BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, August 22, 2024 (MMS-SKN) -- In its continued efforts to ensure that older persons in the communities age with dignity, the Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Ageing and Disabilities, through the Seniors Enrichment Programme, treated over 150 senior citizens to a ride on the St. Kitts Scenic Railway on Wednesday August 21.
“The Seniors Enrichment Programme of the Ministry aims at providing entertaining, educational and uplifting activities for our older persons,” explained Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Ageing and Disabilities, Mrs Janelle Lewis-Tafari. “It is intended to help them to not only learn more, but also to have opportunities of socialising and basically continue to be a part of our community.”
The seniors, who came from all corners of the island, where transported to the Needsmust Train Station by buses provided by the Ministry of Education, were not in any way pushed to going on the trip, because as the Permanent Secretary Mrs Lewis-Tafari noted, they are ones who elected to go on the scenic railway train tour.
“Last year we were looking at planning the activities for 2024 and we would have reached out to some seniors,” said the Permanent Secretary. “We would have asked them some of the things that they are interested in doing, and quite a number of them said they hoped to go on the train, so we had no choice but to add it to our calendar of events.”
The St. Kitts Scenic Railway which was described as a good corporate citizen and a willing partner, when approached they were able to accommodate them with a reduced cost for the seniors. When the information was relayed to the seniors, they turned out in their numbers, and word has it that they would have been more had the trip been undertaken on a Sunday as some of them are into businesses and could not find anyone to take charge while they were out.
“So we had over 150 seniors who would have come for the tour, and from my observation, the majority, if not all of the seniors, would have enjoyed it,” said the Permanent Secretary. “From the carriage that I was in I know persons on the tour spent some time reminiscing about their childhood days and walking along the bridges and the various parts away from the main road that you do not normally see, so I think it was quite a good experience.”
The seniors had started arriving at the Needsmust Railway Station as early as noon, but they started boarding at 1:00 p.m., and the train under the command of Mr George ‘Brother’ Edinborough pulled out of the station at 1:26 p.m.
The train has five carriages, and most of the seniors occupied the upper decks, while a few with mobility problems remained in the lower air-conditioned decks. Lunch was served immediately and serving them was the Permanent Secretary Mrs Janelle Lewis-Tafari, who was assisted by Senior Home Care Officer Ms Andria Caines, and other Home Care Officers, and Programme Managers in the Department of Ageing.
St. Kitts Scenic Railway staff served them drinks throughout the three-hour trip taking them on the 18 mile train ride on the eastern side of the island. While each carriage had its specific staff serving the seniors, there were two masquerade players who had to move from carriage to carriage as they entertained the seniors, some of whom joined in the dance.
However, the most productive part of the trip was the knowledge the seniors got from Narrator, Ms Patricia Davis, who knows the entire route and could even tell where they were without looking out. She knew the names of all the places, and the historical and geographical significance of each area, and spiced her narration with humour that left all of them in laughter.
When the train was passing Tabernacle Village, she asked them to look to their right and said the white stone slabs on the graves were doors to “underground condominiums”. When they got to Dieppe Day Village she told them to look at the Police Station, which she said: “It is a hotel with good rooms and you stay there free of charge - all you need to do is to misbehave.”
The train ride ended at La Valle, opposite the St. Kitts Eco Park near Fig Tree Village, where they transferred to school buses from the Ministry of Education to take them back to their respective homes.
“We are at the end of our trip, and those who wish to use the bathrooms use them now on the train, or those outside when you come out as there are no bathrooms on the buses,” advised Narrator, Ms Patricia Davis.
When asked how she found her clients, Ms Davis said: “They were great. They were well behaved and everything they did very respectfully, and they were cooperative. I enjoyed working with them this afternoon. I told them that much - I enjoyed working with them.”
According to Supervisor of Homecare Officers, Ms Andria Caines, the next event involving the seniors will be part of the 41st St. Kitts and Nevis Anniversary of Independence celebratory activities, the Seniors Independence Cultural Celebration which will be held on Tuesday September 3, starting from 9:00 a.m. at the National Heroes Park, Conaree Village.
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