They were the grateful recipients of toys donated through the Ministry of Tourism, Commerce and Consumer Affairs by Mr. Ralph Lawson of Norwegian Sky, a Norwegian Cruise Line.

Supervisor of the McKnight Daycare Centre Ms. Yasmine Powell thanked the Minister of Tourism, Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Honourable Dwyer Astaphan. She also explained that since there were not enough toys to give each child, some toys would be given to the older children while some would be left in the daycare centre for the younger ones to play with.

On behalf of Central Basseterre, Constituency # 2 Mr. Curtis Martin noted that by thinking of the children Minister Astaphan was acknowledging their potential.

He added that Minister Astaphan was in touch with his constituency and the future which was contained within the aspirations of the children. He also thanked the teachers for their exceptional work. He made specific reference to the individual labeling of the chairs with names which he interpreted as giving each child a sense of responsibility as well as acknowledging each one as an important individual.

In turn, Minister Astaphan acknowledged the critical role of the daycare staff and observed that they were doing an exemplary job in helping to mould the boys and girls. He expressed pleasure at the fact that the children were attentive, elegantly uniformed and were prospective Prime Ministers of the Federation.

He mentioned the possibility of obtaining more toys in the future, which he said would ensure distribution to children based at other daycares around the island. The Minister responsible for Tourism further thanked toy donor Mr. Lawson for his generous contribution.

He explained that the presents did not arrive in time for Christmas 2003 due to certain logistical arrangements, and thanked the entire crew of Norwegian Sky for their generosity and love for the children of the island.

One representative among three future leaders thanked Minister Astaphan for his role in donating the presents.