BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – OFFICIALS from the various Special Olympics Committees across the Caribbean converged at the Royal St. Kitts Hotel and Casino on Friday (Apr. 24) with the aim of conducting a post-mortem on their individual and collective performance during the past year and charting the way forward.
Dubbed the “Special Olympics Caribbean Business Meeting”, Friday’s occasion began with an official opening ceremony attended by delegates from The Bahamas, Belize, Aruba, Barbados, Cayman, St. Kitts and Nevis, Dominica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and Jamaica, as well as local dignitaries.
The commencement ceremony featured a cultural presentation by present and former students of the local Special Education Unit and a presentation by the featured speaker, Minister of State with responsibility for Sports, Richard ‘Ricky’ Skerritt.
The Minister expressed that their efficacy in the future is dependent on decisions to be made at meeting. He therefore urged the delegates to adopt “positive approaches” and employ “creative thinking” as they continue to champion the cause of Special Olympians.
“Obviously, forecasting is not something that I like to entertain, but what I have learnt is that what you do today helps to make all the difference in terms of your effectiveness in the future. And so the message that I bring to you today, is that whatever may be forecasted for the future. It is your deliberations like this today; it is your positive approaches and your creative thinking and your coming together from all quarters of support that will bring a promising and continued development for what your mission is.”
Minister Skerritt made extensive reference to the global economic fallout and its impact on the Caribbean; more specifically on St. Kitts Nevis. It was in that context that he encouraged the delegates to, come what may, be steadfast in providing representation for persons with special needs.
“Providing year-round sports training and athletic competition is a costly exercise, but it is a critical exercise which is absolutely needed for the capacity building and for the growth of your organisation. I want to take this opportunity then to say keep up the good work. Don’t allow the difficult economic environment and the negatives that emanate as a result of it to discourage you.”
The opening ceremony was followed by hours of deliberations on their successes and failures during the past year and decision-making as they chisel a path towards the continued advancement of Special Olympics Caribbean (SOC) and its members.
