The Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival is almost here and organizers are working overtime to deliver big on Sunday, November 12, at Markham Park, Sunrise. Festivalgoers from all walks of life will enjoy a variety of mouthwatering jerk foods, entertaining cultural presentations, explosive performances, and the tournament domino lovers look forward to each year: Jerk Domino!

This year, the tournament will honor the life of Ruddy Schaaffe who passed away on May 17. He was the coordinator and director for the festival’s annual domino tournament.

“Ruddy was an avid domino player who worked tirelessly to elevate the game and bring worldwide recognition to domino as a sport,” says Abdul Muhsin, chairman of the board of JJFUSA, Inc. “His commitment and love for the sport was immeasurable and we will miss his ever-strong presence at the Jerk festival.”

Every year domino lovers vie for first place in the tournament, which gets off the ground at 12 noon. There’s a cash prize for 1st place to 8th place; but more importantly, players do it for the love of the game and bragging rights. Registration begins at 11 a.m. and ends at 11:45 a.m. Entry fee is $20.

Graig Zinn Automotive Group is the main sponsor of the Jerk Domino Ruddy Schaaffe Memorial Tournament, and the Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival will make a donation to the Ruddy Schaaffe Memorial Fund. If you’d like to make a donation, go to https://give.miamifoundation.org/Ruddy. Organizers are encouraging everyone to come early and enjoy the domino tournament and everything else the festival has to offer!

Tickets are on sale now atwww.jerkfestival.com or selected retail outlets in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach.

The 16th Annual Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival is presented by Jamaican Jerk Festival USA, Inc. in association with Partners for Youth Foundation. Sponsors are Grace Foods, Publix Supermarkets, Western Union, Guinness, Sprint, The Jamaica Tourist Board, Greater Ft. Lauderdale Visitors & Conventions Bureau, WAVS 1170, National Weekly and South Florida Times.