Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley has urged Barbadians to continue building on the spirit of We Gatherin’ way past the final month of celebrations.
With the completion of its 11-parish tour, she called for December to be recognised as a gathering of the whole nation, honouring the community spirit forged throughout the year-long celebrations.
“December is about we gathering in the whole country, and I want that spirit to take us from St Lucy to Christ Church and St Philip, from St John to St James, across the entire country. December must be We Gatherin’ Barbados,” she said.
Mottley said the celebrations also shed light on the often unseen and unexplored spaces in the country, creating a release from the years of restricted activity of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We understood the necessity for communities and families to bond, both within the country and those coming from outside, and that’s why we set the target in 2020. Little did we know that COVID would have come and upset the whole apple cart, but that also made it even more important, after years of restricted activity, for people to bond and to move around again, both internally in the country and, outside,” she said.
The Prime Minister was speaking during the presentation of the Pride of Barbados Award to honourees from St Michael held at State House yesterday morning, where President The Most Honourable Dame Sandra Mason presented 23 of them with medals during the first of two ceremonies.
For well-known fish vendor and philanthropist Sharon Felicia Bellamy-Thompson, the award came as a surprise, but one she says will boost her mission to help and feed those in need through her Fishers Of Men charity.
She reflected on her journey in philanthropy which was greatly inspired by the kindness and generosity of her mother Maureen Bellamy.
“When I was a child, at a very young age, I saw my mother doing this kind of work, feeding the poor. And I remember one day she was out and a little child came over to our house. They were crying saying they wanted something. They were hungry so I took up everything that my mother had in the cupboard and gave it to them.
“When she came home, it was lashes but I said, ‘Mummy, I see you feeding people’. So I got the inspiration from my mother from the time I was seven. Now I’m 55 and I will continue to do it as long as I have health and strength,” she said.
Get back into society
For Antoinette Jacqueline Chandler, the award was also a surprise for both her and fellow members at Rehabilitating Enabling Society for Amputees,
where she serves as secretary-treasurer. The organisation aims to help amputees with assistive equipment as well as transportation.
“I think amputation is something that is very, very big in Barbados, and some people just don’t want to leave home or get involved. But you should come back out, you should get back into the society and live a life that you are given,” she said.
“So corporate Barbados, we need you to come on board, adopt us. We are a growing organisation and we need the push. We need the push because there’s an average of one amputation in Barbados every day, so you can count the numbers and see how we are growing.”
Among the other honourees was Carlton Geoffrey Owen Cordle, otherwise known by his stage name Biggie Irie, who was recognised for his 38 years of contribution to the entertainment scene.
He urged other artistes to continue producing music that authentically evokes the spirit of the Caribbean.
“Just keep doing good things, keep recording good music, make sure that you are a good person and you will be rewarded greatly.
“I think soca, not only in Barbados but in the Caribbean, is doing great things. I’m seeing that some Trinidadian artistes are being considered for Grammys for the first time ever, which is good. It’s only a matter of time before we in Barbados are considered in the soca genre and maybe in the reggae genre as well, for a Grammy nomination. I think that soca music and Barbadian music on the whole is in a good place,” he said. (JRN)
