One such activity was hosted last week Saturday 18th August, 2012; almost 100 nationals participated in a Fun Day.
One of the organizers described the event as a day of fun, games and the rekindling of some long lost friendships for nationals of St. Kitts and Nevis living in the Washington, DC Metropolitan area, which also includes Northern Virginia and Southern Maryland.
The Fun Day, was the first official event of the recently formed St. Kitts Nevis Nationals Association-DC, (SKANNA-DC) was deemed a success on many fronts. The huge turnout of persons at the peak of the day was over 80 nationals, with their guests from other Caribbean islands and North America. Some nationals, resident in Chesapeake, Virginia, drove over three hours to get to the event, held at the outdoor Bon Air Park in Arlington, Virginia.
The official said the event turned out to be an even greater attraction for some Kittitians and Nevisians visiting the United States on vacation. They made it a point of duty to show their support and solidarity by attending the event and taking active part in the fun activities.
Moments of nostalgia were created as men; women and children became excited and got totally engaged in the fun sports. The highlights included a one wicket, wind ball cricket match, sack races, lime and spoon, and rat in trap.
There was even more nostalgia as the array of Kittitian and Nevisian food and drink wetted the appetites of many mouth watering guests. Johnny cakes, bread pudding, ginger beer and sorrel reminded us of what it means to eat local.
Many persons in attendance were optimistic about the positive effect of the fun day and vowed to support it in an even bigger way in 2013.
SKNNA –DC’s next major event is a Church Service to commemorate the 29th Independence Anniversary of the Federation of St. Kitts-Nevis. This will take place on Sunday, September 9, 2012 at the National Wesleyan Church located at 6324 Riggs Road, Hyattsville, Maryland 20783. Attendees will be treated to a sample of Kittitian and Nevisian cuisine after the worship experience.
Other activities are being planned by the St. Kitts Nevis Nationals Association-DC, (SKANNA-DC) in the coming months. Kittitians and Nevisians can follow SKANNA-DC on their Facebook page to stay informed. Nationals of St. Kitts-Nevis have been invited to join the association and can make contact via sknna-dc@gmail.com.
President of the Association is Valda Morris-Slack. Other elected officers are : Vincent Hodge (1st Vice President); Joseph Bass (2nd Vice President); Alice Tyson (Secretary); Shermelle Mulraine (Treasurer); Yvette DeFreitas (Assistant Secretary/Treasurer); Jason Inanga (Public Relations Officer); Peter Huggins (Assistant Public Relations Officer); Anthony Slack (Information Technology Specialist) and George Woods (Assistant Information Technology Specialist). Vince Liburd is an ex-officio Adviser to the Committee.