1st Quarter 2022 BRIDGING THE GAP

1st Quarter 2022BRIDGING THE GAPAccording to the Cambridge dictionary, the meaning of ‘bridge thegap’ in English is to connect two or more things or to make thedifferences between them smaller. It is no secret that the SisterIslands have marked differences between what they have to dealwith, what they have to offer and how they are perceived by residentsand visitors compared to the main island of Tortola in the BritishVirgin Islands. This fact does not take away from the significance anddistinct appeal associated with Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Jost Van Dykeand all of the neighboring islets in between like Saba Rock, NeckerIsland, Great Camano, Cooper Island, Peter Island and many more.Page 1 Sister Islands NewsletterThe vast majority of tourism arrivals are due to these very islands butfor residents on a day-to-day basis, there are some challenges that aretoo hard to ignore. Thanks to the past and current Government of theVirgin Islands for their continued work to solve some of the issues.What most of these challenges really need are communication,collaboration, commitment and creativity, essentially creating asituation where we strive to continue in our quest to ‘Bridge the Gap’between all the Virgin Islands; hence improving the lives of ourchildren, our elders, all our residents and visitors.

BRIDGING THE GAP1st Quarter 2022 Message: Bridging the Gap Across the Sister Islands(Hon. Shereen Flax-Charles) Special Feature: BVI NPO Collaboration Service Dayon ANEGADA Sister Islander of the Quarter: Guess Who? Semi-Final Inter Secondary School Winners Recipe: A Mouth-watering West Indian Appetizer Food Security and Sustainability Travelling Between the Sister Islands TransportationUpdate! Where to Find information for all of the British VirginIslands AE OF SSEMBUSLYHOFEATURES OF THIS EDITIONWhat is Happening? Update on Events and Activitiesin the Territory Health Tip Virgin Gorda Easter Festival Highlights Green Tip Official Holiday Calendar of the Virgin IslandsVIRGIN IS L A N DSMESSAGE FROMThe Junior Minister for Trade & Economic Development& At Large Representative“Bridging the Gap Across the Sister Islands”As one of the world’s premier sailing and luxury resort destinations, theBritish Virgin Islands benefits immensely from its archipelago nature.Comprised of over sixty islands, islets and cays ranging from the flatisland of Anegada to private communities like Necker, our Territory isunique in that our various districts, communities, peoples, and culturesare divided by our beautiful blue expanse.While our tourism product benefits from this unique constitution, wemust also find ways to ensure that the physical distance between usdoes not cause us to drift too far apart. Yes, we are sixty islands, islets,and cays, but we do not need reminding that we are still One BVI. It isparticularly important that our sister islands and their residents haveequal access to representation, resources, and opportunities.I was pleased to play my role in ensuring that our critical public servicesbecome more present on the sister islands particularly including theDepartment of Trade, Investment Promotion and Consumer Affairs. Wenow have at least one representative with virtual full services availableon Virgin Gorda weekly and Anegada and Jost Van Dyke at least once amonth. This is critical for business persons, and we hope it is extendedto include agencies such as the Treasury Department.Just as we seek to better serve the business community, I am enthusedby the efforts of the very business community themselves. Despite theeconomic hardships of the global pandemic, I see that commerceinter-island is making strides. Our young entrepreneurs specifically takeadvantage of the connecting ferries selling a wide variety of productsto customers on islands different to themselves. Heightened ferryservices including the new weekly Jost Van Dyke feature show that weare understanding the beauty of interaction and trade between us.Of course, there is still much more to do! I look forward to seeing muchgreater cross island collaboration and commerce. I look forward to usfellowshipping in faith virtually across the islands, cooperating onbarge distribution to reduce import costs and communicating in moredynamic ways to ensure the needs of all are fairly met.Honourable Shereen Flax-CharlesPage 2 Sister Islands Newsletter

BRIDGING THE GAP1st Quarter 2022BVI NPO COLLABORATIONSERVICE DAY ONANEGADABRIDGING THE GAP between NPOsIt all started with an IDEA, a PLAN of ACTION was putinto play and the RESULT was a Fun in the Sun,teamwork-inspired Success Story!This adventure was much more than just the typical cleanup; it was centered around the idea of creating a strongand unique network of active volunteers who shared thevision of a greener, cleaner and more picturesque BVI,starting with the attack on trash on the coastlines of 12beaches on Anegada. It was carefully planned out andcoordinated by those who shared the vision, whilemeaningfully managing to bridge the Gap betweenNon-profit and other agencies from the sister islands aswell as from the main island of Tortola.Donors and/or Coordinatorsof Event:- The Anegada Resilience Team- The Maria Rodriguez Van Heurck- Foundation- Unite BVI- Beyond the ReefIn kind Donations were made by: Go Green VI Road Town Fast Ferry Anegada Reef Hotel Mr. Nice GuyParticipants came out in numbersfrom various groups such as: The Rotary Club VISAR M.A.L.E. Y.E.P. The Lions Club The BVI Red Cross Green Sprouts Eco Club Anegada Resilience Team Virgin Gorda Resilience Team U.N.D.P. N.P.O Board B.V.I. Government (FCDO) Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Staff and Students of the Claudia Creque Educational Centre Other members of the Anegada CommunityAfter Effects12 Beaches were Cleaned andhundreds of eco friendly bags of trashwere collected!Thanks goes out to all of the above inaddition to the 11 participatingrestaurants, taxi and rental companies,and anyone else who contributed insome way.Page 3 Sister Islands Newsletter

BRIDGING THE GAP1st Quarter 2022SISTER ISLANDER OF THE QUARTERMS. TIEKA CREQUEMs. Creque, at one point in her professional career was alibrarian on the Sister Island of Virgin Gorda and was the P.T.A.President for 2 years at the Bregado Flax Educational Centre.She also served on the P.T.A. in Anegada at the Claudia CrequeEducational Centre on more than one occasion, and worked asa pre-school teacher for a period of time before taking aSupport Officer position at the Nurse Romalia Smith Clinic.Ms. Creque believes in serving her Community and helping tomake the conditions in which we all live better as evidencedby her commitment to serving on current as well as previousCommittees. She was an active member of both the CERT(Community Emergency Response Team) and the BVI RedCross, and Co-founder of the Christmas Tree LightingCommittee on Anegada.Sister Islander of the Quarter is Ms. Tieka Creque, a proud,self-employed mother of 5! She has a strong personality,determined once her mind is made up, resilient in the face ofuncertainty and adversity and known to bridge the Gapbetween what may seem like an impossible task and what isactually possible.This month she helped to bring the volunteers throughoutour territory closer together as she was an integral part of thehosting and coordination of the NPO Collaboration ServiceDay Coastal Clean up.Ms. Creque currently owns and manages Butterfly KissesSports Bar and Café, where she offers a variety of carefullyprepared, delicious hot meals and freshly baked tasty andattractively decorated cakes.Tieka Creque is the Vice President of the Anegada ResilienceTeam and Founder of Paradise Youth Club, a non-profitorganization that hosted fundraisers, donated Back to Schoolsupplies to students and also assisted the senior citizenresidents on island.Page 4 Sister Islands NewsletterMs. Creque was also a resident on the Sister Island of VirginGorda where she was also very active in the Community.Her advice to her family, friends and to the youth in particular:‘Accept challenges with grace and hold the torch that lightsyour path. Understand that you are a leader, not a follower.Speak positively and all of your efforts will be successful inJesus’s name.’Cheers Ms. Creque! Strong Women speak Volumes! KeepShining!

BRIDGING THE GAP1st Quarter 2022SEMI-FINAL INTER SECONDARY SCHOOL WINNERSWITH HONORABLE VINCENT O. WHEATLEYMinister for Natural Resources, Labour and Immigration and Ninth District RepresentativeFeatured: Hon. Vincent Wheatley, the 9th District Representative withstudents of the Claudia Creque Educational Centre after winning theirsemi-final debate on 16th of March. Liaili Rosario, Angelina Evans andGorcia Johnson will now advance to the finals which will be held onFriday 1st April where they will propose the Moot:“Vaccines are our Passport to Economic and Social recovery fromCOVID-19.” Opposing the Moot will be students from the BregadoFlax Educational Centre in Virgin Gorda.Visit the B.V.I. Tourist Board website – Places to Stay, Events, Activitiesand More!Paradise Redefined British Virgin Islands Tourism (bvitourism.com)Page 5 Sister Islands Newsletter

BRIDGING THE GAP1st Quarter 2022MAMA’S RECIPE: DEEP FRIEDSALTFISH STUFFEDPLANTAIN BALLSINSTRUCTIONS11Add ½ cup flour (or cornmeal)12In a bowl, add 1 cup unseasoned breadcrumbs13Take an icecream scoop amount of plantain and place on a plate.Sautee chopped onions, garlic, parsley and bell peppers1 tsp turmeric1 tsp black pepper1 tsp garlic powder1 tsp onion powder1 tsp cayenne pepper14Press the plantain out and then using the spoon, put some of thesalt fish on top. Roll it over, until it forms a complete ball.15Roll the balls in the breadcrumbs.16Place the plantain balls in the fridge for 30 minutes.17Heat the frying pan with oil5Add saltfish to the sauteed mixture; cook for 10 minutes186Put 1 tsp salt in a pot of waterFry the balls for 10 minutes, turning over every 2-3 minutes untilgolden brown.Peel 3 ripe plantains and cut in half; add to the hot water andcover19Drain on a paper towel720Enjoy!1Boil the saltfish for 20 mins, change water and do again2Drain, cool3Heat olive oil in a medium sized frying pan48Remove the plantains after they boil9Add 1 tsp salt10Mash the plantainPage 6 Sister Islands Newsletter

BRIDGING THE GAP1st Quarter 2022FOOD SECURITYAND SUSTAINABILITY“The Jurisdiction That Cannot Feed Its People Is At The Mercy Of Whoever Can”Recently in the British Virgin Islands, a series of Consultation Meetingsto acquire feedback from the public regarding the proposed FoodSecurity and Sustainability Act was hosted by the Ministry ofEducation, Culture, Youth Affairs, Fisheries and Agriculture and theDepartment of Agriculture and Fisheries. These meetings were held oneach of the four (4) main islands as well as virtually so no resident waswithout an opportunity to attend.Ask yourself, what is the basis of community self-reliance? Food! Andwith the uncertainty posed by the potential for natural disasters, thelingering covid-19 pandemic and the threat imposed by the economicsetbacks likely as a result of Putin’s war in Ukraine, there is no bettertime than the present to take action.Sister Islanders, look around! We are dependent on tourism at themoment and that economic pillar is worthy of attention andinvestment as it will hopefully continue to maintain its usefulness as acatalyst in the development of our territory for years to come.However, we must not underestimate the significance of agriculture,and fishing, educating our young people about it and encouragingeach other as we strive to make each one of our islands moresustainable and less dependent on distant suppliers for our sultation.February 7, 2022 Slide 2 (1).pdfPage 7 Sister Islands nStability