There was a time when kite-flying brought out communities en masse.
But with the increasing number of restricted areas and the loss of that community spirit, that once vibrant activity, which saw hundreds of kites up for extended periods, especially the four days from Good Friday to Easter Monday, took a nose dive in a similar fashion to the kites before they crashed to the ground or got caught in a tree or a utility line.
Concerted efforts by some organisations have seen somewhat of a rebirth of that old spirit in recent years. It is not back to the glory days as yet, but like the cords which are essential to flying the kite, they are serving to bind people together and renew those community links.
Such was the case at Christ The King Anglican Church, Rock Dundo, St Michael, and Wanstead Ridge, St James. In both cases, kite making classes would have been conducted in the lead-up at Christ The King and, on Monday, at Wanstead.
The first was a fund-raiser to help with the rebuilding and expansion of the Christ The King Parish Centre, damaged by fire two years ago.
Chairman of the event planning committee, Patricia Johnson, said they held a kite-flying competition last year to assist some youngsters and it was successful, so they decided to try it again this year.
She said Monday’s kite-flying competition, music and international cuisine extravaganza, took about five weeks to pull together.
“We gave a history of what the dish is composed of. So if you go to the dish, you will see exactly what is in it, and where it came and you see the flag. So it’s an education . . . I am very pleased with the response, we were overwhelmed with the response. A lot of dishes came in,” she said.
It is the third major fund-raiser towards the more than $750 000 to rebuild the parish centre. She said they were looking to start construction next year.
The competition was broken into five categories and in order to qualify, the kite had to be airborne for at least ten minutes.
Sister churches from St James, St George and St Michael were invited to send representatives. Among those responding was St Augustine Anglican Church, which was represented by priest-in-charge Reverend Suzanne Ellis and about ten youths from the parish.
Ellis and parish priest Luther Johnson had fun sharing a kite she brought.
“I think this project was a lot of fellowship. Bring the community together and have fellowship after the resurrection. Yes, we would love to make the money but I think the fellowship and the camaraderie of the neighbourhood and the parish is important to us too,” she explained.
At Wanstead Ridge, it was the third annual kite-flying competition and lime with St?James South MP Donville Inniss.
“What is very great about this is that it allows us to help to maintain a Barbadian tradition, kite-flying at Easter . . . It is a good way for the family to get together. There is no aggressive behaviour here, no violence, no deviant behaviour. It’s just folks out having a wonderful time in their own community,” Inniss said, adding that dominoes were added to the fun this year.