Radio Abaco News

July 2000 Table of Contents

RADIO ABACO NEWS

Fire Relief Food: The effects of the 31st April fire in Pigeon Pea are still evident and some relief was provided to children at Central Abaco Primary School through Zion Baptist Church of Murphy Town. Food packages were given out by teacher Leroy Thompson on the morning of 29th May - and you should have seen the smiles on the faces of those children as they received their gifts!

Passport to Nassau? It is being mooted that travel on Bahamasair within The Bahamas may only be possible if you have a document with photo ID. The only two documents Bahamians have that feature photos are voters cards and passports. Children, of course, do not have voters cards and many do not have passports.

Travel Agents Meet: Some 40 representatives of top travel agencies in the US and Canada met with Ministry of Tourism officials and managers on June 2nd and 3rd for high level discussions on the tourism product. These sessions afforded an opportunity to address strategic planning and packaging for The Bahamas as a travel destination. Sessions were held at the Community Centre in Treasure Cay and included live website presentations and discussion on destination updates, trends in the marketplace, price and value perceptions and evolution of the family market. The representatives spent the afternoon in Hope Town on 2nd June, lunching at Cap'n Jack's and Harbour's Edge, and on 3rd June toured Green Turtle Cay, lunching at Green Turtle Club and Bluff House Resort. The final evening was spent at Nettie's Different of Abaco where the representatives arrived in time for a spectacular sunset over the mainland, followed by the rising of a fingernail moon. After cocktails, hors d'oeuvres and dancing to the talented group Impact, the representatives sat down to a four course truly Bahamian meal on the new deck area at Different. Presentations were made and Director-General of the Ministry of Tourism Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace thanked those present for their input. "We listen to you and implement your suggestions. When everything works out well, we take the credit," he said, tongue in cheek. In an interview with Radio Abaco Mr Vanderpool-Wallace said so many representatives were amazed that there was a place like Abaco with such wonderful amenities, after seeing Nassau and Freeport.

Homecomings: The long Labour Day weekend featured two homecomings: one in the north for Little Abaco and another at Sandy Point in the south. Many people came over from Freeport to join in the Little Abaco festivities while a mail boat excursion from Nassau brought in many of the Sandy Point homecomers. At Sandy Point there were boat races, barbecues, and a Little Miss Sandy Point competition. Oh yes, and a few Kaliks were imbibed.

New Abaco Development: A meeting was held in the courtroom, Marsh Harbour, on 6th June to apprise the public of a new low-cost housing development which will be situated over the highway from Cabbage Point, just south of Leisure Lee. The public was informed that the development should be particularly attractive to residents of Pigeon Pea, The Mud, Snake Cay and Spring City, though lots would not be confined solely to people from these areas. The development would be planned and laid out better than Marsh Harbour, Dundas Town and Murphy Town, with provision for shops and churches. There would be 300 lots available for the public. Concern was expressed about the distance of the development from Marsh Harbour.

Safes Still Not Safe: The theft of safes on Abaco continues unabated. Some time between 1am and dawn on 9th June a group of thieves removed an 18" black safe from Sapodilly's in Marsh Harbour. The safe contained about $1,000 in cash and valuable papers.

Pensioner's New Home: 90 year old Godfrey Cooper, Dundas Town's oldest resident, had his home destroyed by Hurricane Floyd. Nine months later he was given the keys to a new home that was built with aid from government, the Rotary Club of Abaco and volunteers both local and foreign. "Those boat people were really wonderful," said Mr Cooper in an interview with Radio Abaco. "The majority of the Americans came right in and helped." He said his first night in his new home was very comfortable and quiet.

Sivdas Scholarship: The Rotary Club of Abaco will be establishing a scholarship in the name of Sivdas Arangil, the long-serving Carpentry teacher who passed away earlier this year. The club started the scholarship fund with a steak-out in Marsh Harbour on 17th June.

Double Death in Grand Cay: The tiny settlement of Grand Cay was stunned when on 14th June the body of Kevin Thompson, 30, was discovered hanging in the bathroom of his home. The body of his wife Quinta, 22, was found in the couple's bedroom covered with a sheet. It was speculated that Quinta Thompson may have been killed by her husband on Whit Monday, 12th June. Her husband delivered their two and four year old sons to the children's grandmother on 13th June and worked a kitchen shift at the Walkers Cay Hotel. That was the last time he was seen alive. Police consider it a case of murder/suicide. Quinta Thompson was the 35th murder victim in The Bahamas for the year.

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