US Virgin Islands
[singlepic id=4817 w=180 h=40 mode=web20 float=left]Good morning! This is Alex Randall with Good News Headlines
It’s Boxing Day and the First Day of Kwanza
Today is Boxing Day. It is also the First Day of Kwanza. Tonight at 6:00 PM St. John is celebrating Kwanza the Festival Of The First Fruits Of The Harvest with a Karamu 1996, That’s at the Cruz Bay Bandstand. The special guest speaker is Dr Gilbert Sprauve. For those who don’t know, Boxing Day is a remnant of the Victorian Era when the rich folks had fancy parties on Christmas Day and the serving staff had the 26th off as their holiday. The rich folks had to eat dinner out of Boxes, so it is called Boxing Day.
Stars and Stripes Open House
On this Boxing Day there’s an open house aboard the America’s Cup Yacht Stars and Stripes. Beginning at noon, you are welcome to come see this 75 foot yacht in Crown Bay Marina right in Subbase St. Thomas. Parents, please bring children to see this special sail boat. Stars and Stripes will tour the islands in the coming weeks. They’ve just been to Cruz Bay and Maho Bay. The British Virgin Islands is next, then St. Croix.
St. John Challenge of the Carols
The challenge of the carols is on St. John right now at the Cruz Bay Bandstand right off the ferry. Glenn “Kwabena” Davis has arranged for 5 groups from St. John and 3 from St. Thomas.
Airport Concessions
The VIBJ is out with news that the Port Authority has voted to make concessions to Concessions International, the food and drink vendor at Cyril King airport. The Board agreed to avoid a rent increase to allow the vendor to continue operating at our airport.
Hurricane Hunters to Return
Also from the Virgin Islands Business Journal the Hurricane Hunters signed a lease with the Port Authority to continue operating out of St. Croix instead of Antigua. This past summer was the first with the Hurricane hunters here on our islands, and now we can expect them back during the next hurricane season.
Dept. of Public Works Audit Results
There’s an audit of the Dept. of Public Works regarding their post Marilyn clean up. Dept. of Public Works didn’t follow the rules of competitive bidding for the emergency clean up. They paid crews more than the typical daily rate. Even with the declaration of emergency, DPW was supposed to get the most favorable terms from all contractors. Makes you wonder if the auditors actually know what an emergency looks like.
Post Office Boxes Get Bigger!
Are the Post Office Boxes getting bigger or are you seeing things? The Post office is bringing us larger Post Office Boxes to hold more mail and to clearly designate the local mail from the off-island mail. The new boxes will begin to appear today at the Kingshill Post Office.
Learn Casino Skills
St. Croix is gearing up for casinos and the Hospitality Training School is offering free classes in casino card dealing It takes six weeks to learn all the details of blackjack or craps and the Casino Act requires training and licenses for all dealers. Class registration is at Sunny Isle Shopping Center today and next week too.
Coming Up:
On St. Croix, The Festival village opens tonight in Canegata Park at 6:00 PM, and the Calypso Monarch Competition is tomorrow at 8:00 PM at the festival village, St. Croix.
Pearle Calendar
Pearle Vision is going to ring in the new year with a calendar that features all of the presidents of the US and the last 6 governors of the Virgin Islands. Pearle always has an interesting calendar and teachers love it because it has all of the Presidents. This year there are pictures of Governor’s Paewonski, Melvin Evans, Cyril King, Juan Luis, Alexander Farrelly and of course Governor Schneider.
Thank You Land of Oz.
Special thanks to the owners of The Land of Oz toy store. Their going-out-of-business sale back in October made this Good News Guy’s Christmas very merry indeed. It is sad you are gone Land of Oz.