthening the bonds between Jamaica and its Diaspora.
I also acknowledge the families, supporters and partners whose commitment has helped sustain this remarkable organisation.
As you celebrate this important milestone and look ahead to your Golden Jubilee, may the Heritage Singers continue to inspire, uplift and unite audiences through the beauty and richness of Jamaican music.
Mr. Kurt Davis
Jamaican Consul General in Toronto.
CONSULATE GENERAL OF JAMAICA
TORONTO
MESSAGE BY
MR. KURT DAVIS
CONSUL-GENERAL
HERITAGE SINGERS CANADA
OLDE TYME BARNYARD FALL CONCERT
17th OCTOBER 2026
Now retired from office, it is a great pleasure to extend warm greetings and congratulations to the Heritage Singers (Canada) as you celebrate 49 remarkable years of preserving and promoting Jamaican culture and heritage.
For almost five decades, the Heritage Singers have used music, movement, language and storytelling to keep alive the traditions that help define us as a people. From your beginnings in Toronto in 1977, you have carried Jamaica's rich folk traditions across Canada and to audiences around the world.
Culture is among Jamaica's greatest treasures. Our music, language, folklore, dance and traditions tell the story of who we are, where we have come from, and the values and experiences that have shaped us. Preserving that heritage is especially important within the Diaspora, where each generation has a responsibility to pass it forward so that our children and grandchildren remain connected to their Jamaican roots.
The Heritage Singers have been faithful custodians of that legacy. Through your performances, you have not only entertained, but educated, connected generations and ensured that important elements of our cultural heritage continue to live and flourish.
As you present your “Olde Tyme Barnyard Fall Concert”, I commend Founder and Music Director Grace Lyons, the members of the Heritage Singers past and present, and all who have supported this enduring cultural institution.
May this 49th year be both a celebration of an extraordinary journey and a fitting prelude to the significant milestone of your coming Golden Anniversary.
Congratulations, and may the music, stories and traditions continue for generations to come.
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