The Nation Publishing Co Limited marked the launch of this year’s Crop Over Central yesterday with a pop-up event at Jubilee Gardens in The City, that brought members of the public together to take part in the start of festivities for the season.
The event, on the eve of the Ceremonial Delivery of the Last Canes scheduled for Queen’s Park today, engaged the public in interactive game segments, singing competitions and Crop Over- based trivia with many prizes on offer.
With Starcom’s DJ Big Red keeping the music pumping, master of ceremonies Lisa Ruck tested bystanders’ Crop Over knowledge and singing ability with some winning tickets to premier events as their reward.
In a symbolic touch, the pop-up was held just a few feet away from the Nation newspaper’s first home at St Mary’s Row. Coordinator of the event and Digital Strategist for the Nation Publishing, Shawn Greene, said the launch was a way to let the public know that Crop Over was synonymous with the Nation, as he also directed people to the Nation’s social media and website for all things Crop Over.
“We are still in the community. We chose this venue because it wasn’t too far from here that the Nation actually started 53 years ago, so we wanted to come back to this location to remind the community that the Nation is all about Crop Over and we’re all about the community and that whole Barbadian spirit,” he said. (JRN)