For the first time Anguilla is having a Marine Heritage Centre. It was launched at Island Harbour on Saturday, February 22, at the old health clinic building. What is of much significance to the project is that Island Harbour is the island’s main fishing village – and location of the annual Festival Del Mar which has become a popular event for residents and throngs of people from all other communities.
The project is an undertaking by the Ministry of Tourism in collaboration with the East End Tourism Working Group.
Mr Foster Rogers, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, told the large gathering: “The Marine Heritage Centre project was conceived not only to highlight the rich maritime history of Anguilla, but to position it in Island Harbour where this heritage resides. It is meant to showcase this part of our heritage so that it can be shared with the younger generation, help the older generation to reminisce, as well as to share this aspect of our heritage with visitors to our island.
“Many people have been working hands on, up to this point, with this initiative and many others have been working behind the scenes both on island and abroad. These include persons from Island Harbour and other parts of the island and non-Anguillians.”
Mr Rogers listed the names of the members of the Tourism Working Group and supporters, including member of Project Hands, as follows: Ms Gina Brooks, Ms Patricia Harrigan and Ms Jasmin Garraway from the Project Management Unit of the Ministry of Tourism. He also gave the names of the East End Tourism Working Group. They are Othlyn Vanterpool, Colville Petty, Keith Harrigan, Samuel Webster, Marie Horsford, Clarence Fleming-Rogers, Andre Samuel, Jerome Roberts, Owen Mussington, Avon Carty, Ravi Lloyd, Kay Ferguson, Tim Webster, Louvan Webster, George Hodge, John Lloyd, Rolston Otto, Tracey Otto, Vernon Webster, Rocky Lake, Aphrodite Lake-Fleming, Vanier Harrigan, Freddie Webster, Monique Webster, Elkin Lloyd and Tramayne Lake.
The Permanent Secretary acknowledged donations in kind and in cash from a number of persons. He said there was a need for more tangible support including paint and treated plywood, various other materials, construction equipment and tools and skilled tradesmen to prepare the building for the project. The want list for the Centre also includes fish nets and traps, bouys, rods and tackle, an old boat, miniature boats, maps, charts and lanterns; and photographs of fishing, boat-building, sailing/racing, famous boats and fishermen. Mr Rogers disclosed that the Ministry of Tourism had been receiving technical support from the UK-based West India Committee whose Chief Executive, Mrs Blondell Cluff, is of Anguillian descent.
Ms Jasmin Garraway, who also spoke, is the Manager of the Project Management Unit and her work is being funded by the Commonwealth Secretariat in London. She previously served as a tourism consultant in Anguilla and was involved in the preparation of the Sustainable Tourism Master Plan, funded by the Caribbean Development Bank, of which the Martine Heritage Project is one of the components.
Ms Garraway acknowledged the assistance of a number of persons, in getting the project off the ground, including Dr Lorenzo Webster, one of the first donors. “We cannot go any further without the solid support of every resident of Island Harbour to make this a reality,” she stressed. “So far, we have come a long way. The members of the Committee have met many times and there was very little to say to them that we have something tangible in hand so we can proceed. But the group never faltered or wavered. They went out in the community and looked at the many things that Island Harbour has to offer. We now have a long list of things that are possible in this area – that really should be enhanced for the people of Anguilla/Island Harbour and to be shared with visitors.”
She went on: “The objective of the Sustainable Tourism Master Plan was not just to be a plan on the shelf or the library. I took great pains to ensure that it was a plan that was achievable and that we can actually implement. Now that we have reached this point of implementation, this is where all the resources are required. Unfortunately, these resources are not readily available from the traditional channels and so we have to find them where we can get them.”
Mrs Garraway was grateful to number of persons in Anguilla including visitors who have been of much assistance. “We could not have done it until we have some seed money, so I am happy to say that we have the seed money – and now we need the muscles, the equipment and volunteers to do the work… We would like to see, before the end of the summer, that the place is complete and that it is a place that we can be proud of.”
The launching of the Marine Heritage Centre Project was enthusiastically received by the gathering. When established, though with a different focus on artifacts, the Centre will complement the work and offerings of Heritage Collection Museum, at East End, which boasts a wealth of history from the Arawaks to the 1967 Revolution – a great delight and education for locals and visitors alike.
