Rusea's High School past students Sandra Humphrey (left) and Michelle Lovene Phillips were among members of the Rusea's High School's graduating Class of 1986 who turned out at the Grand Palladium Hotel at Point Estate in Lucea for the event. - Contributed photos

LUCEA, Hanover:

The Rusea's Old Students' Association (ROSA) registered a huge turnout at the eighth staging of its biannual international reunion gala dinner and awards presentation at the Grand Palladium hotel at Point Estate in Lucea, Hanover, on Saturday.

Scores of alumni, whose foundations were set at the Lucea-based high schoo, turned out to support the fund-raiser for the institution.

The school was built from a donation left in the will of French refugee Martin Rusea in 1777.

Several of ROSA's shining stars who have reached the peak in their respective occupational fields were honoured by the association. At the same time, several others made substantial monetary donations to the school's building fund.

Among the awardees were: Paul Elliot for his outstanding prowess in banking and finance; the school's vice-principal Linford Nelson for his contribution to education; dental surgeon Dr Rensiford Beckford for his contribution to medicine; Sharon Donaldson Levine for her outstanding achievement in the field of business; Dr Roy Streete for his global humanitarian work, and deceased former principal of the school, Colin 'Peasy' Miller, whose posthumous award was received by his widow, Velma Miller.

Among the huge gathering which included doctors, attorneys and lecturers were former Governor General Sir Kenneth Hall; president of the Court of Appeal, Justice Seymour Panton; Ronnie Rusea, the great-great-great granddaughter of Martin Rusea, founder of the school; current principal of the school, June Thompson; chairman of the school board, Denton Campbell; ROSA president, Lloyd Tomlinson; and a host of others from the New York, Canada, Miami and Atlanta chapters.

Martin Rusea's great-great-great granddaughter, Ronnie Rusea of the Rusea's Old Students' Association (ROSA) New York chapter, flanked by Horace Wright and June Thompson, at ROSA's eighth international reunion gala dinner and awards presentation on Saturday night.

From the class of '84, Vernal Farquharson Jr (right) shares a joke with president of the school's Parent-Teacher Association, Horace Wright.

President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Seymour Panton (left), a Rusea's graduate from Green Island in Hanover, chats with Rusea's Old Students' Association president, Lloyd Tomlinson.