Blogs

St. Croix Source  ::  Carol Buchanan

At Sunny Isle amphitheater Saturday, around 100 fathers, mothers, guardians and children attended the Rally for the V.I. Fathers March, encouraging dads to take part in their kids’ school lives.

The rally was hosted by the Stop the Bleeding Foundation, whose founder, Cheryl Francis, urged fathers to take their children’s hands and help them go back to school Monday.

“Our focus is on fathers, and uplifting them, making them feel good,” Francis said.

Businesses were asked to give fathers two hours off that morning (with pay) to take their children to school. Under V.I. law, employees of the government are entitled to two hours off every month to participate in school activities involving their children.

Francis said in a statement that strong family structures produce children who are more academically proficient, socially developed and self-assured. These children become adults who are valuable assets to their communities.

Chief of Police Oakland Benta pleaded with fathers to be counted every step of the way with their children. Pastor Daniel McIntosh urged fathers to stay involved and help their children to be successful.

Rev. Reginald Perry encouraged dads to follow the family values of their own parents. “It is time to be the men God called us to be,” he said. “Let's be great men for our sons and daughters.”

And young martial arts students provided entertainment with jujitsu and karate demonstrations.

At the end of the rally, the men took a pledge to accompany their children back to school and were given T-shirts and a badge to wear Monday.

The rally coincides with the Back to School Days of Prayer Sunday when clergy will lead their congregations in prayer for returning teachers and students and to pray for the fathers to be with their children during the school year.

The Virgin Islands Daily News  ::  Cristian Simescu

Anything Goes Deli in Gallows Bay recently started offering locals a stateside experience in ice cream. Anything Goes Deli co-owner Roushedia Liburd said she and co-owner Julie Printy started serving ice cream mixed on a cold marble slab because she liked the method during her travels to Florida, New Hampshire and Canada.

Liburd said she wanted to be able to enjoy the ice cream more than once a year when she travels to the states and brought it to the island.

The ice cream and the mixings are easily combined without melting on the slab, which lays on top of a freezer.

“You pick your flavors and mixings, and we mix it right there in front of you,” Liburd said. They serve Edy’s and Island Dairies ice cream in flavors such as vanilla, chocolate, black cherry, espresso chip, orange sherbert, raspberry sorbet and birthday cake, she said.

The mixings include Oreos, Cameos, M&M’s, Nutter Butters, bananas, blueberries, pistachios, peanuts, almonds, sprinkles and more.

She describes the sandwiches they serve in the deli as “local with a twist” with daily specials.

Liburd bought the 19-year-old deli from the previous owners four years ago.

During the summer the business is open on Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. From October to May they extend their hours to 6 p.m. They are always closed on Sundays.

For information call 773-2777.

A season 10 sizzling opener with Mario Thomas, Lennox Joseph, Patrick Moss, Kent Moorehead, and Leslie Matthias - RHYTHMIX.-
5:30-6:30 Sunday Sept 5. Come with  Free Will Offering - we suggest $5 or more.

This YEAR, WE NEED YOU TO SHOW YOUR LOVE FOR THIS ART by coming as often as possible, bringing friends, and  adding $5 or more to the basket.
The Church has underwritten costs for 9 years - and they are being hit with the same economic realities as you and I.
Where else can you see a jazz quartet or quintet without being hustled for drinks, food or simply just :hustled"?

We've said it before, but the musicians are HIRED for this program - they do ample community service for their own churches, classmates, and relatives.

The AVIS ads are not free...neither are the posters and flyers and program booklet!

IF SCRC calls it quits in Dec. it's unlikely that it will be brought back. If  SCRC feels your love and support, up through December, here's what the Season will look like:

Oct -  Pangea (Steel Pan, Bass, jazz combo)
NOV_ JAZZMIN - Jacqueline King "A Singer's Singer" and Co.
DEC-  Otto James for Crucian Jazzmas Holiday sounds
JAN -  Mekiel Reuben - will come blow his horn!!!
FEB - Marsvyn David - His original compositions mesmerized us 2 years ago
MAR -Central High Jazz Band - always watch out for these young  'uns
April- Neil Simon - Bass basics and much more
MaY- Brian Silber-Jazz Violinist extraordinaire!!
jUNE - Steve Katz ..- the side of Steve you don't always see!!

LET'S GET THROUGH THESE TOUGH TIMES TOGETHER WITH THE SOUND OF GOOD MUSIC AT OUR BACK.

~Claudette Young Hinds/ Adjoa

St. Croix Source  ::  Bill Kossler

Once mold remediation is completed at the Frederiksted Health Center, repairs will begin -- and as for moving back in, "the plan is for around spring of next year," clinic Executive Director Masserae Sprauve-Webster said in Senate budget hearings Friday.

The clinic's Frederiksted facility has been closed for mold remediation since April of 2008, when operations moved to a wing of the Herbert Grigg Home for the Aged in Kingshill, about a 15-minute drive from the Frederiksted center. Mold cleanup, along with some minor renovations and a major air-conditioning overhaul, was meant to last four to five months. But delays in funding helped delay the work.

Webster and clinic management presented a 2011 budget of just under $1.9 million during Friday's hearing of the Appropriation and Budget Committee in Frederiksted. The sum is $371,000 more than the governor's recommended 2011 budget of $1.4 million and more than its 2010 appropriation by the same amount. Last year, the clinic made up the difference with internal program funds generated by fees for services, Webster said.

"The program revenues are meant to fund expansions in service, which we are not able to do," she said. "And right now we have quite a few vacancies, so this would allow us to have the staff that we need."

For the last 10 years, Frederiksted Health Care Inc. has run the clinic as a private nonprofit organization with federal and local funding, along with fee for service revenue. It has a mandate to provide health care without regard to ability to pay. It also operates the school-based health center at St. Croix Educational Complex. Splitting off from the local government allowed the clinic to access more federal funding, largely in the form of Ryan White grants for HIV/AIDS prevention and care.

The clinic expects another $1.68 million in federal funding and $500,000 from fees for services this year. Combined, the clinic's projected total budget from all sources is $4.04 million, an increase of $654,000 from 2010.

Out of the $1.9 million local funding, $1.1 million will go for personnel wages and salaries; another $381,000 for benefits, $150,000 for utilities, $50,000 for telephone bills and communications and $150,000 for other services.

Patient volume is increasing at the clinic, according to data its staff provided the Senate. In 2009, the clinic had 13,656 patient visits; 10,404 in 2008; and 9,569 in 2007. In 2009, 20 percent were uninsured, 55 percent had Medical Assistance Program coverage, which is the name for Medicaid in the territory; 14 percent were on Medicare; and 12 percent had private insurance.

No bills were voted upon during the information-gathering hearing. Present were James, Sens. Craig Barshinger, Terrence "Positive" Nelson and Sammuel Sanes. Absent were Sens. Carlton "Ital" Dowe, Louis Hill and Patrick Sprauve.

St. Croix Source  ::  John Baur

Although Gov. John deJongh Jr. stood up his three Democratic rivals at a gubernatorial debate Thursday night, the biggest stir of the evening came when an uninvited guest sneaked onto the stage.

All four Democratic hopefuls had been invited to attend at St. Croix Educational Complex, but on Wednesday the organizers said that deJongh would not be attending. He is attending only a Democratic Party candidate’s night scheduled for Sept. 2, the letter said.

That left his three rivals – Adlah “Foncie” Donastorg, Gerard “Luz” James and James A. O’Bryan – to take turns answering questions on a range of topics, from the economy and the Government Employees Retirement System, to crime, schools and alternative energy.

There was little in the way of disagreements between the men and no disputes or acrimony. They all expressed regret that the governor wasn’t on stage with them, but their criticism was muted, rarely mentioning him by name and couching their remarks in terms of needing to lead the territory in a “new direction.”

And each thought he was the best man to do the leading.

Shortly after a break in the three-hour session, as the candidates were preparing to take a question on the proposed V.I. constitution, people in the front of the auditorium stirred and several rose hastily from their seats and hurried up the aisle toward the back.

A rat had strolled into the room – and not a small one – making its way across the front of the hall oblivious to the shrieks and laughter. As the audience of about 100 stood—craning to see the creature that scurried to the right-hand stairs leading up to the stage, then dashed behind the curtain and off into the darkness of the backstage area—the candidates didn’t flinch.

O’Bryan and James sat stoically at their places, and at the microphone Donastorg smiled out at the audience, taking a tentative step toward the wings as if to encourage the rat to leave.

Then he returned to the mike and got off the night’s best line.

“I think the other candidate showed up,” he said.

All three blamed the deJongh administration for the problem of uncollected property taxes, and bemoaned that by the time the legal wrangle is resolved property owners may be have to come up with as much as four years in back payments.

O’Bryan suggested forgiving two years, Donastorg one and James said he was open to considering that option.

They all said they would sign the proposed constitution if it is approved by voters, called for projects that would give the islands’ youths more productive uses of their time, and all three agreed that they are against public corruption.

Candidates responses to other issues included:

• James said the Anguila Landfill on St. Croix is an obstacle to air traffic, and mentioned that a company on Puerto Rico is burning that island’s waste to create energy. Such a project might be able to level the landfill back to its old size, he said, while reducing energy costs. He also suggested the use of shredders to dispose of old tires, saying the shredded material can be used in a variety of ways, including landscaping. He suggested the Department of Education should improve the teaching of technical skills, such as pipe fitting and welding, and suggested a teacher bonus for perfect attendance as one way of dealing with a teacher shortage.

• Donastorg suggested building a sports complex on St. Croix, a venue large enough to draw big events, promoting sports tourism. “St. Croix is the ideal place to invest in that infrastructure.” He also wants to encourage more airlines to fly into the territory, and said he has been in talks with major companies, such as Revlon, about exporting aloe for use in their products.

On education, housing, GERS, alternative energy and other issues, Donastorg said he would have discussions with all interested stakeholders to seek new solutions and ideas.

• O’Bryan suggested the territory’s ports could become a center for transshipment. He cautioned that the territory should be planning for the likely opening up of Cuba in this decade and the repercussions that may have on local tourism and industry. He urged the development of agriculture and aquaculture, said the territory can be a world leader in adopting alternative energy projects, such as solar and wind power.

All three expressed support for the Democratic Party of the Virgin Islands, but stopped short of agreeing to endorse the party’s candidate, whoever might be the winner of the Sept. 11 primary.

Thursday's debate was organized by Reclaim Our Islands and Unite Our People Community Organization in conjunction with Our Town Frederiksted and Frederiksted Economic Development Association.

St. Croix Source  ::  Pamela Reid

In a ceremony before family, friends and the “extended family” of the V.I. National Guard, Capt. Clayton A. Sutton became Maj. Clayton A. Sutton Thursday at the Armory on St. Thomas.

Sutton, a recipient of the Bronze Star, enlisted with the V.I. Guard 18 years ago and many of his former commanding officers, fellow enlistees and subordinates joined in the ceremony.

Deployed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, since November, Sutton serves as the training officer and is tasked with ammunition management, defense-readiness reporting and the detainee standardization program.

It was obvious Thursday that Sutton, a graduate of the Officers Candidate School at Fort Benning, Ga., is well thought of in the ranks.

Spec. Dominique Hedrington recalls the day she started with VING and how Sutton, her commander, made her feel welcome.

She recalls Sutton’s speech to the new recruits vividly. “That is when I made up my mind to stay, and said ‘Yeah, I think I might make a career out of this,’” Hedrington said.

First Sgt. Lennie Reed recalled serving with Sutton during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

“It was all business,” Reed said, though they were regularly under fire from mortar attacks. “Rockets were always coming into the area.”

Reed said that one of their missions was to provide security to civilian vehicles, as well as to provide drinking water for everyone in Iraq.

“We were pretty good at it,” Reed said. “It was a major distribution point.”

Accepting his promotion, Sutton praised two of his mentors, Brig. Gen. Cleave A. McBean and Director Harold Baker, with whom he served at VITEMA.

Clayton also lauded his co-workers at Guantanamo, who missed the ceremony, and praised his wife of 14 years, Lorna, his daughter Lornali and son Kobe, who thinks he may follow in his father’s footsteps someday.

“I like helping people who don’t have what we have,” Kobe said.

The Virgin Islands Daily News  ::  Joy Blackburn

William Coles, chief of environmental education for the Department of Planning and Natural Resources Fish and Wildlife Division, has a new tool in the fight against invading Pacific lionfish: a live Pacific lionfish.

Coles uses the Pacific lionfish, which a dive instructor scooped up in a box recently in about 30 feet of water in Cane Bay, as a visual aid when he does educational outreach.

“It’s important, so they can understand how the fish looks while it’s swimming,” Coles said. “Until you see it moving, you just don’t have that connect of how it operates and how it might look in the ocean.”

The striped fish with fanlike fins and venomous dorsal spines is a non-native species and is different from the scorpionfish, which is sometimes called “lionfish” locally.

The Pacific lionfish has a voracious appetite for smaller fish and has no known predators in the Caribbean.

Local biologists and others fear that the invading fish could wreak havoc on the territory’s coral reefs and fisheries and eventually on the business sector, including the tourism industry.

A local public education campaign and a grassroots group of dedicated divers, snorkelers and fishermen who are keeping an eye out for the fish — and killing them when they’re spotted — has helped curb the invasion.

The 2-inch Pacific lionfish captured alive in Cane Bay now swims around in a small aquarium in Coles’ office, occasionally fanning its fins out in an impressive display.

Coles said his observations of his live specimen have revealed behaviors of which he was unaware.

One of those behaviors is that at night, the fish would float upside down, just below the surface of the water, he said.

When the lights came on or the fish sensed motion, it would right itself and drop to the bottom of the tank, Coles said.

That has led Coles to hypothesize that the species may have found its way into local waters by floating along surface currents when feeding is inadequate in one location.

“That may be how they end up settling in the islands,” he said, adding that after storms around Easter, “we all of a sudden had a lot of lionfish about the same size.”

Coles said Wednesday that 119 Pacific lionfish have been captured in local waters, around all three islands. They ranged in size from one that was just more than an inch long to one that was 14 inches long.

Wildlife officials are asking the public to mark the area if they spot a lionfish and report it.

Coles said he believes the live fish will be very helpful in educational outreach, particularly now that school is starting.

“It's helpful to see something alive, to see how it moves,” he said. “We can take it to schools to make presentations to kids. They need to know this is what it it looks like. This is what you don’t touch. Mainly for safety, we want to make sure people don’t get hurt by these.” T

hose who would like Coles to do an educational presentation on Pacific lionfish can call 773-1082. T

o report a lionfish sighting, call 693-1393 on St. Thomas;  773-1082 or 643-0800 on St. Croix; and 693-8950 ext. 225 or 224 on St. John.

St. Croix Source  ::  Source Staff

A wide selection of the works of the highly regarded, late St. Croix artist Leo Carty, who died in July, will be on display for a special exhibition this Friday evening at Fort Frederik.

Carty, born in Harlem, New York, in 1931, Carty's artistic talent was recognized at age 10 when he received a scholarship to the Museum of Modern Art School for Children. He dedicated his entire life to the arts and traveled throughout the world sharing his talent.

After a long and prolific career, including working as a syndicated cartoonist, illustrating numerous books and creating a greeting card company aimed at blacks, he moved to St. Croix in 1976 and began to expand his style and mediums.

In 1996 he received his highest honor when he was selected as a recipient of the Governor’s First Awards for Excellence in the Arts for "exceptional contribution toward the advancement of the visual arts in the Virgin Islands.”

He often used the historical structures of St. Croix as a focal point in his paintings and frequently painted realistic local figures in period dress from the early 1900s. The paintings, done in oils, acrylics and watercolors, are lifelike scenes of people fishing on the beach, women working together, or weddings at the Lutheran church in Christiansted.

Some of Carty's large paintings are hanging in the halls of the Buccaneer Resort. He painted a three-paneled mural of life on St. Croix, St. John and St. Thomas in the Alric L. Christian Federal Building and Court House in Orange Grove.

The exhibition will be from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Friday in the Fort Frederik Museum. It is being put on with the help of Carty's family and the support of the Department of Planning and Natural Resources, which operates the Fort Frederik Museum.

Make sure you and your family are at Rhythms at Rainbow Beach, Frederiksted, from 1:00-10:00 pm on Sunday, September 5th, or you’ll miss out on the biggest beach music fest on island - St. Croix Reef Jam!!!  This fun-filled event is in its third year and will feature live music from Deanna Brown, Marisol y Los Drunk Dumplins, Kurt Schindler and Fyah Train. 

There will be raffles throughout the day, and guest speakers including Delegate to Congress, Donna M. Christensen, and President of the V.I. Resource Conservation & Development Council, Diane Capehart, as well as fun activities like fish & squid dissections and FREE snorkel clinics at our Reeftivity Zone.  The St. Croix East End Marine Park’s EcoVan will also be on hand to provide a unique hands-on exploration with their saltwater touch tank.

  “We are beyond excited for Reef Jam this year,” says Project Manager, Melanie L. Feltmate, “we are working closely with the Recycling Association of the Virgin Islands, the V.I. Waste Management Authority and our vendors to make our event as green as possible, and we’ve got a fantastic schedule of events lined up.”  Feltmate advises Reef Jammers to check out the website, www.ReefJam.com, for the schedule of events and important updates.  An enthusiastic Feltmate says, “It only costs $5 to get in to Reef Jam and to celebrate our islands reefs, so bring the whole family!”  

Founded during International Year of the Reef 2008 by Kurt and Janelle Schindler, St. Croix Reef Jam is a grass-roots organization dedicated to improving the health of our coral reefs through community education, stewardship and conservation programs that promote positive behavior changes toward our marine environment.  The 3rd annual Reef Jam is a family-friendly fundraiser and all proceeds raised at the event will go back to the community through a Mini-Grant Program where any community organization, school, non-profit, government agency or individual with a project aligned with the Reef Jam mission is eligible to apply.  

Reef Jam committee members were recently honored as the Coastal Zone Managements Organization of the Year for 2009, and were selected as winners of the prestigious 2009 U.S. EPA Environmental Quality Award, bringing national recognition to our island’s beautiful coral reefs!   

Reef Jam 2010 is sponsored by HOVENSA, Bellows International, Heineken, Plaza Extra, Spencer Ocean Services, Kurt & Janelle Schindler, and receives fiduciary services from the Virgin Islands Resource Conservation & Development Council, Inc. (V.I. RC&D). Visit www.reefjam.com, follow us on Facebook, or contact Project Managers Janelle Schindler at 340-643-6095 or Melanie L. Feltmate at ReefJamSTX@gmail.com.

St. Croix Source  ::  Molly Morris

UVI President David Hall became the newest member of Rotary Club of St. Thomas II Wednesday, an honorary title, which Hall graciously accepted.

In less than a year, Hall – who replaced outgoing president LaVerne Ragster on Aug. 1, 2009 – has taken an active role in university and community affairs, and according to the reception he was awarded at his inauguration in March, has secured affections and respect of the university's faculty, board of trustees and students.

Hall spoke strongly of the connection between values the Rotary Clubs and communities demand from their members. He noted the "great synergy and connection between the university and the Rotary ideals, rooted in the ideal of service above self.

"It is an honor to be a part of Rotary – Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build good will and better friendships? Will it be beneficial to all concerned?" Hall said, commenting on Rotary values too soon overlooked.

"We become obsessed with results," Hall said. "We forget there are other values, concepts that aren't easily addressed, that are a challenge. With those values woven into our daily lives, we could transform the world."

Garnering a laugh, Rotary II President Erik Baynes reminded Hall of one other value held dear to his particular club: "Will it be fun for all?"

A preeminent scholar in the field of law, Hall is a former dean of Northeastern University School of Law and was the first black to hold that position. He later was appointed provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Northeastern, where he oversaw significant growth in the university’s external research funding, retention rate and overall academic standing.

He was also instrumental in establishing Northeastern’s Urban Law and Public Policy Institute, which brought together community activists, government officials and academicians.

Speaking later, past president and board member Erva Denham said that Ragster had proposed Hall for the honorary title. "LaVerne was an honorary member, herself," Denham said. "Once that post was finished, she was able to become a full-fledged regular member. It seemed rather nice to have a sequence of [membership] proposals of UVI presidents."

The diminutive Ragster certainly thought so, grinning widely as she reached to the skies to pin the towering Hall, a former basketball star.

Hall spoke of his aspirations to take UVI from being a good school to "greatness." He added that more students need to graduate.

While the school's one-year student retention rate [75 percent] is above many other peer institutions, its six-year graduation rate of 25 percent, he said, is "unacceptable," adding that UVI is losing over three-fourths of the students who initially enroll.

Noting the "crisis with young males in the territory," Hall highlighted UVI Brothers with a Cause, an initiative created to speak to public schools and "encourage young men to come to UVI and to stay.

In the program, Hall said, UVI students "mentor the young men throughout their college career."

Speaking before the meeting, Hall said 70 Charlotte Amalie High School students had attended the group's initial meeting. Responding to an audience question, Hall said the program will be extended to young women in the future, especially single mothers.

Receiving a huge hand from the audience, Hall said UVI will be instituting a Hotel and Hospitality course by fall of 2011.

"It's about time," the audience almost said in unison. Hall said the course would be guided by local hotel experts, as well as from the prestigious Johnson and Wales Culinary School.

Other goals include including St. John in UVI's teleconferencing network, and for the university to "go green," with environmental programs, which Hall said will "nurture my heart and create more friends in my new home."

In response to a question about why UVI did not provide its employees' salaries for a recent Daily News report, Hall said UVI did not release individual salary information to the paper because it is a "quasi-government" institution and that, according to its legal counsel, it wasn't obliged to do so.

He said UVI had offered to supply the jobs and salaries, but not the names. The Daily News refused that offer, he said.