The St. Patrick’s Day festivities celebrated with a week of activities began in earnest in a commercial way nearly or more than 40 years ago. It is not clear however that its commercialisation has benefited Montserrat in a way that supports the claim of positive growth, linked to the success of the 50th anniversary celebrations the influx of visitors.
Reports claim at the beginning of the week that residents and visitors were ready for an exciting packed week of cultural and lively event as St. Patrick’s Week of activities sprang into action. The week-long celebration began with a 20/20 cricket festival at the Little Bay playing field on Saturday afternoon.
The Hon Minister Colin Riley serves as chairman of the St. Patrick’s planning committee and he reported that the committee was all set for the week’s first event. The next event should have been a fishing competition at Little Bay which had to be postponed because of a spell of high seas crushing the Montserrat western coastline up to our press time.
The week of activities as published included the St. Patrick’s Day Lecture which was held and claimed as a success on Monday night when Miss Ethlyn Weekes, vice principal at the Montserrat Secondary School introduced as a very willing and fit person, delivered on the topic ‘Montserrat’s Response to Development in a World that is Changing Fast.’ The UWI Open Campus, hosted the lecture as it has done for many years, at the Cultural Centre conference room.
There was also some newness to the schedule of activities via three new events. A youth jamboree, which was also postponed from Tuesday, March 12; a band clash in the Salem Park Friday, March 15, and the African music festival. Then there was the usual like the Emerald Community Singers, freedom hyke, pub crawl, R C church St. Patrick’s Day dinner, which takes place on Saturday night, March 16. There will be the church service to take place on St. Patrick’s Day, Sunday, March 17.
The African music festival will include two events, the concert tomorrow March 16 at Salem park and the Fun in the Sun open-air concert also at Salem park the following day, March 17. That will will also feature the junior calypso show.
The following day, Monday is a public holiday when the popular slave feast will take place to wind up the activities and bring the curtains down in Salem, preceded by the Freedom run and walk earlier in the day.
