The Brooklyn-based St. Vincent and the Grenadines Girls High School Alumni New York on Sunday, May 3, honored prominent dentist and humanitarian Dr. Jacqueline Gaymes-Jones during an elaborate Tea Party at 434 Dewitt Avenue in Brooklyn.
“Her connection to her home country has never wavered,” said GHS Alumni New York Treasurer Maxine Mayers before presenting the award to Dr. Gaymes-Jones before the sell-out patrons. “She continued her humanitarian efforts by organizing and contributing relief during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the eruption of La Soufrière (volcano) in 2021 and Hurricane Beryl in 2024.”
“Closer to home, she remains deeply involved in her local community, offering free dental screenings at health fairs throughout Essex County (New Jersey),” she added. “Her work made her decided to have her own mission, Universal Medical Mission, which is yet another reflection of her lifelong commitment to service.
“You could spend hours listing Dr. Gaymes’ humanitarian work, but that still wouldn’t fully capture the comprehensive list,” Mayers continued. “If you ever try to reach her, the first question everyone asks is always, ‘Are you in St. Vincent or the States?’ Because there’s a good chance she’s moving, serving, building, or giving of herself in some way.”
“Her children often say she retired five years ago, but those who know her best would simply smile at the thought, because she has never truly slowed her down,” Mayers said.
Even today, she said Dr. Gaymes-Jones continues to practice at her private dental clinic of 30 years in Irvington, NJ, alongside her husband, Dr. Sivi Jones, and their two daughters, Drs. Nicole Jones and Racquel Jones.
“Yet, her work has never been confined to one place,” Mayers said. “When she returns home to St. Vincent (and the Grenadines), she remains in constant motion, walking through town, organizing supplies, overseeing renovations to her villa in Friendship, Bequia, or quietly stepping in wherever family, friends, or community members need her most.”
She said Dr. Gaymes-Jones’s life is defined “not only by her profession but by her presence in the lives of others.”
“She is someone people turn to without hesitation, trusting that she will show up fully, firmly, and with purpose,” Mayers said. “She leads with a philosophy rooted in tough love, hard work, and unwavering kindness to all, offering strength when needed and compassion without condition.”
She said Dr. Gaymes-Jones’s commitment to service extends “far beyond the clinic.”
Over the years, she said Dr. Gaymes-Jones has led and participated in several humanitarian efforts both locally and abroad.
In 2004, 2005, and 2018, Mayers said Dr. Gaymes-Jones spearheaded outreach missions in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, serving communities in Chateaubelair, Kingstown, Georgetown, and Bequia.
Working alongside teams of healthcare professionals and in collaboration with St. George’s Medical School, Mayers said she helped provide comprehensive care including medical exams, dental treatments, extractions, OB/GYN services, medications, and even free eyeglasses for those in need.
Mayers said Dr. Gaymes-Jones also served other countries, such as Haiti and Grenada, and contributed by organizing dental services in Belize and Jamaica.
For the first 12 years of her life, Mayers said Dr. Gaymes-Jones traveled to Union Island in the southern St. Vincent Grenadines, and each clinic along the leeward side of mainland St. Vincent with her parents, Daniel Gaymes and Ena Lewis, and her four siblings, Steve, Jimmy, Jen, and Pat.
Mayers said Dr. Gaymes-Jones’s father, a dedicated pharmacist, served communities in St. Vincent and the Grenadines before opening his own pharmacy on Grenville Street in Kingstown, the Vincentian capital, in 1988.
At 16, Mayers said Dr. Gaymes-Jones left home, first moving to Canada and then to the United States, settling in New Jersey to continue her education.
Mayers said she began her journey at Essex County College and Fairleigh Dickinson University, with the goal of becoming a dental hygienist.
“She often reflects on the influence of her father, who was often the only accessible healthcare provider for many in his community,” Mayers said. “His role extended far beyond that of a pharmacist. At times, he was the doctor, the dentist, and the person people trusted most.”
“Inspired by his dedication, she pushed forward with determination,” she added. “In fact, the ink on her dental hygiene diploma had barely completed before she took the next step, enrolling at the University of Medicine and Dentistry to pursue her Doctor of Dental Medicine.
“To say Dr. Gaymes is hardworking would be an understatement,” Mayers continued. “While enrolled in dental school, she continued working as a hygienist, all while helping support and care for her family.”
In 1993, Mayers said Dr. Gaymes-Jones earned her doctoral degree, and, by the following year, she was already deepening her clinical training through a General Practice Residency at Columbia University in New York.
There, Mayers said she worked closely with the College of Dental Medicine’s Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, “gaining invaluable experience in a hospital-based setting.”
During her residency, Mayers said Dr. Gaymes-Jones treated patients with complex medical conditions, developmental disabilities and geriatric complications — “patients who required not just clinical skill, but patience, empathy, and compassion.”
Mayers said that experience “helped shape the kind of dentist she would become: one committed not just to treating teeth, but to caring for people, especially those most in need.”
In her acceptance speech, Dr. Gaymes-Jones said she was “deeply honored” to receive the award from the Girls High School Alumni group.
She said that, in 2002, she started her “journey” in volunteering with medical groups, visiting, among other places, Grenada, Haiti, Belize, Jamaica and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Dr. Gaymes-Jones said that, in 2004 and 2005, she provided medical services to St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and donated food, supplies and housing “when natural disasters occurred.”
“Today, I have my own nonprofit organization, called Universal Medical Mission,” she said. “I am still actively donating medical supplies to those who are in need here in America and back home.
“I would like to thank my husband Dr. Sivi Jones, daughter Drs. Nicole and Racquel Jones, and my friends who I consider my family,” Dr. Games-Jones added. “A special thank you to all my donors: You have made my missionary work a success. We were able to put a smile on a lot of faces.”
She subsequently disclosed that she was instrumental in the raising of the Vincentian flag, for the very first time, in October 2022, at City Hall in Newark, NJ.
Sunday’s Tea Party also featured a fashion show by Vincentian designer Shernicia Mayers, renowned for creating elegant custom-made, modest, and ready-to-wear garments.
Her designs gained international attention after sewing for Jamaican dancehall artist Vybz Kartel.
Shernicia Mayers has also showcased her work at major events, including London Fashion Week, Paris Fashion Week, New York Fashion Week, Mission Catwalk in Jamaica, and at several fashion shows across the Caribbean.
