Royal Navy sailors enjoy welcome ‘home time’ ahead of Independence Parade

by Christina Smith

Relatives of Vincentians who are serving in the British Royal Navy visiting for the 45th anniversary Independence will no doubt be overflowing with pride to see their loved ones in a show of patriotism during the Parade on Sunday, October 27, 2024.

The 35 Vincentians who got the opportunity to return home say it has been a wonderful opportunity considering that many of them have not touched home soil in more than a decade. Despite the intense heat, they say the visit is an emotional one.

Lieutenant, Jennell Adams, who will be leading the guard at Sunday’s Parade in Victoria Park, said she intentionally kept the date of return a secret so she could surprise her mother.
“I didn’t tell my Mom what date so when she saw me she was really excited. Then she took me around and started showing me off. My family is really excited to see me come home.”
The former Girls High School student and resident of Belair who worked as a teacher at the Emmanuel High School for 12 years before joining the Royal Navy, considers her rise through the ranks as a great accomplishment and source of pride for her family.

“I joined as a Rating Writer, then in 2022, I commissioned and became a Logistics Officer… I am one of the Vincentian officers that commissioned through the ranks. I was an Able Rate. My training took thirty long weeks, but I had a mission because I felt that as an Officer, I could do more for our people. I wanted to be in a position where I can influence change and impact policies,”she told SEARCHLIGHT.

Another success story in the visiting contingent is Warrant Officer II Phyllicia Collins, also a former student of the Girls High School who originates from Biabou.

Collins is the only female Commonwealth Warrant Officer in the Royal Navy and though she will not be on parade, she is excited for her family to see her in full uniform.

“For me it is an honour to come, so the youngsters can see someone they can look up to because when I joined, there was no one senior. There weren’t any officers… the highest rank I saw was probably a Leading Hand at the time when I was a Junior. So for me to work up the ranks quickly in 18 years to be promoted to Warrant Officer, it is a big achievement.”
The sailors, who include two British nationals, one St Lucian, one Kenyan and one Gambian, arrived in SVG earlier this week to complete the 10-day visit under Project Sapphire.

The visit is jointly supported by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity as a ‘thank-you’ to the islands for their support for the Royal Navy.

St Vincent and the Grenadine has the largest number of sailors in the Royal Navy, six hundred, and the country’s ratio of those who serve is roughly one in every 175 islanders, a ratio that is unmatched by any other Commonwealth nation.