The Department of Social Development held its first ever annual awards cocktail at the Anguilla Great House, on Saturday April 23rd, to honour a number of persons.
The event was chaired by former Commissioner of Labour and past Chair of the Poor Law Board, Mr. Calvert Carty. Among other things he expressed strong views about the practice of posthumous awards: “I would prefer that persons receive their flowers while they are alive. Let this be the first and last time that we would have awards posthumously but, instead, we would like to have everyone walk up here and receive their award while they are alive and well”.
Commissioner of the Department of Social Development, Mr. Stanford Richardson, took to the microphone to deliver a brief overview. He highlighted the fact that the Department was formally known as the Community and Welfare Department and then underwent structural changes in 2004 giving way to the Department of Social Development, which we know today. He said: “The change suggested a new approach to the delivery of social work, moving clients from a state of dependency to a state of independence – and from a state of entitlement/right to one of privilege”. He further stated that it took more than a change of name for the Department to move forward. To that end he said: “Two buzz words at that time were empowerment and partnership…It was within this climate that the decision was made to develop and implement a number of projects that seeked to assist in the empowerment of clients and create closer partnerships with stakeholders and the wider community”.
Subsequently, after the structural reform, a number of projects were developed under the new Department and some have been fully implemented today. These projects included the Family Development Project – implemented in 2010, The Young Monther’s Education Programme – implemented in 2006, The Anguilla Retired Persons Association, Transportation for Seniors and Challenged Persons, the Drum Vibration project, Building the Gap – an annual retreat for fathers and sons introduced in 2008 and which later evolved to a retreat for families, and the formation of Community Councils and the Annual Award Cocktail.
Mr. Richardson described social work as “a demanding, stressful and often overlooked vocation that can be extremely gratifying and rewarding”. He continued: “When you do it good, and you do it right, social work is a feeling that is larger than your own life”. It is for these simple reasons that he identified the need to award those persons who work tirelessly to serve their clients well. He concluded: “If you believe in others and give them a positive reputation to uphold, you can help them to become better than they think they are – that’s what social workers do as we ‘forge solutions out of challenges’”.
A total of seven awards were given out from six categories. They were: the Early Bird Award – Mrs. Daphne Hodge; the Long Service Award – Mr. Clive F Smith; the Partnership Award – Retired Judge, Mr. Don Mitchell, QC and Ms. Navine Fleming; Honorary Social Work Award – Mr. Ezekiel David Smith; Spirit of Social Work Award – Mrs. Daphne Hodge and the Life-Time Award – the late Mr. Thomas Raphael Lake.
Mr. Lake joined the St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla Civil Service in 1957 and was appointed a Social Welfare Officer becoming the first person to fill the position in Anguilla. He retired after 19 years of service and paved the way for persons like Julian Harrigan and Mrs. Eudene Romney. The plaque, which was designed by Cheddie Richardson of Cheddie’s Enterprises, features a piece of Anguillian marble set in mahogany wood. Mr. Lake’s family accepted this award on his behalf. His son, Keithley Lake, responded: “It has been 16 years since he has passed and it is certainly gratifying to hear his name mentioned from time to time on the airways by people who say they wish he was around. He was a man of his time and while these are different times [present day], we would hope that the spirit and the fervor which he approached his work with, in terms of making life better for other people, without any concern for what time of day or night it was. He always went when he was called. My family and I are indeed gratified that he was recognized here tonight by this first lifetime award – and even further gratified that in the future the other awards will be given in honour of his name”. He concluded: “We hope that the people who will be given this award, and those who aspire to receive this award, will be guided by his spirit and his purpose”.
The cocktail was also used to recognize the winners of the Department’s Quiz Competition held in March. The winners were Mrs. Florence Hodge, Mr. Othlyn Vanterpool, Sharnel Richardson, Mr. John Martin and Janice Carty.
