Sixth Annual Heritage & Cultural Fair And Raffle As South Eleuthera Mission Opens Its Doors

The Sixth Annual South Eleuthera Mission Heritage & Cultural Fair and Raffle will take place on Saturday 11th July in Rock Sound. A leading fundraiser for The South Eleuthera Mission (The Mission), this highly popular event combines colourful stalls, arts and culinary competitions with the very best in Bahamian music.  This year the Bahamas Defence Force Pop Band will take centre stage with the Junkanoo competition, always the highlight of the event, promising to be one of the best ever.  There will be three groups in this year’s Junkanoo competition, from both "down North" and "up South" and a 'little further afield' vying for the prize money. All the while Ms. P – “The Hostest with The Mostest”, Ruppapumpum (Reuben Deleveaux), David and The Daylighters and DJ Snow will keep the entertainment flowing from Noon – Until. There will also be a variety of entertainment and activity for the entire family including a bouncing castle, punch board, a sail boat exhibition, mixology, best independence hair style, coconut barking, pineapple eating and crab catching competitions.

The Mission will fully commence its operations in the Fall 2009. However, Yolanda Taylor, B.A., M.A., joined The Mission as Administrator and Librarian, on May 18th, 2009.  Ms. Taylor brings a wealth of experience having previously been employed at various universities and institutions of higher learning in the United States, Japan and Thailand.  She has overall responsibility for the day to day operation of the facility, including its various programs.  On June15th, 2009 the library and computer laboratory became available for public use.  Additionally, The Mission commenced a summer youth program on June 22nd, 2009. There were some 60 participants on the first day of program, with young people being bused to The Mission from Tarpum Bay and from the communities south of Rock Sound, to attend what will be an eight week reading, cooking, drama, and arts and craft program.

When fully operational The Mission will serve as a Library, Reading Room, Resource Centre, Internet café and Museum, and will provide vocational, personal and professional training for South Eleutherans, with the emphasis on the youth. The Mission is registered as a Non-Profit Company affiliated with the Antiquities, Monuments and Museums Corporation (AMMC) of the Bahamas.