Anchovy High receives over $14 million from Montego Bay night run for post-Melissa recovery

Anchovy High School in St. James has received more than $14 million in cash and in-kind support through the Howard Ward Foundation, raised around the annual Montego Bay night run led by businessman Howard Ward, to help the institution recover from Hurricane Melissa.

The storm in October damaged the roofs of several classrooms. Pupils are now taught under stopgap arrangements that include a shift timetable, leaving them with far less contact time than a normal school day would allow.

School leaders said the foundation’s contribution would materially help rebuild the Dr Fidel Castro campus so that lower-school pupils in grades seven and eight can return to full-day lessons with a full teaching schedule, as before Melissa.

In recognition of the support, the school board has resolved to name one building on the Fidel Castro campus the Howard Ward Benefit Foundation building.

Organisers said the 2026 staging of the Montego Bay night run drew more than 7,000 entrants, calling it the best turnout yet and crediting that turnout with making the sizeable assistance to Anchovy High possible. A foundation representative described broad community backing and said the aim was to leave a lasting benefit for Jamaica and the school, while another speaker welcomed partnering with the foundation to channel the funds to the school for recovery work.