HOME AGAIN IN ABACO

April 1999 Table of Contents - Current Issue of The Abaco Journal - Abaco Bahamas' Home Page

HOME AGAIN IN ABACO
by Marilyn Irr

[Marilyn Irr is the reason you are reading the Abaco Journal right now. Her Treasure Times served the Treasure Cay area, first as a mimeographed publication, then in a more sophisticated version that the present Abaco Journal maintains to this day. If some readers wonder whether Marilyn approves of the present Abaco Journal, her submission of this article started "Dear Jack" and ended "Love, Marilyn". The Abaco Journal Internet reservoir has over 100 communications with Marilyn, all of them progressive and friendly. Your Editor and Marilyn dined together in February at Wally's in Marsh Harbour and she she said: "You are just as I imagined you. Crusty on the outside and soft on the inside." Hmm. Perhaps a point that could be made is that Marilyn thoroughly approves of the way the Abaco Journal has developed. It looks after Treasure Cay interests even though there is virtually no advertising from the area . Bill Hertz is the most notable local businessman who loves Treasure Cay and supports the Abaco Journal. Look through this issue and see how much Treasure Cay is featured. Then look for the Treasure Cay advertisements. Point made. - Ed]

In Treasure Cay the sand was as soft, the sea as clear, the people as
friendly, but where was the spark, the excitement, the joy? Except for
Fane Whitlow's welcoming smile and Anne Hodgkins' hug at the airport, I
noticed a sadness blanketing the atmosphere.

Three years have slipped away since my last visit, but Treasure Cay was my
home almost continuously for over 20 years. I worked there, I played there, I
laughed there, and I cried there. This time I just wanted to weep. The once
vibrant, viable community was suffering from neglect. Even greetings by
normally upbeat old friends seemed underlined by a sense of apathy as though
they were silently saying, "Treasure Cay is dead, but we can't do anything
about it."

In town, a few independent businesses hang on in spite of dwindling trade.
Residents have tightened their belts and spend as little as possible to keep
properties in repair. Tourists are staying away by the drove. You can't blame
them; have you seen the condition of the old hotel? The building and grounds
are a disgrace. By leaving the destruction of Hurricane Mitch so evident,
Treasure Cay Ltd shows a total lack of interest and pride in the place.

I know several engineers, builders, architects, and successful business
people among the home owners who would be happy to offer assistance and
advice, but the management maintains a stranglehold on progress. The
directors of TC Ltd are either too stubborn or too dense to accept their
help. What a waste of talent!

No wonder the collective mood is so dreary. What, indeed, can anyone do? Why do
they stay?

The natives have no choice. Abaco is their home. The expatriates can't help
themselves. And it's not just the large investment they have in properties,
it's a deep and abiding love for Treasure Cay. I know that affection. My heart is
ever in Abaco.

Please, Mr. Meister, restore Treasure Cay or sell it to someone who will. Do
you really want to go down in history as the man who, single-handedly, killed
a little piece of heaven?

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