SVG Diaspora Heritage Awards and Gala to be held in NY

This fall, on September 17, 2016, the SVG Diaspora Committee of New York Inc will host its inaugural St Vincent and the Grenadines Diaspora Heritage Awards and Gala 2016 at the Friends of Crown Heights Educational Center in Brooklyn. The event will be held with the collaboration of two newly formed institutions SVG-USA Sports Association (SVGUSASA) and Cultural Association of Vincentians in the USA (CAVUSA), under the theme “Heritage is Everything: Celebrating Vincentian Excellence.”{{more}}

Several Vincentian legends and icons will be recognized for their outstanding contributions to Vincentian life in the areas of sports, culture and humanitarian efforts. Among the awardees are Vaughan Toney, Verna Arthur, Errol “D Man Age” Rose, Lennox “Skully” Hunte, Cyril “Scorcher” Thomas, Gloria Ballantyne, Rudolph Boucher, Hermina Cambridge, Garnet Niles, Justin Stapleton, Gideon “Fessie” Yorke, Mary Neverson (posthumously), Robert McBarnett, and Donald Llewellyn.

Five persons, Gloria Ballantyne, Rudolph Boucher, Donald Llewellyn, Hermina Cambridge, and Garnet Niles will also be inducted into a Sports Hall of Fame, a flagship programme of SVGUSASA. Vaughan Toney, CEO of the Friends of Crown Heights Educational Center, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award.

The objectives of the Heritage Awards are:

1. To recognize Vincentians who have made sterling contributions to SVG or its diaspora in the USA;

2. To motivate and inspire Vincentians to continuously strive for excellence;

3. To document the legacies of the Vincentian diaspora in the USA; and

4. To promote unity among Vincentians in the diaspora to strengthen the cohesiveness of the Vincentian diaspora.

The SVG Diaspora Heritage Awards and Gala 2016 is being promoted as the signature event of the committee to showcase the best of Vincentian heritage. There will be a surprise entertainment package that will see collaborations among several of SVG’s best cultural artistes. Tickets for the event are on sale from members of the organizations. Ticket price is $80.

For more information, please contact svgdiaspora@gmail.com, Glenroy “Gobels” Phillips: 347-436-2953, Maxwell Haywood: 718-344-7922, Owusu Slater: 917-648-8395, or Peter Burke: 646-761-0605.