CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (FEBRUARY 16, 2009) -- Though Mrs. Mildred Daniel of Newcastle had been in the rank of senior citizen for some time, she inched closer to her 100th birthday when she turned 92 on February 9th surrounded by her family and friends and members of the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) Cabinet.
A conversationalist, Mrs. Daniel said she never expected to live to 92 since she had been knocked about many times in her life but she was grateful that the Lord had seen her through and everything was in his hands.
She said she became a Christian after she had her children and had remained in the hands of Jesus up to the present. Mrs. Daniel had an important message to parents and urged them to care for their children as she did with hers within her means.
“I thank the Lord for my children. Whether they give me something or not I thank the Lord for them. I bring them up I learn them manners and respect that when they come up they could have respect and people would have respect for them.
“So I can tell anybody it pays to tend to your children in the correct way and learn them behaviour and manners and take care of them. Me children can’t say me didn’t treat them good… I sent them to school and everything,” the proud mother said.
Minister of Social Development in the NIA Hon. Hensley Daniel who has special responsibility for the island’s elderly, told Mrs. Daniel he was pleased to celebrate with her on her way to her 100th birthday and thanked her for her contribution to the development of the island.
He used the opportunity to underscore the importance of the Senior Citizens Programme under which the profile of the island’s senior citizens was raised. He explained that the birthday celebration programme had made it possible for the seniors to reconnect with each other which was a major achievement of the programme.
Under the programme, the Ministry organised a series of activities and in the St. James area seniors would meet at the Community Centre every Monday; at the Butlers Community Centre they would also meet on Mondays and those from St. Johns met on Wednesdays.
Three times a year there would be group meetings. Last October as part of their activities, the seniors were taken to St. Kitts via the Sea Bridge ferry. A few weeks ago the seniors from St. Johns displayed their art and craft in the Square in Charlestown.
“There is a whole new approach to dealing with our senior citizens …the senior citizens are our people and we owe it to them to celebrate them and so this programme is not an accident – these are carefully crafted to bring the senior citizens in the mix,” he said.
Meantime, Federal Representative for St. James and Legal Advisor in the NIA Hon. Patrice Nisbett, who chaired the brief ceremony, also congratulated Mrs. Daniel on the achievement of a significant milestone in her life and thanked here for her contribution to her fellow villagers and the people of Nevis.
He pointed to the longevity of many persons in the area which he ascribed to good habits.
“I have always said it is because of our strong faith in the Lord. It is because also of the community spirit that exists here in St. James. Also the people of St. James have a tendency to give everything that they have and expect nothing in return and so by extension, I believe what the Lord has done, he has blessed them with length of years,” he said.
Minister of Agriculture Hon. Robelto Hector in brief remarks, thanked Mrs. Daniel for her contribution to agriculture. He also encouraged her to pass on the history of Newcastle to the younger members of her family and to tell them what life was like for her then because life today was not comparable.
