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| By: T. C. Phipps-Benjamin |
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By T. C. Phipps-Benjamin
THE band strikes up in the tiny enclave of ‘Shanty Tung’; revellers gyrate downhill Spooners, a brew or two in hand; the mass makers in Texas are jolted from their comfortable nooks; the folks who reside in the Project and its environs awaken as the strike-up mode of the bands grow louder and louder. Meanwhile, the faces of the residents of Central, Cabbage Tree Hill, Whytes, Dunn's Cottage, River Ghaut and Waterworks reflect a shortened night sleep, a testimony to the merriment the night before.
The sound waves defy distance, transcending to the nearby villages, rousing the residents from their sleep; and if only for the sake of curiosity, they begin their short trip by foot, by car, and by bus. Vendors pool their hard earned money to stock their festively designed bars with an assortment of beverages and dainties for the swarm of revellers that will descend on the village. Soon, they will become part of the assembly of young, and not so young, observers and revellers alike, baking in the scorching Caribbean heat. As the curtains come down on the events, the former French town of Cayon will become unified into a musical frenzy, as revellers celebrate a cause for unity, dubbed the “Green Valley Festival”.
Green Valley Festival, the brainchild of Ms. Patricia ‘Anna’ Liburd, a proud Cayon woman, began its now 13-year journey in 1996. It amassed such impressive support from villagers and locals alike, that it inspired even residents abroad to make the annual trip home to be part of the celebrations. From its inception, the Green Valley Festival was positioned as "the unique alliance between a village and its neighbours to celebrate the spirit of community". The rolling hills, the beauty of the landscape spanning the village of Keys in the East and Ottleys in the West, the free-spirited nature of the residents, the name calling, the sports rivalries, the stalwarts, the siblings, friends, visitors and more, fused in an energetic collaboration of ideas that would evolve into the “people's” festival. Not just about queen shows and parade of troupes, not just about J’Ouvert morning or rum in a drum, this festival was birthed to recognise and celebrate the village of Cayon and its closely knit neighbours, once a year every year. When the festival drew its first breath, it was a delivery that was painstakingly ushered in with doubt, yet draped with an element of hope and a sense of pride that each year, community leaders would restore the bond that makes a community such as Green Valley, as unique as its inhabitants. Thirteen years later, Anna the visionary, who thought not of the flamboyance or accolades to be showered on her as the festival's founder, would likely plea with ALL of the community's residents, "Don't let this Community Festival die. Not now."
The village of Cayon and its surroundings has had its share of adversities coupled with triumph. In recent years, a seemingly unexplained wave of criminal activity has surfaced, much to the displeasure of the village's law abiding residents, who delight in a headliner about our prowess in sports rather than a front page display of our young boys' lifeless bodies sprawled in front of a discotheque or our homes. Our dismay as a community is not unique to the Green Valley area. Stories of youth waywardness and the violent loss of life are prevalent throughout the Federation. Not only are we losing our festival's prestige, but we are losing our nation's boys. How then can the festival's purpose be revisited well beyond the celebrations, with a view to make a sweeping impact on the community, particularly its youth? This will likely be one of the many considerations of the Green Valley Festival committee in the weeks and months ahead.
Life is merely a journey of challenges; each gap between the next a window of opportunity to regain our composure only to ready ourselves for the next obstacle. Like our life experiences, Green Valley has had its share of ups and downs. After all, the festival is about people with varying opinions and expectations. So when a festival the scope of Green Valley encounters obvious challenges, those who command the reins of authority for the festival must deem these challenges not as symbols of failure, but rather as opportunities to rebound as "the festival that survived the odds to benefit the community". The festival’s cast of decision makers along with the communities they serve are now charged with the responsibility of conducting a thorough assessment of the evolution of this festival. Armed with a sense of civic duty, they must now chart a course to restore community pride, honouring those who paved the way for the festival to even exist.
For many, Green Valley is home, but if we have lost that spirit of pride in the home that shaped us, who or what will motivate us to work diligently to restore our festival and that prized sense of community? There is no better time than NOW to rally around our Green Valley family. Now is the time to utilise the tools that will begin the process of refurbishing our community and our country for that matter; brick by brick; street by street; idea after idea. It's our community; it's our festival. Don't let it die. Not now!
Green Valley Festival celebrates 15 years of community involvement in June 2011. If you are planning a special activity around the same time, please feel free to reach out to the festival committee and include Green Valley in your plans. Also, please be encouraged to contact the festival committee to plan your vacation and family activities around the 14th anniversary celebrations in June 2010. The festival's website is www.greenvalleyskn.com
Special thanks to Patricia ‘Anna’ Liburd.
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