Bequia Anglican Early Childhood Centre upgraded

Fri, May 4. 2012

by Kim Young
Early Years Education
Adviser, England

It was my 6th visit to Bequia. I planned to stay for 5 months and I wanted to make myself useful.

I called at Bequia Anglican Early Childhood Centre (BAECC) situated behind the main street. I approached a member of staff and asked if they would like any help.{{more}} Instantly, all the staff and children welcomed me in and I got to work, playing alongside the children and even training the staff, who had a vision of being the best Early Childhood Centre in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

It was soon obvious that the centre needed additional outdoor play equipment. Also, the children could only play outdoors for an hour at the most, as the sun became too strong and there was no shelter. Children learn best when they are outdoors and have the space to move explore and investigate activities. So, there was the challenge: how to create shelter and improve children’s play opportunities.

In the few weeks I had been staying on Bequia, I had met some lovely people and through my discussions with them, useful contacts began to emerge. The first port of call was Action Bequia. I contacted Richard Roxburgh, who was very keen on the idea of supporting an education project. Richard requested a formal proposal. I submitted my proposal to Action Bequia in early February 2012. A few days later I was informed that the proposal had been successful, supported by a team of volunteers: Michael Connell, architect, Neil Sanders, construction engineer and Richard who acted as the catalyst, putting people together and raising funds.

Support for the project was amazing and word spread quickly. The community offered materials and resources. Dave and Bev Neely offered to arrange a film night, which raised a morale boosting EC$2,000. All the staff and the headteacher attended, placing BAECC in the spotlight. Meanwhile, whilst building materials were being sourced, the BAECC teaching team embarked on a series of training sessions. They gave up their evenings and were even willing to give up their weekends to attend.

Within the month the frame for the shelter was erected in the playground. The permanent sail was still on its way from America, so we still had no real shelter but then Neil Sanders turned up with an old sail, which did the trick. (The material has now arrived and Allick’s Sail Loft are busy sewing).

Through Action Bequia, the Mary Tidlund Foundation offered playground equipment. A giant climbing frame and slide. It was erected by a team of three from Canada, who were in Bequia to install two much larger playgrounds at Paget Farm and Union Levels, under the guidance of the Bequia Mission, led by Sylvester Tannis. Within 2 weeks the equipment was fixed and ready for use. The community team work was just incredible.

I had sent quite a few emails out to potential donors, using the publication ‘Bequia This Week’. Earl Tash, manager of Garden Care Plus, promptly replied and arrived a week later, with his team of gardeners, planting a generous array of plants, which instantly transformed the play area. The Easter holidays arrived; there was still a lot of bare concrete on show and so a group of enthusiastic amateur artists offered their services, led by the resident artist Julie Lea. Despite the heat, the budding Picassos created a bright, colourful collage along a boundary wall and transformed an ugly well. My husband and I completed the art work by painting a bicycle track that routes past imaginary mountains and whales, complete with crossings and stop signs.

Monday, April 16. The children returned to school. This was the best part, seeing the children’s reaction. Their eyes opened wide as they entered, smiles appeared, their pace slowed as they looked around in amazement. The parents did the same and many commented to the staff how wonderful it all looked and how nice it will be for their children to learn in such an exciting place.

This has been an inspiring example of people and organizations coming together to support a project and seeing it through to completion in record time…..just two months from publication of the original proposal. Thanks go to Action Bequia, for providing the capital and expertise; Bequia Mission for donating learning materials; the Mary Tidlund Foundation for the wonderful play equipment; Earl Tash, who has made the playground so green; Allick and Selma for making the covering; and to all the residents and visitors who have given up their time and money. Special thanks go to Mrs Madge Hazel, Head teacher, who supported me throughout and the early year’s practitioners, Teacher Pam, Teacher Tara, Teacher Docey, Brenda and Kayla.

I leave Bequia very soon.

I will miss it greatly, particularly the children and staff. However, the team leader has promised to stay in touch and send reports and pictures of how the centre is progressing. So, keep up the good work. You deserve to be the best Early Years centre in St Vincent. You can do it.