On December 29th, 1967, 16-year-old Jeffery Johnson lied about his age to the hiring manager of what was then Negril Beach Village. His claim of being 18 years old got him through the door as a Bar Porter and he has been in the hospitality industry ever since.

When asked why he lied about his age, the energetic 62-year-old laughingly stated that the reason was simple – high school was ending soon, and he needed a job. This bold move would set the teenager on a path to becoming one of the longest serving members of staff at Hedonism II to date.

Due to the robust training program in place, he was promoted to Bartender and eventually worked his way up to Bar Supervisor. By 1984, Jeffery Johnson was the Bar Manager at what was rebranded as the Hedonism II Resort.

During the 80s and early 90s, when the resort was a part of the Super Clubs collection of hotels, Jeffery retained his role as Bar Manager and was transferred to the Gran Lido Resort where his next promotions to Assistant Food and Beverage Manager, then Food & Beverage Manager would take place.

In 1996, he transferred to Hedonism II where he would work for the next 26 years and counting, as the Food and Beverage Manager.

But it wasn’t only on the job training that caused Jeffery’s success. During his work experience, he was able to take advantage of internal scholarship opportunities which aided him with securing diplomas in Food & Beverage as well as Hotel Management from the Western Hospitality Institute, an associate degree from Hocking College, and a Personal Development Program at Cornell University.

Jeffery has been married for 34 years and has five children with his wife, the youngest of which is 18 years old and has just started medical school.

If you ask, he will tell you that outside of working, his hobbies include squash and going to the gym. As many of you know, the squash court at Hedonism has been converted into the Kamasutra Palace but you can find Jeffery in the gym most evenings before the start of the dinner shift.

When he retires in the next three years, Jeffery plans to travel to Europe for three months and the rest of the world from there.