Winners of the 2022 E. Clement Bethel National Arts Festival for Grand Bahama were awarded their trophies, accolades and awards during the staging of the 2023 Festival in Grand Bahama.

Receiving their awards in the same room where only minutes earlier, a session of the adjudication of this year’s festival was held, created a sense of euphoria for last year’s participants and brought back memories of their nervous moments of performances, followed by anxiety of wondering what was going through the minds of the judges.

The exhilaration of the moment was also punctuated with an exclamation point as the winner of last year’s poster competition for the National Arts Festival (overall) was given her rightful recognition. Deputy Director of Culture in the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, Portia Sands, along with Senior Cultural Affairs Officer, Sonovia Pierre and Cultural Affairs Officer, Abby Smith announced that Jaela Bowe, an 11th grade student at Mary, Star of the Sea Catholic School was the overall winner of the poster competition.

The poster competition, which involved students from throughout The Bahamas, was the first of its kind, as the National Arts Festival began rebranding itself.

“This competition came with great accolades,” Abby Smith told those who had gathered in the C.A Smith Building for the awards ceremony on Friday, April 21, 2023. “Not only did Jaela win the competition, but her design will be the standard design on everything that’s related to the National Arts Festival, inclusive of the booklet, posters, flyers, tickets, etc."

Jaela Bowe has joined a short list of other students who have etched their name in Bahamian history through the National Arts Festival. Over the years, the festival has inspired some of the best Bahamian artists to produce material specifically for the festival.  Material that would ultimately become a part of the festival, either as set pieces or choice pieces.

As for the winners of last year’s festival, which took on a digital format because of the COVID-19 pandemic, St. Georges High School was the overall winner, claiming the top spot in a number of categories.

Other winning schools included Mary Star, Walter Parker Primary, Hugh Campbell Primary, Jack Hayward High, Sister Mary Patricia Junior High, Wilbur Outten Christian School, Bishop Michael Eldon High and Sunland Baptist Academy.

Adjudication for the National Arts Festival is expected to take place on 16 Bahamian islands and Cays this year. In Grand Bahama, students from schools throughout the island have already began exposing their talent to adjudicators, and those sessions will conclude next week.

It is anticipated that the presentation of awards to last year’s winners will serve as motivation in inspiration for participants in this year’s festival, as they prepare for the final sessions.

 

Winners of the 2022 E. Clement Bethel National Arts Festival for Grand Bahama were awarded their trophies, accolades and awards during the staging of the 2023 Festival in Grand Bahama. Receiving their awards in the same room where only minutes earlier, a session of the adjudication of this year’s festival was held, created a sense of euphoria for last year’s participants and brought back memories of their nervous moments of performances, followed by anxiety of wondering what was going through the minds of the judges. The exhilaration of the moment was also punctuated with an exclamation point as the winner of last year’s poster competition for the National Arts Festival (overall) was given her rightful recognition. Deputy Director of Culture in the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, Portia Sands, along with Senior Cultural Affairs Officer, Sonovia Pierre and Cultural Affairs Officer, Abby Smith announced that Jaela Bowe, an 11th grade student at Mary, Star of the Sea Catholic School was the overall winner of the poster competition. The poster competition, which involved students from throughout The Bahamas, was the first of its kind, as the National Arts Festival began rebranding itself. “This competition came with great accolades,” Abby Smith told those who had gathered in the C.A Smith Building for the awards ceremony on Friday, April 21, 2023. “Not only did Jaela win the competition, but her design will be the standard design on everything that’s related to the National Arts Festival, inclusive of the booklet, posters, flyers, tickets, etc."   Jaela Bowe has joined a short list of other students who have etched their name in Bahamian history through the National Arts Festival. Over the years, the festival has inspired some of the best Bahamian artists to produce material specifically for the festival.  Material that would ultimately become a part of the festival, either as set pieces or choice pieces. As for the winners of last year’s festival, which took on a digital format because of the COVID-19 pandemic, St. Georges High School was the overall winner, claiming the top spot in a number of categories. Other winning schools included Mary Star, Walter Parker Primary, Hugh Campbell Primary, Jack Hayward High, Sister Mary Patricia Junior High, Wilbur Outten Christian School, Bishop Michael Eldon High and Sunland Baptist Academy. Adjudication for the National Arts Festival is expected to take place on 16 Bahamian islands and Cays this year. In Grand Bahama, students from schools throughout the island have already began exposing their talent to adjudicators, and those sessions will conclude next week. It is anticipated that the presentation of awards to last year’s winners will serve as motivation in inspiration for participants in this year’s festival, as they prepare for the final sessions.

As a part of Coastal Awareness Month, Sustainable Tourism Representative Aulenna Robinson, had an interactive presentation with students of Mary Star of the Sea Catholic Academy on Tuesday, April 18, 2023.  Targeting students from grades three to six, Ms. Robinson shared information on the importance of protecting the environment and coastline. She also highlighted the value of protecting natural habitats, especially mangroves, that are essential to maintaining the balance of coastal ecosystems.

Ms. Robinson, using visual aids, stressed the importance of the five threats to the coastal environment: climate change, pollution, endangered species, habitat destruction and overfishing.  Beach cleanups, supporting sustainable fishing practices, being aware of hazards for marine life and the use of single-use plastic items were ways Ms. Robinson encouraged the young listeners to be a part of the campaign.

 

As a part of Coastal Awareness Month, Sustainable Tourism Representative Aulenna Robinson, had an interactive presentation with students of Mary Star of the Sea Catholic Academy on Tuesday, April 18, 2023.  Targeting students from grades three to six, Ms. Robinson shared information on the importance of protecting the environment and coastline. She also highlighted the value of protecting natural habitats, especially mangroves, that are essential to maintaining the balance of coastal ecosystems. Ms. Robinson, using visual aids, stressed the importance of the five threats to the coastal environment: climate change, pollution, endangered species, habitat destruction and overfishing.  Beach cleanups, supporting sustainable fishing practices, being aware of hazards for marine life and the use of single-use plastic items were ways Ms. Robinson encouraged the young listeners to be a part of the campaign.

Just like they did in the New Providence Basketball Association (NPBA) two weeks ago, the Commonwealth Bank Giants and the Your Essential Store (YES) Giants emerged as champions, this time on the national stage in the Bahamas Basketball Federation's National Championships.

The championships were held on Saturday at the Kendal G.L. Isaacs National Gymnasium.

The Commonwealth Bank Giants secured the title in division one by taking down Abaco's Showtime Ballers, 107-89. In division two action, the YES Giants easily disposed of Grand Bahama's Just Run, 110-76.

The Commonwealth Bank Giants got out the gate very strong as they went up 16-6 in the first four minutes of their game against the Showtime Ballers. Led by Most Valuable Player (MVP) Jackson Jacob, who was aggressive early on in the game, they took command early. Jacob finished with a team-high 26 points in that game. Four other Giants players scored in double digits.

The Giants took a 40-28 lead at the end of the first quarter, but the Ballers had some fire in them as they were able to storm back and take a lead at the 3:15 mark of the second quarter on a Brandon Meadows three-point shot. They went up 47-46 at that point. It was their first lead of the game. Meadows ended the game with 24 points and seven rebounds and was named the best defensive player of the mini tournament.

Commonwealth Bank Giants head coach Perry Thompson Jr. said he had rotation problems in that second quarter.

"Time got us as we played eight minutes a quarter and then we played 10 minutes in the championship game," Thompson said. "It messed up with my rotation as I left my starters on too long. The starters got a break in that quarter and started the third quarter and that was the big difference of the game."

The Giants took a 57-52 lead at the intermission. The game stayed close in the third quarter as the Ballers kept within reach. The quarter ended 80-73 in favor of the Giants.

The fourth quarter started off slow for the out-of-town guests. The Giants came out strong and took a 96-81 lead at the halfway mark of the fourth period. The Ballers finally ran out of steam and the Giants pulled away and won the game.

The Ballers were led by national team player Godfrey Rolle Jr. who had a game-high 28 points.

The Giants won the battle on the boards, 69 to 46.

Bimini's CJ Sears was named as the offensive player of the tournament.

Division II

The YES Giants had four players in double digits, led by MVP Matthew Saunders who scored 18 points. He added five rebounds and five assists in 26 minutes on the floor.

Brandon Strachan had 16 points, Touretue Cartwright had 15 points and defensive player of the tournament Anderias Black had a double-double with 14 points and 15 rebounds to go with three blocks and a steal.

Head coach for the YES Giants Perry Thompson Sr. said that his squad was up to the challenge.

"Conditioning has always been one of the things that we strive on. We were able to scout the guys," Thompson said. "We wanted to apply pressure and control the flow of the game from the jump ball. We stuck with the game plan that gave us a big lead."

Leading the way for the Grand Bahama side was offensive player of the tournament Antwan Bevans with a double-double of 21 points and 11 rebounds.

The Giants held a comfortable lead of 53-30 at the end of the first half. They outscored their opponent, 29-15, in the second quarter.

At the end of the third quarter, the Giants held a comfortable 80-55 advantage.

The Giants kept playing competitive basketball and outscored their counterparts in the fourth, 30-21.

An elated Thompson said he was happy that they were able to get their sponsor a title.

Tambearly International School students jumpstarted their Easter celebrations early with students in grades Pre-K through 12 putting their creative talents to work to create dioramas using blown eggs as the characters of their settings.

Each grade level was tasked with selecting and designing a theme using recycled materials to create the settings and egg shells as the characters. Themes reflected concepts studied in all subject areas including novels and works of pop culture studied in literature class, science concepts, events from history studies, musical productions performed through the music classes, Tambearly students' favorite sports game, fashion and design, and gaming/ technology.

According to Christina Chandler, vice principal at Tambearly, the students did an "egg-cellent" job working together to create their displays.

"The 'egg-stravaganza' event was an important part of our students' learning process as it helped all grade level students develop problem-solving, listening, leadership, and creative thinking skills. Students had the opportunity to strengthen relationships working collaboratively to create products that demonstrated their knowledge and skills learned as well as celebrate the upcoming season. This allowed students to connect authentically with their peers to articulate their ideas for a common goal. Through this project students also developed a sense of self-pride in successfully meeting objectives with each individual having an important role in its completion," said Chandler.

"The excitement and joy in all grade levels was realized with the dedication each student had in planning, preparing, and implementing their team's plan."

Pre-K students, ages three and four, learned about the life cycle of a chicken through their barnyard display of a colorful and bright chicken coop.

Montessori students, ages three through five, shared a prehistoric display depicting herbivores and carnivores in the swamps and forest of 150 million years ago.

Kindergarten students created a display reflecting on character traits of power and strength used to help others. Each student created an egg character of their favorite fictional superhero.

Grades one and three students focused on science studies creating works that reveal elements of outer space.

The first-grade students' diorama, a model representing a scene with three-dimensional figures - either in miniature or as a large-scale museum exhibit, was a representation of all planets in the universe being navigated by grade one students as "egg-aliens" in their unidentified flying objects (UFO).

Grades two and four students' egg characters were both set in a lovely spring day. The second-grade students' offerings represented creatures great and small, while grade four egg characters were in a competitive game on the sports field.

According to Chandler, their third-grade students have been excited about space and space travel following NASA's SpaceX Crew-6 mission which launched on March 2, 2023. Their display showcased Crew 6 egg characters heading to the launch pad readying themselves for flight through space.

Fifth-grade students' dioramas depicted historical events - the Battle of Hastings (1066) and Norsemen eggs rowing their Viking ship into battle at Stamford Bridge (1066) reviewed in class and a fashion show of lovely young eggs strutting in style.

While the sixth-grade students' displays represented settings in literary works. The sonnet The Kraken, by Alfred Tennyson (1930) showed egg characters fiercely trying to steer their ship away from the slumbering tentacles of the Kraken. Fairy tales Rapunzel and Rumpelstiltskin were represented in a display comparing and contrasting the works.

Grade seven students shared various topics - a representation of "Cats" the musical, gladiators at a Roman amphitheater, and passengers on Bahamas egg ways taking flight for the holiday break.

Eighth-grade students created a scene from "The Stranger Things," a science fiction work, showcasing the alternate dimension of "The Upside Down".

While the grade nine students shared an intense soccer match between minion eggs. Grades 10 through 12 students created scenes from favorite novels studied this year, "A&P" by John Updike, "The Lord of The Flies" by William Golding, and "The Diamond Necklace" by Guy de Maupassant. Their interactive dioramas were a hit with parents as they provided QR scan codes linking to the excerpts from the novels represented in their scenes.

Adding extra incentive to earn merit points for house teams, families were invited to visit the displays during the school's parent-teacher conferences and shared details learned about students' studies through autumn and winter term from the "eggstravaganza" display.