Father Chester Burton, right, assistant curate at St. Matthew's Anglican Church with altar servers and Christian Youth Movement (CYM) members on board a Royal Bahamas Defence Force vessel during a retreat in Matthew Town, Inagua. At left is Jennifer Dotson. (Photos: Fr. Chester Burton)

The youthful members of St. Matthew's traveled to Matthew Town, Inagua, for a spiritual retreat, but also took time out from their fun, frolic and fellowship to help beautify the St. Philip Church and Parish Hall by picking up trash; and to bring a spot of cheer to senior citizens and shut-in members on the island by visiting them and serenading them and presenting them with gift bags.

Father Lynden Douglas, rector at St. Philip's came up with the idea of the altar servers and Christian Youth Movement (CYM) members traveling to the southern island to engage in the retreat, with Fr. Chester Burton, assistant curate at St. Matthew's on Shirley Street.

During their retreat the children toured Morton Salt Company where they got to see first hand how the "white gold" as locals refer to salt is harvested; they were taken on the tour by Scott Nixon, senior manager of operations at Morton Salt who explained the painstaking task of salt production. He also told the youngsters that Morton Salt Company ranked second only behind Mexico in terms of natural solar salt production worldwide. He showed the youngsters the mammoth harvesting equipment used to harvest salt on a daily basis which he told them is a 20-hour a day process and project and that Morton Salt employs 140 locals.

The St. Matthew's Church members were also taken to the flamingo conservation area on the outskirts of the Morton Salt Production salt ponds where they learned that the flamingos feast on the salt brine water daily which contains tiny microscopic shrimp and that it is what gives the flamingo its pink color. Many of the youngsters were disappointed that they could not take in the birds up close, but from a distance and through the lenses of binoculars.

Whilst on the island the children also got the opportunity to board and take a tour of a Royal Bahamas Defence Force vessel the Lawrence Major that was docked at Inagua Port Harbour.

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