When Christmas nears, the Jamaican Christmas cakes start appearing. “The newspaper man gets a cake, the garbage man, the neighbor, the church, the school,” said Sonja Robinson, our Program Director in Jamaica.

“She makes 50 to 60 cakes!” Sonja said, about her older sister, Davine.

The Jamaican Christmas cake, also known as fruit cake, “is a cherished staple during the holiday season,” Sonja explained. “This richly spiced, moist, and dense cake is made with a variety of dried fruits, such as raisins, currants, and prunes, soaked in rum and red wine for an extended period. This cake is more than just a dessert—it is a reflection of the spirit of togetherness that defines the season.”

On Christmas Eve in Jamaica, a Grand Market is held in all major cities. It’s an entertaining shopping experience and a chance to buy unique last-minute gifts. There are also street parades that feature masked dancers and traditional music.

“But I’ve never been,” Sonja said. “My grandmother would tell us that you never go out on public holidays. It’s about family.”

Instead, Sonja and her family attend Mass on Christmas Eve. “We know how commercialized Christmas has become,” she said, “so we have gone out of our way to put the emphasis on the birth of Christ and time with our family.”

Then on Christmas Day, they go back to church to deliver homecooked foods that will be distributed to people in need. “My mom makes chicken, I’ll bake a ham, and my sister, Davine, brings one of her Jamaican Christmas cakes,” Sonja said. Volunteers at their church package and distribute the meals.

“We call it the ‘Feeding of the 5,000,’” Sonja explained, in reference to the Biblical account of Jesus feeding 5,000 people. “Although we don’t actually feed that many people.”

For Sonja and her family it’s Boxing Day, the day after Christmas, when they get a chance to relax, exchange gifts, and spend time with family. “Now that we’ve lost our grandparents and our dad, my siblings and I are cleaving to the older generation. We enjoy the time we get to spend and fellowship with them.”

For gifts on Boxing Day, Sonja explained that they’re typically educational presents. “My mom was a teacher, and we always got books for presents,” Sonja said. Her nephews and nieces still get educational gifts.

Then when it’s time for dinner, “we don’t make the traditional Jamaican dishes,” Sonja said. So besides Jamaican Christmas cake, what do they eat?

“Chinese food,” said Sonja. “My great-grandfather was Chinese, so we cook Chinese food on Boxing Day. And it has to be that. We can’t change the menu, we all look forward to it.”

International Samaritan is a Christ-centered organization built on Catholic Social Teaching. Our mission is to walk hand-in-hand with people who live and work in the garbage dumps of developing nations to help them break out of poverty.

We provide holistic scholarships for students from kindergarten through college, and we’re currently supporting 950 scholars in Central America, the Caribbean, and East Africa.

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Sonja M. Robinson, Program Director

Sonja holds a Ph.D. in Workforce Development and Education from Pennsylvania State University and a Master’s in Communication for Social and Behavior Change from the University of the West Indies. She has played the roles of counselor, mentor, trainer, and educator. Sonja believes in living a life of purpose and service.