Jujube Bookstore donates to Heritage Museum and Science Centre at Botanic Gardens

A visit to the Heritage Museum and Science Centre was the feature event for children of Jujube Reading Circles, in celebration of National Heroes and Heritage Month.{{more}}

Over 40 children, accompanied by Michele Samuel of Jujube and members of the Leo Club St. Vincent South, visited the museum on March 16.

Also in the party were Vanessa Demirciyan, director of Alliance Francaise and Anne Weindhart, who ran Jujube Reading Circles for its first two years of operation. The group was hosted by Lystra Culzac-Wilson, owner and operator of the museum, which is the realization of a childhood dream since she was nine years old.

The children got a fascinating glimpse into the past from the displays of appliances and utensils from yesteryear — goose irons, kerosene stoves, manual typewriters, radiograms, record players, an analogue television and an old-fashioned washstand, complete with basin and ‘tensil’ were among the exhibits that captured their attention.

As a token of appreciation and in support of this noble effort on the part of Wilson, Jujube Bookstore made a follow-up visit last Thursday to formally hand over a monetary donation towards the development of the museum.

Following the visit to the museum, the group was taken to the Botanic Gardens to see the live Amazona Guildingi, and the many other attractions there. Story time was conducted by Vanessa, who told the children about our National Hero, Joseph Chatoyer and our French heritage. Jujube ended the focus on our heritage and heroes with a lesson on petroglyphs last Saturday. The children had the opportunity to do their own stone art, albeit with modern day finger paint.

Jujube Reading Circles seek to engage children in story time and other activities to encourage a love for books and reading, and to promote literacy skills. The Reading Circles meet every Saturday at the store on Grenville Street. This project is part of the community outreach and literacy programmes conducted by Jujube. In various ways, the company has worked along with a number of businesses and organisations, including Bickles, Digicel, the Daneford Trust, the Peace Corps, the Vincentian Association of Artists Writers and Producers, Alliance Francaise and the Leo Club St Vincent South. Jujube now looks forward to working further with the Heritage Museum and Science Centre to promote an appreciation of our culture and history.