It was a cheerful and bright atmosphere at the annual Baby Show organised by Johnson Mead. To mark the milestone of 10 years, Mead established scholarships for the winners of the different sections. He was hailed for his contributions by the Governor General Sir Clifford Campbell.

Published Wednesday, JULY 29, 1970

Olac champion baby chosen

A lively, bouncing 28 lb, 17-month-old baby boy, Andrew Webley, son of Mr and Mrs Seymour Webley of Mandeville was crowned the Olac Champion Baby of the Year by His Excellency, Governor General Sir Clifford Campbell yesterday afternoon. The occasion was the second of the two 10th anniversary pre-Independence baby shows held by Mead Johnson and the Carib Theatre.

Baby Webley will receive as his major prize a scholarship award for $200 to be placed on trust and will be made available to him at the age of 12 for higher education.

A special feature this year to mark their 10th anniversary was the establishment of a scholarship fund for $500, named the Sir Clifford Campbell Scholarship award.

This year's winner drawn from a drum by Sir Clifford was Dawn Thompson, 17-month-old daughter of Miss Myrtle Barnolt of Kingston. This award will be given every five years and is to be placed in trust for the higher education of the winner.

The show was officially opened by Sir Clifford who congratulated Mead Johnson for organizing the show each year. The Olac Baby Show, Sir Clifford said, had become a household name in Jamaica. Commenting on the packed theatre, Sir Clifford said that this served to bring truth to the fact that Mead Johnson had established himself through his products in the history of Jamaica.

Through Mead Johnson, Sir Clifford said, many mothers and their babies were relieved of the situation many years ago when children suffered from malnutrition.

He observed that the number of babies entering had increased in previous years and with them the number of doctors and nurses taking part. He congratulated the doctors and nurses for doing an excellent job in contributing to the growth of the children. Mead Johnson also came in for congratulations from Sir Clifford for their formation of the scholarship fund. The future of the country, Sir Clifford said, rests solidly in the youths of today. These babies he said would grow up into boys and girls then into young men and women and finally into the future adults of Jamaica.

Reporting on the contest, one of the 16 judges, Dr Roland Richmond said that for the years he had been involved in judging the competition, this year's crop of babies had been the finest that he had seen. It seemed he said, that a great number of mothers were becoming conscious of the need for nutrition. This he said, was bound to be a good thing in Jamaica if we are to build a good Jamaica.

Prizes to the winners in the various categories of the competition were presented by Lady Campbell and complimentary presentations to Lady Campbell and the judges were made by “Little” Olac nurses.

The presentation of the scholarship award to the champion baby was made by Lorraine Tate, the 1983 Olac Champion Baby.

Other prize winners in the show were in the age group 6-9 months, first prize went to Gary Walton, second prize to Gaydon Mills and third prize to Wayne DeLisser.

In the age group 10-12 months, the first prize went to Isabel Black, the second prize to Camille Vernon and the third prize to Robert Clunie.

Age group 13-15 months, first prize went to Martin Keane, second prize to Dominic Roughton and third prize to Wayne Markland. For the age group 16-24 months, the first prize went to Deborah Salmon, the second prize to Deborah Chen and the third prize to Yolande Bramwell. And in the age group 25-36 months, the first prize went to Marcelle Swenney, the second prize to Carlyle Gordon and the third prize to Rory McGregor.

The emcee for the show was Mr G.O. Gallimore, director of Youth for Christ. A vote of thanks was given by Mr Hugh Rose, vice-president and general manager of Mead Johnson Jamaica Ltd.

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