Blogs

The Animal Rescue Site in partnership with Petfinder.com raises funds for animal shelters nationwide via Shelter Challenge an Internet click competition. At present, St. Croix is in last place in the in­ternational category: St. John is ahead of us, as is Puerto Rico and Vieques. Help us raise awareness of our shelter and raise much needed funds. Click today and everyday until the competition ends April 18, 2010.

Animal Rescue Site

Click the link above to Vote Today!

Friday, 3/19:

Sunset Jazz in F’sted beginning at 5:30 pm

Mama’s Black Sheep at Coconuts from 6-9 pm

Mercy Child at Spratnet from 6-9 pm w/ Peel n’ Eat Shrimp

Romanza at Rowdy Joe’s from 7-10 pm

LLewellen at Chicken Charlie’s Roadhouse from 7-10 pm

Steve Katz at Salud beginning at 7 pm

Michael Justis at Smuggler’s Cove beginning at 7 pm

Ann Hampton Callaway for the Brass Parrot Cabaret series at the Buccaneer beginning at 7 pm

Adrian at the Ft. Christian Brew Pub beginning at 8 pm

Jazzy Blue at the Buccaneer from 8-11 pm

Razzle Dazzle ‘Em! Songs and skits from 25 years of CCT productions at the Caribbean Community Theatre at 8 pm. Two performances only!

Spiritual Rez at Dashi beginning at 9 pm

Saturday, 3/20:

Breakfast at the Domino Club (Norma's) is being served by Jewels, and she's serving it with a smile, from 7 am - 10'ish (she also serves breakfast on Mondays and Wednesdays).

Adrian at Rhythms at Rainbow Beach from noon – 3 pm

Matt Vrba at Coconuts from noon – 3 pm

Caribbean Night featuring The Tony Romano Band at Spratnet from 3-7 pm

Dr. Roy at Coconuts from 5-8 pm

Michael Justis at Off the Wall from 6-9 pm

Reverend Raven & the Chain Smoking Altar Boys at Chicken Charlie’s Roadhouse from 7-10 pm

Lynn Senter at Elizabeth ’s @ H2O from 7-10 pm

Steve Katz at the Galleon beginning at 7 pm

Ann Hampton Callaway for the Brass Parrot Cabaret series at the Buccaneer beginning at 7 pm

Razzle Dazzle ‘Em! Songs and skits from 25 years of CCT productions at the Caribbean Community Theatre at 8 pm. Two performances only!

Kurt Schindler at the Divi Poolside from 9 pm - midnight

Spiritual Rez at Zebo’s beginning at 10:30 pm

Sunday, 3/21:

Sunday Brunch at Spratnet with Dr. Roy from 9 am – 2 pm

Reggae Brunch at Eat@Cane Bay – Brunch is served from 11-4, music from 2:30-sunsetish.

Steve Katz for Sunday Brunch at the Deep End Bar and Grill from noon – 3 pm

Adrian for Sunday Brunch at the Sunset Grill from noon – 3 pm

Reverend Raven & the Chain Smoking Altar Boys at Rhythm’s at Rainbow Beach from 3-7 pm

Brian McCullough at Spratnet beginning at 3 pm, along with the world famous Cruzan Pig Roast

St. Croix Blues Society at Coconuts from 4- 8 pm. Tommy will be serving his Texas BBQ all day (Ribs, Brisket, Rib Eye and NY Strip).

The Reggae Bubblers at Elizabeth ’s at H2O from 4-7 pm

Spiritual Rez at Rowdy Joe’s beginning at 7 pm

Monday, 3/22:

Matt Vrba at Coconuts from noon – 3 pm

Crab Races with Tito and Sue at the Ft. Christian Brew Pub beginning at 5 pm

Trailer Trash with an Ocean View, along with Steve Katz at Big Al’s Bar and Restaurant at the Divi Hotel from 6:30-9:30 pm

Open Jam w/ Reverend Raven & the Chain Smoking Altar Boys at Chicken Charlie’s Roadhouse from 6:30-9:30 pm

Jazzy Blue at the Galleon from 7-10 pm

Tuesday, 3/23:

Steve Katz at the Terrace at the Buccaneer Hotel from 6-9 pm

Bingo at Off the Wall beginning at 6 pm

Matt Vrba at Spratnet from 6-9 pm w/ Texas BBQ

Trivia at Chicken Charlie’s Roadhouse from 7-9 pm

Reverend Raven & the Chain Smoking Altar Boys for Blues on the Boardwalk at Angry Nate’s beginning at 8 pm

Two for Tuesday at the Ft. Christian Brew Pub

Wednesday, 3/24:

Jack Petersen at Off the Wall from 6-9 pm

Jazzy Blue at Chenay Bay from 6-9 pm w/ $5 burger night

Steve Katz at Cheeseburgers in Paradise from 6:30-9:30 pm

Blakness & Junior P at the Ft. Christian Brew Pub

Thursday, 3/25:

Michael Justis at Angry Nate’s from 6-9 pm

Jack Petersen at Spratnet from 6-9 pm w/ Surf n’ Turf

Steve Katz at Dashi from 7-10 pm

Upcoming Events:

Friday, 3/26 – Ann Hampton Callaway for the Brass Parrot Cabaret series at the Buccaneer beginning at 7 pm

Friday, 3/26 – Deb Callahan Band at the Blue Moon Café beginning at 8 pm

Saturday, 3/27 – Deb Callahan Band at Chicken Charlie’s Roadhouse from 7-10 pm

Saturday, 3/27 – Ann Hampton Callaway for the Brass Parrot Cabaret series at the Buccaneer beginning at 7 pm

Sunday, 3/28 – Deb Callahan Band at Rhythms at Rainbow Beach from 3-7 pm

Monday, 3/29 – Open Jam w/ Deb Callahan Band at Chicken Charlie’s Roadhouse from 6:30-9:30 pm

April 5th thru 10th – Chicken Charlie’s 4th Anniversary Celebration Week, culminating in a huge music jam hosted by the Blues Dudes.

Monday, 4/5 – Hudson and the Hoo Doo Cats at Chicken Charlie’s Roadhouse (part of their 4th Anniversary Celebration Week)

Thursday, 4/8 – John Eddie at Chicken Charlie’s Roadhouse from 7-10 pm (part of their 4th Anniversary Celebration Week)

Friday, 4/9 – Candlelight Concert Series featuring Katherine Collins (Violin) and Paul Vasile (Piano) at the Whim Museum Greathouse beginning at 7:30 pm. For reservations, please call 772-0598.

Friday, 4/9 – John Eddie at Club 54

Saturday, 4/10 – Candlelight Concert Series featuring Katherine Collins (Violin) and Paul Vasile (Piano) at the Whim Museum Greathouse beginning at 7:30 pm. For reservations, please call 772-0598.

Saturday, 4/10 – Music Jam for Chicken Charlie’s 4th Anniversary, hosted by the Blues Dudes

Saturday, 4/10 – John Eddie at the Ft. Christian Brew Pub

Sunday, 4/11 – Chili Cook-Off at the Divi Resort

Sunday, 4/11 – John Eddie at Rhythms at Rainbow Beach

Thursday, 4/15 – A Taste of St. Croix at the Divi Carina Bay Resort to benefit the St. Croix Foundation. There will be at least nine (9) different satellite events accompanying this from 4/13 through 4/17. For more information, contact Sara Zuckerman at 773-9898 or szuckerman@stxfoundation.org.

Sunday, 4/18 – Sundae Funday – an ice-cream social and pie party! Polly’s at the Pier is hosting this fun fundraiser for the St. Croix Animal Welfare Center on Sunday, April 18th. They’ll be sporting a ‘make your own Sundae’ bar, a fabulous raffle of homemade pies and old fashioned desserts, pet-friendly and kid-friendly! $5.00 entry fee! Mark your calendars and stay tuned for more information and details.

Saturday, 4/24 – The Concert for Haiti at Coconuts has been rescheduled to this date due to the bad weather on 3/7.

Peace,

Joe

Hey, Music Fans! Last weekend was a humdinger! The St. Patrick's Day Parade was a bit smaller than usual, but there were a zillion people in Christiansted to watch. I heard one lady ask her husband as she pointed across King Street, "See the guy in the green shirt?" Well, DOH! About 3 thousand. There were some good floats and various entries.

There was music in the usual and unusual places, and it seems a fun time was had by all. One guy I work with staggered into Club Comanche and sat down right in front of the band and began to pass out before his wife dragged him away. I asked him Monday if he remembered seeing me Saturday. "No." He had a great time.

I don't have a lot of music info this week, but tomorrow night, Buddy & Jim, The BluesDudes will be playing rock & blues in the bar at Club Comanche from 6:30 til 10:00 PM. Steve Katz will be at SALUD, from 7 PM.

On Saturday, Reverend Raven & The Chain-Smokin' Altar Boys will be at Chicken Charlie's Roadhouse, from 7 til 10 PM. They will be at Rhythms at Rainbow on Sunday from 3 til 7 PM, and back at Chicken Charlie's on Monday night for a Jam. Tuesday night, they will be at Angry Nate's for Blues on the Boardwalk.

I think the St. Croix Blues Society will be back at Coconuts this week, for the Sunday Blues Jam, 4:30 till 8:30 PM.

The St. John Blues Festival is this weekend in Coral Bay, St. John. They have some good acts, as usual.

Next week, The Deb Callahan Band will be all over St. Croix. Watch for her venues soon.

Chicken Charlie's Roadhouse will celebrate their Four-Year Anniversary on Saturday April 10th, with a Music Jam, hosted by Buddy & Jim, The BluesDudes. Mark your calendar. Bring your instrument and/or your talent.

The United Way Chili Cookoff is April 11th at DIVI Hotel & Resort. Music by OUTLAWS in PARADISE. Heat by Jalapenos, Cayenne and Scotch Bonnets. Dust off your chili recipe and join the fun.

I'm sure there's lots more going on. Check the AVIS. It never lies.

Be safe, and have a great weekend!

TEXAS JIM

St. Croix Source  ::  Bill Kossler

Super Bowl champion and sportscaster Roland Williams has some big ideas to help the territory's youth. At a Rotary Club breakfast Wednesday morning, Williams unveiled plans to raise money for the V.I. Boys & Girls Clubs and a free celebrity football and life skills camp for the territory's youth.

By 7 a.m. the dining room of Gertrude's Restaurant was packed with the members of Rotary Mid-Isle and students from the Kingshill School to hear the big man speak.

Williams is CEO and founder of Youth Lifeline America, a nonprofit organization that since 2000 has drawn on the influence of star athletes, entertainers and prominent business professionals to inspire young people towards productive careers.

As a kid, Williams benefited from Boys & Girls Clubs himself and wants to make sure the group can continue to have as broad a reach as possible. Julie Landreneau of the Boys & Girls Clubs got in touch with Williams and helped spearhead the new fundraising partnership.

"Boys & Girls Clubs is an oasis where kids can hang out," Williams said. "It surprised me to hear from Julie that this one was struggling and needed help. So I am bringing some fun raising—not the normal fundraising but fun raising."

Youth Lifeline and the Boys & Girls Clubs have entered into a fundraising partnership, he said. The first big joint event will be a Football and Life Skills Camp, scheduled for July 12–14 at the UVI Sports and Fitness Center on St. Thomas. Participants will receive expert football training from active and retired NFL professionals, while local and international business professionals will provide mentorship in career development and financial literacy, drug prevention, conflict resolution, diversity training, combating gang violence, leadership and much more. This camp will also have hospitality management training as part of the curriculum. Kids will get to go free, based on scholarships from donors. Businesses and people who donate and help sponsor teams and players to the football camp will get prominently displayed free advertising, plenty of credit and the chance to hobnob with the various celebrities over the weekend.

Actors Brian White, Bill Bellamy, Dean Cain and Morris Chestnut; football greats Floyd Little and Michael Strahan; and Cayman Islands model Selita Ebanks are just some of the many stars signed up for the weekend.

Williams, played 8 years with the Rams, Raiders and Buccaneers.

"I know all those teams are not good right now, but when I played all those teams worked well," he said. He was with the Rams when they won Superbowl XXXIV and the Buccaneers when that team lost Superbowl XXXVIII.

He has appeared on media outlets including ESPN, Nickelodeon, NFL Network, CNBC, Fox, Fox Sports Net, CBS, ABC and many other television, radio and print publications. Roland is currently a sports analyst for CBS College Sports, VERSUS Network and Fox Sports Net Midwest.

This camp is just the first of many fundraising efforts. Ultimately, he and Lifeline are shooting to raise $500,000, he said.

The website, www.helpinghandscelebrityweekend.org, gives information on how to donate, participate and sign up. Thursday at 6 p.m. there will be a meet-and-greet at the Palms at Pelican Cove on St. Croix, where business owners, donors, community groups and parents can find out more about the camp and other fundraising plans.

St. Croix Source  ::  Source Staff

The fifteenth annual Junior Solar Sprint Competition is set to begin at 10 a.m. on Friday, March 19, at the Wendy’s Restaurant South parking lot in the Sunny Isle Shopping Center. In recent years, the V.I. Energy Office-sponsored event has been held on one island with all participating territorial schools attending, but this year, while the races will begin on St. Croix, the finals will be run at the Tutu Mall parking lot on St. Thomas on Friday, March 26. With the event growing, usually about 20 schools now participate with over 100 students in attendance along with teachers, the logistics of holding all the races on one day has become difficult. Only the top finishers in the St. Croix races will travel to St. Thomas.

The competition is a hands-on, educational experience that was developed for junior high school students to improve their knowledge of science, engineering and renewable energy concepts by constructing solar model cars. The students design and build cars from kits supplied by the Energy Office (VIEO), which is a division of the Office of the Governor. As the races demand full VIEO staff participation, their offices will be closed on St. Thomas and St. Croix on March 19 and March 26.

Bevan Smith Jr., director of VIEO, said, “The Junior Solar Sprint is always an exciting time for us at the Energy Office. We get the opportunity to see our youth educate their peers and the public in general on alternative fuel options like electric cars and the application of solar energy through photovoltaic panels.”

The St. Croix schools include: St. Patrick’s, Arthur A. Richards Jr. High, Good Hope School, Church of God Academy, Country Day School, Elena Christian Jr. High, School of the Good Shepherd, John H. Woodson Jr. High, The Manor School, St. Mary’s, IQRA Educational Center Inc. and Kingshill School.

  The St. Thomas schools include: Antilles School, Bertha C. Bosculute Junior High, St. Peter and Paul, All Saints School, Addelita Cancryn Junior High, Montessori School, Moravian School and Church of God Academy.

The St. John schools participating are the Julius Sprauve School and the Gifft Hill School.  

 Christiansted stores, galleries and fine jewelers who host the popular Art Thursday event have established a scholarship fund to encourage the next generation of young St. Croix artists. The Art Thursday Scholarship Fund has been established to assist high school seniors with the challenging costs of pursuing a visual arts education at a higher level. Art Thursday Scholarship is open to all public, private and parochial high school seniors on St. Croix. The scholarship award is based on a combination of artistic skill and academic achievement. Funds will be generated through sales of a fine art poster featuring the chosen senior’s artwork.

This year’s poster features the work of artist Whitly Charles, a 17 yr. old senior at the St. Croix Educational Complex and student of well-known artist, John Jones. Whitly’s enchanting and colorful piece is entitled “Day And Night” and is available at the Art Thursday participating stores and galleries: Art @ Top Hat, Crucian Gold, D&D Studio, Danica Art Gallery, Designworks, The Goldworker, ib designs, Maria Henle Studio, Maufé Gallery, SAKARI, Watch Your Step Art Studio, and Yellow House Gallery.

Whitly has been active in creating art since she was young and completed Advanced Placement art classes in her junior year at Complex. She has also been a volunteer at the Caribbean Museum Center of the Arts. This past summer Whitly went to Savannah College of Art and Design for a one week program on an art scholarship from St. Croix Foundation. Whitly is planning on continuing her education in art and plans on pursuing graphic design.

In May 2010 a Student Art Show will be held on Art Thursday to highlight artwork submitted for consideration for the next Art Thursday Scholarship Fund recipient. For more information please contact, danicaart@yahoo.com, or nathantherese@gmail.com.

St. Croix Source  ::  Source Staff

The 9th Annual Queen Mary Highway 5K Walk/Run, a UVI Charter Month activity, will kickoff at 6 a.m. on Friday, March 26. Participants will walk or run from Sunshine Mall in Frederiksted to UVI’s St. Croix campus.

Entry fees are $10 for UVI students and children, and $15 for adults. From every entry fee, $2 will go to the UVI Campus Haiti relief efforts. Transportation from the campus to the start area at Kmart will be provided at 5 a.m. Members of the general public as well as the UVI community are invited to participate. This year’s event is organized by the St. Croix Campus Executive Administrator’s Office and the Virgin Islands Pace Runners. Sponsors are Chef’s Catering, Kmart, Cost-U-Less, Coca Cola and Plaza Extra.

To register for the event or for more information, call 692-4236.

St. Croix Source  ::  Source Staff

The Virgin Islands Energy Office is accepting applications for its 2010 Energy Education Mini-Grant. The mini-grants are designed to assist teachers and youth educators to develop and implement energy/environmental awareness and educational projects.  A maximum of $1,500 per grant is available through a competitive process; funds have been allocated for six grants, according to a press release from VIEO. 

The application deadline for this cycle is 5 p.m., Friday, April 16.  

St. Croix Source  ::  Carol Buchanan

Sunday, a dozen volunteers broke a sweat digging up pesky mother-in-law's tongue, roots and all, then digging holes five feet deep in the woods.

The work in the bush that began at 7 a.m., clearing and beginning construction of an outdoor education pavilion and two bridges at the Estate Adventure Nature Trail.

The holes were for the pavilion foundation of electric poles donated by the Water and Power Authority. Volunteers used post-hole diggers to begin and finished up with some volunteers on their knees digging deeper with shovels.

Olasee Davis, the project manger for the trail, said they hope to have the pavilion finished by June. At this point they are waiting on more materials for the project.

“The whole idea is for students to hike the trail and then stop at the pavilion and learn more about what they have seen in the area,” Davis says. The trail that opened in 2005 was developed to provide environmental education resources for V.I. youth, adults and visitors.

Richard Gideon, from Nature Conservancy and manger of the pavilion construction, says the structure will be 18 feet by 18 feet and will house benches.

“It could be done by June, but this is a weekend project only worked on two days at a time with volunteers,” Gideon says.

That brings up the need for more volunteers. Due to the nature of the growth of flora in the tropics there is always a lot of maintenance to be done on trails.

Davis says that groups can adopt a section of the trail to maintain and students can volunteer for their community service hours. “This is hard work but it will pay off in the end,” Jean Belardo, ninth grader at Good Hope School said. “I can feel proud about working on this.”

The trail is a 1.5-mile loop in the central part of the island, south of the V.I. Agriculture Department in Estate Lower Love, directly off the Queen Mary Highway. Cane was grown in the area until 1966. The trail has several historical structures, including an old bridge, a dam, and the ruins of a water mill.

Davis said he is waiting to hear from the Department of Planning and Natural Resources about the area being designated as a wildlife preserve.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for people who care about the environment to get together,” Alan Bronstein, volunteer from the Hiking Association, said.

The trail was made possible by a grant from the V.I. Department of Agriculture Urban and Community Forestry program.

Further information about the trail can be obtained by contacting Davis at 692-4053 or Julie Wright at V.I. Resource Conservation & Development Council, 692-9632.

The Virgin Islands Daily News  ::  Aldeth Lewin

The federal government has filed a motion in District Court to stop the V.I. Waste Management Authority from dumping millions of gallons of sewage into the Caribbean Sea.

The motion, filed Thursday, asks the court to order the Virgin Islands to cease the "unlawful bypass" of raw sewage from the Figtree pump station in to Cane Garden Bay. The Figtree station is near the HOVENSA refinery on St. Croix's south shore.

According to the motion, Waste Management has dumped more than 50 million gallons of sewage into the ocean since January - averaging 300,000 to 500,000 gallons a day. Both Figtree and the LBJ pump station - which bypasses sewage over Long Reef - have had numerous breakdowns and have had to dump sewage into the ocean.

"These bypasses have been caused by the failure of VIWMA to properly operate and maintain the house pumps at Figtree and to expeditiously repair pumps when they have malfunctioned," the motion said.

The problems at the Figtree pump station began Jan. 17 when electrical problems caused a pump to fail.

Under normal operating conditions, there are three pumps at the station. Two of them broke down in December and were sent to Puerto Rico to be fixed by the manufacturer, so the pump that failed in January was the last pump working at the station.

When the last pump failed, the station's backup pumping system - run by a new diesel pump - was activated, but on Jan. 22 that system also failed.

At the time, a damaged suction line resulted in a sewage overflow, but the line was replaced and the backup system was up and running soon after. The next day, a second overflow occurred because a low pump setting was in place during a high-flow period.

The system was fixed again but quickly failed again. Repairs were made again and by March 4, the diesel pump was operational once more.

While the backup pump is running and has reduced the overflow at the station, sewage is still being dumped into the Figtree Gut.

"It can't handle the amount of flow," Waste Management spokeswoman Stella Saunders said Friday.

Saunders could not give an estimate of when the pump station would be able to stop bypassing sewage into the ocean.

"We are working feverishly to resolve the failures at the Figtree pump station," Saunders said.

During the last few months, Waste Management has been bypass pumping at LBJ to lessen the impact of the Figtree overflow. The LBJ bypass stopped Feb. 26.

The federal government said in Thursday's court filing that in addition to the problems at LBJ and Figtree, the Barren Spot pump station on St. Croix and the Cancryn pump station on St. Thomas also are in danger of failing as well.

The motion said all three house pumps at Cancryn have failed and the station is operating on an emergency diesel pump. Only one of the two pumps at Barren Spot is operational, according to the court document.

The motion asks the court to order Waste Management to immediately ensure that there are backup pumps available at both Cancryn and Barren Spot. The motion also said the U.S. government wants Waste Management to repair or replace any house pumps at any of its other pump stations, develop short and long term plans to address the matter, repair future failed pumps in a timely manner and submit regular reports to the court.

"In view of the clear threat to human health and the environment posed by ongoing discharges of raw sewage, the United States requests that the Court hear this matter on an expedited basis," the motion said.

The federal government asked the court to schedule a hearing by Tuesday or Wednesday.

St. Croix Source  ::  Carol Buchanan

As a little boy, Leo Carty drew Popeye and Mickey Mouse with chalk on the sidewalks of New York City in the 1930s. Those cartoon drawings were the beginning of a life-long love of art for the shy boy who, at 10, earned a scholarship to the Museum of Modern Art School for Children.

Carty, a well-known St. Croix artist, said he had drawn a sports mural on oak tag, heavy-weight paper, and his elementary school teacher Mr. Vaughn, rolled it up and sent it to the Museum.

Carty, the son of Trinidadians, said it was a world of difference for a young African American boy going by subway from the heart of Harlem to Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.

“At that time a lot of people who grew up in Harlem never even got out of Harlem,” Carty says. “I was the only black kid in the class.”

He says African American men he knew did not become artists.

“I didn't know anything about art as a living,” Carty says. “I kept it a secret from friends that I was in art.”

He graduated from the High School of Music and Art, attended Cooper Union School of Art and Pratt Institute, studying commercial art and design.

He served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean conflict saying he was thankful to land in the Department of Training in Marcus, Texas, where he illustrated training manuals and safety posters.

Before moving to St. Croix he worked as a cartoonist and was syndicated in 93 African American newspapers. He has also illustrated eight African American children's books for major publishing companies. He created and ran a successful African American greeting card company named after his son, called Anton Studios. He still sells greeting cards, only now they are of his St. Croix paintings.

Carty says a major part of his art training was learning to observe things around him. That’s also what brought him here. He made numerous visits to St. Croix making observations of the island, he liked what he saw and made St. Croix his home in 1976.

Carty says he has an interest in island history and he is fond of the old buildings on St. Croix. He is inspired by and paints the historical structures of St. Croix as a focal point in a lot of his paintings. He paints 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 large Carty 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. He doesn't do shows because he says he is a slow painter and doesn't build up enough paintings.

Since coming to St. Croix Carty has taught art at all age levels.

He taught at St. Dunstan's Episcopal School for 10 years and managed the St. Croix Senior Art Program. He did after-school classes at the libraries and at the prison.

Based on observations he made of things happening around St. Croix, he created an editorial cartoon for the Avis newspaper. The cartoons done thirty years ago still ring true today.

He has served on several boards, including the V.I. Council on the Arts, the St. George Village Botanical Garden and the St. Croix Jazz Society.

Lately Carty has been dealing with arthritis, so he is adjusting his style from long sweeping brush strokes to smaller strokes. He says now he basically just does commissioned works.

Bob Gleeson, Carty's agent at Many Hands in the Pan Am Pavilion in Christiansted, said Carty is only selling originals and has stopped making prints. Carty is a well established Caribbean artist, Gleeson said, and one of the top artists he has in the store.

“People love his old fashioned expressions and ask for his works,” Gleeson says. “His limited editions are going up in value.”