CANFEST: the “Benevolent Event of the Year”, say fans

Thousands of fans and reggae dancehall enthusiasts turned up at the Victoria Park on December 23, not only to represent their crew, but to support an event that many consider the “Benevolent Event of the Year.”{{more}}

CANFEST is the brainchild of promoter Kenton “Canton” Ollivierre. The concept is simple, and after five years, patrons have grown accustomed to contributing three cans of food in exchange for tickets to enter the show. This year, however, after several complaints from security and patrons about the safety and rush to cash in their cans for tickets on the night of the show, new sponsors LIME worked with the promoters to bring class and comfort to the event. Patrons were asked to purchase food items at Bonadie’s Supermarket and prepaid phone credit from LIME in exchange for tickets. That brought to an end the stampede that existed in previous years’ entertainment, Soca Monarch style.

One patron at the show said: “This crowd bigger than Soca Monarch”. Another remarked “Park go buss tonight,” as the crowd flocked to hear reggae dancehall sensation Jah Vinci, supported by local Soca Bard Skinny Fabulous and Madzart and his Madd Symphony band. This was after Prez and his crew “madd up” the park with their Hip Hop selections.

But at the end of the fun and party, the organizers’ work was cut out to distribute several thousands of the cans that filled over sixteen jumbo barrels. At the presentation ceremony at Bonadie’s Supermarket #2, this year’s sponsors LIME, Bonadies, and St Vincent Brewery met with the recipients of the food items. Seven organizations turned up to start their distribution process. Representatives of House of Hope, Red Cross, SVG Plus (HIV/AIDS), Salvation Army, Mount St Benedict Day Nursery, National Society of Persons with Disabilities, National Society of and for the Blind all turned up to receive the many cans of food. All representatives expressed their heartfelt thanks to the organizers and sponsors for widening the distribution and for making a difference to the lives of many persons who are in need.

Ollivierre expressed thanks to the sponsors, and all sponsors have already given their commitment to be on board again for LIME CANFEST 2012.

“We want to introduce some new ideas to CANFEST. We have to grow and move this idea a step further. There is no reason why CANFEST can’t help to educate a child, or send someone for medical attention abroad, or assist someone with their damaged house. We have a golden opportunity here to make a big difference to people in a meaningful way. We will be exploring several ideas and developing them in the future, said Ollivierre.