The Sandals Foundation, the non-profit arm of Sandals Resorts International is looking to raise much-needed funds for the SickKids-Caribbean Initiative with the first ever staging of Streak it Blue, a 5k Fun Run and After-Party in Ocho Rios, Jamaica.

The SickKids-Caribbean Initiative (SCI) is a not-for-profit collaboration between the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto and various institutions across six Caribbean islands. Through partnerships in St Vincent, Barbados, Bahamas, St. Lucia, Trinidad and Jamaica, the SCI works to provide the best possible management for pediatric cancer and to improve outcomes for children affected by cancers and serious blood disorders in the Caribbean.

The initiative allows medical professionals in the Caribbean to connect with SickKids oncologists and haematologists in Canada to collaborate on treatment options and facilitates training and education to support the early identification and treatment of children living with these devastating diseases in the Caribbean.

At present, the SCI believes that children in the Caribbean have a 50% chance of surviving cancer while those in Canada have an 85% chance.

With this in mind, The Sandals Foundation is making a special appeal for individuals or companies to sponsor a child to participate in Streak It Blue, with all proceeds going directly to the SCI. Set for May 24, 2014, Streak It Blue is a unique two-part event which promises two distinct experiences; an exciting 5k Fun Run and an after-party at Sandals Grande Riviera’s exclusive Ochi Beach Club.

Sponsoring a child costs only US$30 and will allow that child the opportunity to participate in the 5k run as well as the kiddie after-party which will feature bouncy castles, hot dogs, cotton candy and ice-cream.

Since the Launch of the SCI in February 2013, the Sandals Foundation has donated CAD$250,000 to the initiative. The most recent donation of CAD$200,000 will go towards the renovation of a telemedicine facility at Victoria Hospital in St Lucia. Telemedicine rooms are already in operation in the Bahamas and Barbados under the SCI initiative and over the next six months, three more facilities will open in Jamaica, St Vincent and the Grenadines and St Lucia.

President of the Sandals Foundation, Adam Stewart, said Streak It Blue is a unique way for the Sandals Foundation to increase awareness about and raise money for the SCI while allowing children and adults to have a good time. He said, “There are hundreds of children across the Caribbean struggling with cancer on a daily basis.

That these children have a smaller chance of surviving than their peers in Canada and North America is heartbreaking and this is why the Sandals Foundation fully supports the Sickkids Caribbean Initiative and its mandate to improve the chances of the children in the Caribbean.

Every child deserves a fair chance at survival and the SCI strives to give children across the Caribbean this chance. Through Streak It Blue we are doing our part to support the SCI and we urge everyone to do the same.”

To play your part in boosting the chances of sick children across the region, visit www.streakingitblue.com and make your contribution today.

About the Sandals Foundation

The Sandals Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was created to continue and to expand upon the philanthropic work that Sandals Resorts International has undertaken. It is the culmination of three decades of dedication to playing a meaningful role in the lives of the communities where we operate across the Caribbean. The Sandals Foundation funds projects in three core areas: education, community and the environment.

One hundred per cent of the monies contributed by the general public to the Sandals Foundation go directly to programs benefiting the Caribbean community. To learn more about the Sandals Foundation, visit online at www.sandalsfoundation.org.

 

TWO American tourists are in police custody and will appear in court this week after they were found with marijuana in their possession. According to the Royal Bahamas Police Force, a 28-year-old woman of Southbridge, Massachusetts, and a 27-year-old woman of Waltham, Massachusetts, were arrested after officers from the Tourism Police Unit went on board a docked cruise ship and made the discovery. The incident happened at 9:30am on Friday...

TWO American tourists are in police custody and will appear in court this week after they were found with marijuana in their possession.

According to the Royal Bahamas Police Force, a 28-year-old woman of Southbridge, Massachusetts, and a 27-year-old woman of Waltham, Massachusetts, were arrested after officers from the Tourism Police Unit went on board a docked cruise ship and made the discovery. The incident happened at 9:30am on Friday...

 

 

THE passing of a Freedom of Information Act and a Fiscal Responsibility Act were important in establishing trust in New Zealand residents over their government’s efforts to implement Value Added Tax (VAT) and other fiscal reform initiatives, New Zealand VAT experts said. New Zealand operates one of the world’s most successful VAT regimes. Two of that country’s VAT experts, who are presently in the Bahamas, are in the process of advising the Bahamas government on its readiness for VAT...

THE passing of a Freedom of Information Act and a Fiscal Responsibility Act were important in establishing trust in New Zealand residents over their government’s efforts to implement Value Added Tax (VAT) and other fiscal reform initiatives, New Zealand VAT experts said.

New Zealand operates one of the world’s most successful VAT regimes. Two of that country’s VAT experts, who are presently in the Bahamas, are in the process of advising the Bahamas government on its readiness for VAT...

 

A man was shot dead at the rear of his friend's home early yesterday morning, marking the sixth murder in the last four days, police said.
Police said the man was shot in the stomach and chest after midnight as he sat on a bench behind the home on Gibbs Corner, off East Street.
The shooter fled on foot and the victim ran to the front of the house, where he collapsed and died.
Police said the motive for the shooting was unclear.
In a separate incident on Friday night, police reported that two gunman shot a man in the back of his head as he walked on Cordeaux Avenue.
The gunmen fled on foot.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Anthony Ferguson said the gunmen also shot at other people in the area.
However, Ferguson said they missed those targets.
That same night, police reported a triple shooting left two women and a man in hospital.
The shooting took place on Plantol Street, off East Street, around 10 p.m.
One of the women was reportedly in critical condition up to yesterday. The others were in stable condition in hospital, police said.
Police said it's too early to say whether the shootings are related.
Ferguson said he is becoming increasingly concerned about the amount of violence that has taken place in the Englerston community.
"There were some five killings in this area and I'm certain that there are some persons in the community who have information," Ferguson told reporters on the scene of the murder on Friday.
"This is our community and in order to make this community safe, persons with information need to come forward."
The violence over the weekend pushed the murder count up to 39 for the year so far. This same time last year the murder count stood at 35, according to The Nassau Guardian's records.
Anyone with information on any of these shootings is asked to contact authorities at 919, 911, 328-TIPS or the Central Detective Unit at 502-9991.
Police are expected to identify the murder victims today.