by Mell P
On a crisp October evening in New York City, amid the glittering chandeliers of The Plaza Hotel, Jason Henzell, Chairman of Jakes Hotel in Jamaica and Co-Director of Food, Rum & Reggae Festival, stood before a room filled with philanthropists, diplomats, and Caribbean changemakers as he accepted a 2025 Hummingbird Award from American Friends of Jamaica (AFJ). For Henzell, the honor wasn’t about personal acclaim—it was about home.
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“Treasure Beach means a lot,” he said with quiet conviction. “It’s my life, my family’s life” he mentioned just a day earlier as I had sat with Henzell in a cozy dining room on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, alongside his wife Laura, sister Justine, and Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, the Hon. Edmund Bartlett. Over lunch, he recounted the story of how a modest seaside dream became one of Jamaica’s most beloved destinations—and a symbol of resilience and community renewal.
It all began in 1988, when Jason’s mother, Sally Henzell, founded Jakes, a tiny restaurant on the rugged southern coast of Jamaica’s Treasure Beach on a shoestring, he recalled. “Only German backpackers came back then,” Henzell laughed. At the time, he was a merchant banker in Kingston, but by 1995, he saw potential in the sleepy fishing village that his family grew to love, and so he joined her—and the rest, as they say, is history.
With help from family friend, music mogul Chris Blackwell, Jakes was plugged into the world. Travel writers came, word spread, and soon the property graced the pages of Condé Nast Traveler and even the cover of Travel + Leisure. “We had more coverage than rooms,” Jason joked. At the time, Jakes had just seven.
Today, the family’s influence stretches far beyond hospitality. What started as a boutique hotel has grown into a movement in sustainable tourism and community development. Jason and his family reinvested profits into Treasure Beach itself, building not just accommodations, but opportunities. They helped local farmers and fishermen, managed marine sanctuaries, and introduced programs like Play for the Mangroves, which connects youth sports with mangrove education and conservation. (Jamaica is now the third country to join this growing movement).
After Hurricane Beryl devastated the region in 2024, Henzell once again stepped up. Lovers’ Leap, a cliffside landmark he had helped transform into a restaurant and wedding venue, was severely damaged.
“We had no drinking water, no power,” he recalled. But under the rallying cry “Treasure Beach: Building Back with Love,” Jason mobilized local and diaspora communities from New Orleans, Cape Cod, London, and Kingston, raising over US$1 million. That money went to restoring roofs on more than 500 homes, supporting farmers and fishermen, and getting the village back on its feet.
Local children created art under the “Building Back with Love” theme, turning the slogan into a living testament of hope—displayed on hand-painted signs across town and even shared with Jamaica’s Prime Minister, The Hon. Andrew Holness.
Meanwhile, the Henzell family continues to reimagine what community-based tourism can look like. Jason’s wife plans a farm-to-table experience in Round Hill, St. Elizabeth, complete with goats, chickens, and sunset dinners under the stars. His sister, Justine Henzell, founded the now world-renowned Calabash International Literary Festival in 2000—named #1 by National Geographic among the world’s best literary festivals this year.
And the Henzell family continues to have big dreams for their beloved Treasure Beach, evidenced in part by the relaunch of the island’s iconic Food, Rum & Reggae Festival (coming November 7–9), and the many fundraising events led by Breds – Treasure Beach Foundation.
It’s all part of Henzell’s belief that tourism should empower, not exploit—a rising tide that lifts all boats. “This isn’t just about hotels,” he said. “It’s about creating an ecosystem where everyone—farmers, artists, fishermen—benefits from Jamaica’s beauty.”
At AFJ, Henzell stood not just as a hotelier or philanthropist, but as the heart of a movement—one that reminds the world that love, community, and sustainability are the true treasures of Treasure Beach.
