First it was the International Bazaar, and now the Grand Bahama Port Authority is extending its hand to the businesses in the downtown area.
It’s part of the Port’s “Angel of Hope” theme that will be resonated throughout the entire Christmas season.
Geneva Rutherford, Director of Community Service at the Port, noted that on the day of the concert, donations will be given to different charities including the Red Cross, the Salvation Army and others.
The economy of Grand Bahama has been most unkind to residents of the island with many persons becoming unemployed and many livelihoods left financially disheveled.
“Yes, the times are very tough but we are reaching out and this is just to say that there is hope for the community. We are looking to see how we can help one another. In this effort, the Port is trying to bring more foot traffic downtown because our aim is to help businesses in the area. They can make more money if we try to bring a large number of people in the down town area,” continued Mrs. Rutherford.
“We are trying to look in a variety of different areas to see where we can get help for those who are really, really in need.”
Saturday’s activities will run from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. with praise teams, local marching bands, choirs, liturgical dance groups, soloists, and gospel groups and invitations have been extended to schools, churches and various groups to participate.
“We want to really bring the true meaning of Christmas to everyone. The main activity, apart from the music is that we will have some give-a-ways. Persons from different charities will identify a number of persons that they know who are in need through a ticketing program,” she said.
Arthur Jones, the port’s Vice President of Building and Development said that recognizing what a challenging year this has been for Grand Bahamians, the Port has decided to use the money usually spent on decorating the city, to help people in the community.
“We all know that this year is probably the most challenging we have had in a very long time. We know that there are many persons who have had very difficult times and we are very conscious of that and as we decorate the city for this season, we are very mindful of so many persons who are in need. This year we thought that it was more important to share a lot of what we had with those who were in need, rather than taking everything we would have budgeted to decorate the city to help others,” said Mr. Jones.
“We wanted to see how to see how can inspire the community take part in this effort with us . We came up with the theme: Angels of Hope, because we believe that is what Freeport needs right now.”
With the assistance of a local art group, made up of students from around Grand Bahama, the theme of Angels was developed, and as the holidays draw closer, Grand Bahamians will see the art work of these students depicting the GBPA’s versions of Angels of Hope with inspiring messages.
They will be draped from light poles all along the downtown center.
Partnering with the Port, is the Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce which will be hosting its annual Business Window Dressing Competition for downtown businesses.
The Port has agreed to waive the license fees of the winner for one year, but in an effort to draw residents to the downtown area, the Port Authority will host a Christmas Concert on Saturday, December 11, in the vicinity of the Welcome Center.
Grand Bahama Chamber President Peter Turnquest added, “We are targeting the downtown area for special recognition and the aim is to get as many of the downtown business and the wider community to participate using the theme of Angels for their display we also have other special prizes for businesses and residents.”
Judging for the window display competition will take place on December, 23rd.
By Lia Campbell
Triune Media Writer
