A large contingent of councillors from the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation (KSAC) and private-sector workers yesterday flocked to the streets of the Corporate Area as part of the mayor's annual New Year's Day feeding programme.

Armed with boxes of food and juice, the corporate charitable donors sought to feed Jamaica's most vulnerable in the Corporate Area.

Mayor of Kingston Desmond McKenzie offered the first meal to 75-year-old Kenneth James Johnson on King Street, downtown Kingston.

Johnson was thankful for the meal and said he hoped 2009 would bring new opportunities for the younger generation.

Eighteen-year-old Dwayne Thomas says he has been homeless since his mother threw him out of the family home five months ago. He told The Gleaner he had not eaten over the festive holiday and welcomed the hot meal.

"I haven't eaten for two weeks, so to get something like this is amazing, it's just a blessing," Thomas said as he ate a meal of chicken, salad and rice and peas.

McKenzie told The Gleaner that the KSAC had prepared for the greater demand of vulnerable people. They expected to feed 700 to 1,000 people from downtown, Cross Roads, Half-Way Tree and up to Papine.

McKenzie said he hoped to establish a permanent shelter for the estimated 600 homeless people living on the streets in the Corporate Area.

McKenzie also told The Gleaner that he would like to leave the crime figures of 2008 behind.

"My hope for the New Year is that we have a more friendly and responsive Jamaica," he said.

tendai.franklyn-brown@gleanerjm.com