Vincies in New York stage Canfest

Efforts to assist St Vincent and the Grenadines, following the December 24 and 25 trough system, took another dimension, when a Canfest was held on January 12 in New York.{{more}}

Vincentians living mainly in the Brooklyn area converged at Café Omar, located at the corner of Nostrand Avenue and Clarendon Road in Brooklyn, and made donations of canned items.

The brainchild of Jonell “Young Hova” Goodluck, the event, dubbed “Canfest- Vincy Strong,” was an entirely voluntary effort, held in association with Fessie York of Standard Shippers.

The venue, Café Omar, owned by Vincentian Kendal Stewart was made available free of charge and a number of Vincy-USA based disc jockeys all played for free. For entry, each person simply had to donate a minimum of five canned items.

Deemed as “very successful,” the function drew a very good response, with the donated items filling 13 barrels, which will be placed in two containers containing the supplies which remained from the SVG Consulate’s Relief Collection, which was held immediately following the disaster.

The containers are due to be shipped to NEMOSVG by Standard Shippers, at no cost.

Proceeds from the bar, which amounted to close to $3,000, will be used to purchase items for the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital.

Responding to the support the event received, Goodluck said: “I was actually shocked, especially seeing it was a Sunday evening… It was very well attended.”

Goodluck expressed gratitude for the support and turnout of many of his friends and highlighted Tizana Goodluck, Bigg Bad Jugglers, Mentalist, Nollan Bulze, Atiba Williams, Sharon Jones, Marissa Williams, along with deputy consul general Edson Augustus, for their overwhelming assistance and support.

He stressed that support did not come only from Vincentians, as the New York based radio station Boom Station and DJ “Pantrin Vibes” were high on the list of persons to whom he expressed his thanks.

Goodluck revealed that he is in ongoing discussion with the relevant authorities as to what are the hospital’s immediate needs. He noted that from the Canfest, plans are in train to formalize the group named “Vincy Strong”.

Their first event, scheduled for later this year, will be a “Toy Drive,” in which persons will be asked to donate the toys to the less fortunate children in St Vincent and the Grenadines.