Bequia residents exposed to new skills under STEM Programme

A Bequia mother of two boys has shared her delight in learning new skills in barbering having recently completed a 16 hour continuing education course organised as part of work among secondary school students on Bequia. It was organised by the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programme.

Sumenta McLean told SEARCHLIGHT that it is more difficult to get a haircut in Bequia than on the mainland as “it is basically one barber shop people know of in Bequia”.

She said that even if she travels to St Vincent by boat, long lines at the various barbershops are inevitable and sometimes she is forced to do a ‘quick cut’ in order to get the back to Bequia.

Suementa McLean (centre) flanked by her sons

“It is kind of frustrating when you have to be waiting…I had to catch the one-o-clock ferry and all I could’ve get was a quick cut so because of that I decided to watch YouTube videos and learn more about fading.”

Between Monday April 8, 2024, and Tuesday 9, a number of Bequia residents were exposed to skills in bartending, barbering, hair styling as well as hair braiding and weaving.

McLean got the opportunity to learn how to perfect a fade, which is the haircut that her sons wear.

“Normally when I do it myself you can see the line from the fade and you’re not supposed to see the line, everything supposed to blend from the bottom come straight up. So I got to perfect that now and I understand the steps and know how to adjust the machine to get that.”

McLean said that as much she sees the value of education, she believes that having skills will be a bonus to already impeccable grades.

“The government can’t always provide job for everybody so a skill is very important…if you can learn a skill you can set up a business for yourself, become an entrepreneur and don’t have to be living from pay cheque to pay cheque. ”

Having completed the course, Mc Lean now intends to focus on honing her newly acquired skill, even as she expressed relief that she won’t have to worry about her boys’ next cut.

“Practice makes perfect and I’m not going to get it perfect at the same time, but in order for me to maintain this I have to keep doing it, keep practising it.”

Fifteen year old Jonté Forde was one student who took part in the two-day barber training workshop. He revealed to SEARCHLIGHT that he would be pleased to one day have his own barber shop, after receiving training from Lesroy Baptiste (SHABBA) who has his own barber shop in Bequia located at the waterfront.

“I like to do barbering,” said Forde who was working on a client. He told SEARCHLIGHT that “it is possible” to see himself as a full-time barber.

Reflecting on the workshop he added, “It was good, I appreciate the time out they took to come here and teach us what we are doing”.

Wineisha Ashbey and Saammyria Williams who were part of the bartending course made a few cocktails to demonstrate what they learnt over the two days.

Williams who has the least bartending experience of the two said, “I learnt what makes a bartender, in terms of how you present yourself in the bar because it is the first thing you notice when you enter an establishment or restaurant with a bar”.

She said she can see herself becoming involved in bartending as a part time job. Ashbey who has two years of bartending experience shared her love for the job.

“…at first I was like ‘how am I going to remember all these drinks?’ But then after doing them for some time I got it.”

Ashbey worked as a bartender at Jack’s Beach Bar and is currently employed at Mack’s Pizzeria and Kitchen located in Bequia.

“I’ve been a bartender for the last two years, so basically what I learnt [during the training] is like a refresher on what I knew before, I didn’t know who invented the Pina Colada.”

She said that she was grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the class.

The trainer of the course, Ozan Humphrey, boasts 15 years of experience as a bartender and said that the training in itself was a learning experience for him.

“It was my first time doing a course and it was good, it was different, it kind of make me become more outspoken because sometimes, you know what you are doing but then to teach it to someone, it’s different.”

The trainers of the barbering course were Lesroy Baptiste and Ronaldo Collins, Baptiste’s co-worker. Baptiste focused primarily on the practical aspects of being a barber while Collins dealt with the theory.

Baptiste has also been involved in teaching other community youths about the skill of barbering.

This training was a spill off from the work being done by the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programme in Bequia.

For the last two years, students from the Bequia Community High School and the Bequia Seventh Day Adventist Secondary School have had the opportunity to set CSEC subjects through the STEM programme whose classes are held online and face to face.