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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.

Nica Naturals, a New Orleans-based company specializing in natural products for bath, body, hair and home was a featured exhibitor at the exclusive and official Gifting Suite for the 2010 Miss Universe® pageant at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas on August 22nd and 23rd.

Founded in 2007 by Benardett Jno-Finn, former resident of F’sted, St. Croix and a 2001 graduate of the St. Croix Educational Complex now residing in New Orleans, La., Nica Naturals’ products were enthusiastically received by pageant contestants, celebrity judges and recording artists at the two-day event. Guests received their choice of the company’s bestselling Sweetness Shea Butter Moisturizers, Caress Me Bath Salts, Bay Bay Brown Sugar Scrubs and Lavender Mist Soy Candles. Celebrities who received Nica Naturals products included Brett Michaels, Natalie Morales, Jane Seymour, Robin Leach, The Roots, Shiela E., Will.i.am and Chynna Baldwin.

Benardett Jno-Finn, founder, said her company’s inaugural participation in the high-profile event was an unforgettable experience.

“This has been a wonderful experience. Everyone was so gracious and eager to sample the products. I have put my heart into the development of these products and to receive such an overwhelmingly positive response from the contestants and celebrity guests has further affirmed the appeal of the Nica Naturals product line,” she said.

The Miss Universe pageant is distributed to 195 countries and territories, and garners a viewing audience of over 1 billion annually. The televised competition comprised of 83 contestants who compete in three categories: swimsuit, evening gown and interview.

About Nica Naturals:

Founded in 2007, Nica Naturals is a New Orleans-based company whose mission is to promote a holistic approach to health, beauty, wellness and restoration by providing quality natural products for bath, body, hair and home. Product offerings are complimented by resources that link nutrition and a healthy lifestyle as integral parts of achieving natural beauty. Current product offerings include bath salts, brown sugar scrubs, shea butter moisturizers, soaps and soy candles. For more information, visit us online at www.nicanaturals.com.

St. Croix Source  ::  Carol Buchanan

To start the school year off right, WTJX Channel 12 and its partners launched a campaign against obesity with a Back to School Jamboree Saturday on St. Croix, on the heels of a jamboree Aug. 14 on St. Thomas at Tutu Park Mall.

“We want to provide exposure to children about developing positive health habits at an early age,” said Yvette deLaubanque, development officer at WTJX. “And we want to let children know going back to school can be fun.”

The lawn at Fort Christiansvaern was alive with children dancing with life-size cartoon characters from PBS such as Clifford the Big Red Dog, Super Why, Alpha Pig, Word Girl, and Langford the Lizzard, WTJX's mascot.

There was music, dance performances and free giveaways of school supplies, fitness items, and books.

Piles of Scholastic Books were given out to students for the Governor's Summer Reading Challenge.

Angeli Ferdschneider, special assistant to Gov. John deJongh Jr., said the students could have as many books as they wanted to help build their own home library. She said the students could still sign up for the summer reading challenge that was sponsored by the governor.

Shevron Phillips, 11, said he had read five books over the summer and he picked out five more.

“I like to read, and I'm happy to get books that I can keep,” Phillips said.

There were physical fitness demonstrations performed for the crowd gathered under the blazing sun.

Aerobics and stretching demonstrations were given by Curves instructors. Sen. Terrence “Positive” Nelson, black belt instructor at the St. Croix Martial Arts Center King Cobra School of Taekwondo, and three yellow belt students gave an impressive demonstration of Taekwondo kicking techniques.

DJ Vic, V.I. Superior Court Rising Stars Steelband, Calypso Inc. and King Derby Banjo Players provided musical entertainment.

St. Croix Animal Welfare Center, V.I. Energy Office, Job Corps, Learning Network Foundation, V. I. National Guard, School of the Good Shepherd, St. Croix Dolphins, VI Care, Youth Net, and Grove Place Weed & Seed had representatives giving out freebies and information.

For the fifth year FirstBank, WTJX and the National Park Service, in its second year, have hosted the jamboree. This year Subway is joining forces to help fight obesity. Subway plans to add a healthy kids meal to its menu.

The V.I. Pace Runners club is also partnering with WTJX hosting walk/run races beginning in November on St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John. Residents can get information on the races and register their exercise practices at the Pace website. Representing the Pace Runners, Wallace Williams said Virgin Islanders needed to focus on healthy lifestyles, and “There is no better way to have that focus strengthened than to have an organization like WTJX focusing on it.”

St. Croix Source  ::  Bill Kossler

The National Park Service will hold an open house Thursday in Christiansted, providing copies of a recently completed study on the feasibility of making Castle Nugent Farms a unit of the National Park System, as well as answering questions and getting public feedback.

"This is the final step in the study that has taken over three years," National Park Superintendent Joel Tutein said Friday. A bill sponsored by Delegate Donna Christensen to establish Castle Nugent on St. Croix as a National Historic Site under the management of the National Park Service has already passed the U.S. House of Representatives and is now before the U.S. Senate, Tutein said.

The Park Service is taking comments on the study through Sept. 15, he said. The study is available online and residents may comment online there as well. However, those who come to the open house next Thursday will be able to directly question and speak with Park Service representatives involved with the study.

"This is a great opportunity for people to come out, get the study and see why the property has national significance," Tutein said. "To become a unit of the National Park System, you have to show that you meet the criteria for national significance and Castle Nugent met all of them."

A bill introduced to Congress by Christensen first submitted legislation for a feasibility study -- a prerequisite for becoming a park -- back in 2006. But the Gasperi family, one of the main landowners in the area, first broached the idea at least as far back as 2003.

In 2006, Congress directed the Secretary of the Interior to undertake a study of Castle Nugent Farms on the island of St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. The Castle Nugent Farms Study Act (Public Law 109-317, October 11, 2006) directs the Secretary to study the suitability and feasibility of designating Castle Nugent Farms as a unit of the National Park System, and for other purposes.

The proposed park site abuts the parcel by Great Pond slated for the Golden Gaming casino development and is roughly bordered by the Howard M. Wall Boy Scout Camp, Estate Fareham and Manchenil Bay, just west of Ha’Penny Beach. Inland, it runs as far as Lowrys Hill and Laprey Valley. The bill says it will include associated submerged lands out to the three-mile territorial limit.

The Castle Nugent property has a long agricultural history dating back to the 1730s, when the Danish estate house, now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was constructed. For the past several decades, the property has been used to raise Senepol cattle. Senepol are a breed developed on St. Croix and prized for their resilience in tropical climes. Christensen's bill would help ensure continued rearing of Senepol cattle with a provision that guarantees a continued relationship with the University of the Virgin Islands to support ongoing scientific research of the cattle.

The open house will be from 1:30 to 6 p.m. in Christiansted in the Danish West India Guinea Company Warehouse (Old Post Office Building) at 2100 Church Street, no. 100. For more information, call 773-1460.

St. Croix Source  ::  Carol Buchanan

Rotary Club of St. Croix members and guests learned Thursday that CHANT is a lot more than just a clever acronym for Crucian Heritage and Nature Tourism.

Guest speaker Frandelle Gerard, executive director of CHANT, told the dozen Rotarians gathered at Gertrude's Restaurant that CHANT helps local artisans and hobbyists turn their expertise into valid tourism businesses.

They do so by helping develop local tours and marketing stateside with tour operators and cruise lines.

“We want to establish St. Croix as a leading heritage and nature tourism destination,” Gerard said. “This is a unique opportunity to promote our natural resources in our cultural heritage and ecotourism.”

Some of the CHANT tours and venues offered are walking tours of Frederiksted and Christiansted showcasing the forts, historic buildings and the waterfronts. Veronica Gordon, a traditional bush doctor (herbalist), offers a three-hour, hiking tour with information on local medicinal plants.

Ras Lamumba of AY-AY Eco Hike and Tour leads hikes teaching history, culture and folklore. There are also different tours and activities at the V.I. Sustainable Farm Institute located in the rain forest. The farm, also called Creque Dam Farm, is ranked as a top global tourism experience by “Islands Magazine,” “Coastal Living” and “National Geographic's” Center for Sustainable Tourism.

CHANT also collaborated with the farm for a very successful Youth Empowerment Summer Day Camp mentorship program in July. “There were local youth and youth from the states who took part learning about nature, heritage and culture,” Gerard said.

Gerard said there are fees for the tours that range from $10 to $60, and there are a minimum number of people required for the tours to be scheduled.

CHANT works with the public, private, and non-profit sectors of the local tourism industry to support expansion of resources and infrastructure to benefit members of the industry.

Gerard said the Department of Tourism has granted CHANT almost $50,000 for marketing, a website, and training of tour guides.

Gerard then passed around a DVD that will be formally released next month showcasing the heritage and architecture of St. Croix. The DVD, produced through the help of the St. Croix Humanities Council and Tourism, will go out to cultural heritage film festivals, travel channels and local hotels.

Gerard told the Rotarians the non-profit group started 10 years ago. They are under the St. Croix Foundation and governed by a board of directors.

On Saturday CHANT will have a jumbie talk and walk at Mt. Victory Camp beginning at 5 p.m.

For more information about CHANT call 719-5455 or go to www.chantvi.org.

St. Croix Source  ::  John Baur

International spirits makers Diageo reached another milestone in its move to St. Croix, taking possession Thursday of its gigantic warehouse complex from the local construction company that built it.

Jonathan Ruiz, senior project manager of J. Benton Construction, handed over the keys to the Estate Diamond warehouse complex to Diageo USVI Vice President Dan Kirby at a noon reception at the site off West Airport Road.

According to Kirby, the company is on target to begin producing its Captain Morgan's Spiced Rum on St Croix in early December.

The two 100,000-square-foot warehouses are where the rum will be stored and aged for a year in barrels of Kentucky white oak. Some 3,000 empty barrels are already on site, waiting to be filled.

When the St. Croix operation is in full swing, the company will be making about 700 barrels of rum a day in its new, state-of-the-art distillery nearing completion at the Renaissance Industrial Park and transporting them a short drive down the Melvin Evans Highway to the warehouses.

There the rum will be aged for a year before being drawn from the barrels, loaded into tanks and shipped to the company's facility in Baltimore, where it will receive what Kirby called the company's "secret herbs and spices," aged some more, then bottled and shipped around the world.

The warehouse facility cost about $15 million to construct, Kirby said, and includes an administrative building, forklift garage and service buildings. It is capable of holding 200,000 barrels, the equivalent of 100 million 750-milliliter bottles.

About 230 workers for J. Benton Construction worked on the facility, pouring 6,000 cubic yards of concrete and laying 35,000 cinder blocks.

Six Diageo employees are already at work in the warehouses, and another 46 are in training, Kirby said, preparing for the day in November Kirby expects the new distillery to be ready.

Another eight or so workers are likely to be hired in the next few weeks.

Ruiz, who spoke at the key ceremony because James Benton was off island on business, said he took a great deal of pride in the work that culminated Thursday.

"That's what it's about," he said, "Completng the project on time, on budget, and meeting your commitments."

J. Benton Construction is a St Croix-based company that in its 20 years has built some of the island's iconic structures, including the Divi Casino and Hotel and the air traffic tower at the Harold E. Rohlsen Airport.

Diageo has been purchasing rum distilled on Puerto Rico for its Captain Morgan's label under an agreement that expires Dec. 31. The company decided not to renew that agreement and was looking for a place to build its own distillery when the U.S. Virgin Islands made its bid.

In 2008 the company and the territory announced a 30-year public-private initiative for the construction and operation of a distillery on St Croix. T

he V.I. government will begin receiving rum cover-over funds for Captain Morgan's when the rum made in the territory and stored in the warehouses begins to be shipped to the states in 2012.

St. Croix Source  ::  Bill Kossler

Children from around the big island got to take part recently in the shooting of an uplifting video for St. Croix reggae artist Ras Attitude's family-oriented tune "To the Top."

"All of my music is family friendly and has a positive message," Michael "Ras Attitude" Goodwin said Saturday before shooting on Strand Street in Frederiksted.

Shot around Arthur Richards Junior High School, Point Elizabeth and parts of Frederiksted, the video sends a positive message about young men and women reaching their full potential. About 40 area kids took part, including Goodwin's own children.

The Stop the Bleeding Foundation sponsored the video, with help from Island Vibes Video and Silhouette Entertainment. Stop the Bleeding is a nonprofit organization founded by Cheryl Francis, wife of Lt. Gov. Gregory Francis, with the aim of reducing childhood neglect and abuse and providing young men and women in the territory with a more positive direction.

"At this point, we have to take a multi-layered approach to reducing violence," Semaj Johnson of Stop the Bleeding said Monday after the video shoot was over. Music is one of the more effective ways of getting a message through to young teenagers, in part because it has a "cool" factor that kids are drawn towards. The same message would largely be ignored if it came in the form of adults in positions of authority just lecturing children, Johnson said.

"Music reaches out to young people," he said. "As much as it may sound glib to talk of things being 'cool,' that is what kids are about."

According to Johnson, violence on V.I. streets arises in part because young men in particular need to prove themselves to their peers and be "cool" and because they do not know how to respond when their pride and dignity are attacked. So helping kids learn ways to manage conflict and deal with stressful home, school and social situations is crucial to preventing violent crime in the long run, he said.

With music "we are hoping we can reach youth in a different way and help shift the culture," he said.

"In a sense, we are combating a violent culture," he said. "Violently asserting yourself is sort of the norm, and if you don't respond that way, you are not seen as cool nor as strong. So we want to get the message out that you show your strength by demonstrating your maturity and that violence shows weakness, not strength."

Now that shooting is over, the video will go into post-production and may be ready around the end of this year, he said.

"First we will show it on local television," he said. "But depending on the final screening, we would like to get it onto Tempo (Caribbean music television station)."

This is at least the second kid-friendly reggae video shot on St. Croix and featuring local youth since the beginning of the year. In March, international reggae vocalist Toussaint recorded a video of his new, socially conscious song "Be You," with award-winning St. Croix documentary film maker Johanna Bermudez-Ruiz and Laurent "Tippy" Alfred of St. Croix's I Grade Records. Though unrelated to one another, both songs focus upon a positive message for young Virgin Islanders, and both videos prominently feature area youth.

St. Croix Source  ::  John Baur

At the top of a hill roughly in the middle of St. Croix, the wind didn't seem to stop blowing, a reminder that there's energy up there, "free money" for the taking.

Wednesday afternoon a pair of visiting engineers stopped by the St. Croix Reformed Church at the top of Kingshill to look over the grounds, which someday soon might be home to a wind-driven generator.

A church committee has been looking at alternatives to electricity from the Water and Power Authority, and is focusing on wind power over solar.

The committee has only a few weeks to decide, and if it gets a go-ahead from the church's governing body, will apply for a grant from the V.I. Energy Office.

Toygar Unal and Dean MacFarlane of Syntonic Corp., a New Jersey-based company specializing in wind power, are visiting St. Croix to make a presentation Thursday at an eight-hour forum on wind power, sponsored by the Energy Office.

During their hour-long visit to the church Wednesday, the wind never stopped blowing. To those standing on the ground it was a constant, gentle breeze. But 60 feet overhead, Unal said, it was probably 10 to 15 miles an hour.

Kingshill was one of several stops Unal and MacFarlane made to get a feel for the wind on St. Croix, and they agreed the island has potential.

"This looks like it could be good," Unal said. "A lot of people don't have what you have here."

At the same time, he cautioned, it's more complicated than standing on a hillside and feeling the wind on your face. A wind survey of a site has to be conducted.

But even without a formal survey that can pinpoint the exact potential, there are plenty of resources to start with, including government data from NASA and the Weather Service, online tools, and even your own eyes.

Unal pointed to the trees and bushes growing on the church property. Many of them were bent slightly, all in the same direction, and most of them were barer on the eastern side than the western. That indicates that the wind has been blowing on them for most of their lives, pretty consistently.

Unal is the CEO of Syntonic. The name may sound like one of those made-up, high-tech-sounding names, but it's actually a real word that aptly expresses the company's philosophy. It comes from a German word that means "to harmonize," and the company is dedicated to finding solutions to energy problems that are in harmony with the environment.

Besides working with clients throughout the Northeast on environmentally sensitive energy solutions, Syntonic consults, educates and advocates for wind power wherever it can.

That's what brought the two N.J. men to St. Croix, to take part in Thursday's day-long wind power presentation. The forum, organized by the Energy Office, is already booked solid by Crucians eager to learn more about harnessing the wind.

Neil MacQueen, a member of the church committee investigating the alternative energy system, says the numbers are convincing. A wind-powered system could totally eliminate the church's monthly energy bill, pay for maintenance, provide a fund for the day the system will have to be replaced (because everything has to go sometime) and leave the church with funds to provide assistance to the community.

The committee is looking at a system with an initial cost of $63,000. Most of that would be for the concrete pad the wind turbine would sit on. That has to be a 15-foot square, six-feet thick.

The V.I. Energy Office is accepting grant proposals for a federally funded program. The maximum available for each grant is $50,000. Don Buchanan of the Energy Office said the office expects to be able to fund most, if not all, qualifying proposals from the territory.

While a wind-powered electrical system could be the answer to the church's electrical bills, economics are not the only consideration, MacQueen and the Rev. Rodney Koopmans acknowledged.

The church lawn is marked by a large cross that is lit up at night and visible far out to the west. A 60-foot wind turbine tower would dwarf the cross, and to some people might say something different.

"What kind of an icon would that be for the church?" MacQueen wondered.

Still, if God is providing the wind and the federal government coming up with most of the startup cost, it might be too hard to pass up.

St. Croix Source  ::  Source Staff

Teams of runners and walkers will participate in a cross-island relay at 6 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 26, in the name of the Virgin Islands’ many homeless and mentally ill. In this fourth annual collaboration between Ten Thousand Helpers of St. Croix and The Virgin Islands Pace Runners, the Run for Respect will start at Fort Christianvaern in Christiansted and end at Fort Frederik in Frederiksted via Queen Mary Highway. The event will be a fundraiser for Ten Thousand Helpers, which is the Frederiksted organization that houses homeless men and raises awareness around mental health in the islands.

According to Judy Bain, program director of Ten Thousand Helpers, “Winning the class action law suit against the government of the Virgin Islands, represented by the Department of Health, has been huge for us. We have succeeded in pressing our case that the government has failed to provide adequate treatment facilities for persons with mental illness in our community.

Ten Thousand Helpers of St. Croix now asks the public to support its efforts in urging government to provide staff and facilities to ensure the recovery of persons with mental illness. We want everyone possible to turn out for this event -- to run, to walk or to volunteer.”

For the fundraising relay, each team will consist of four people, each covering four miles. This year, the run will also include walkers. Teams may be all males, all females, males and females, organizations, groups, etc. Awards will be made to the top finishing teams.

For more information or an entry form, logon to: http://www.virginislandspace.org or call: Ten Thousand Helpers at 719-2828 or V.I. Pace Runners at 643-2557.