The Caribbean Democratic Alliance Club of St. Croix is holding a Recognition Banquet for its officers on Nov. 3. It will take place at 7 p.m. at Midland Restaurant.
The Club will honor individuals for their contributions to the Democratic Party and to the people of the Virgin Islands; former Governor Alexander Farrelly, former Senator Sidney Lee, former Senator St. Clair Williams, Mr. John Barzey, Mrs. Gloria Bell, Mr. Wadsworth Dickenson, Mr. Francisco Melendez and Ms. Jamila Russel.

The Calvary Baptist Church, Coral Bay Awana Club's first event this fall is the "Bible Character Party". Students must come dressed as a character from the bible and their classmates will try to guess who they are by the things they say and do. The party will be at 5:30 p.m. om Friday, Oct. 26.

The Humane Society of St. Thomas invites the public to a "Dining Out" event on Tuesday, Oct. 9, at East End Cafe which will donate a portion of its proceeds to the fundraiser.
Restaurants throughout the island are joining the Humane Society to raise funds for the betterment of animals of the Virgin Islands.
For more informaiton about this event call Cara Hinton at 775-3301.

Dear Source,
My wife and I and some friends attended the St. John "Face of America" evening at Wolf Trap [See "Wolf Trap production shows off St. John's 'face'"] and I thought I should relay our impressions to you all.
First, Wolf Trap is an open-air theater; the stage is open to a gentle slope where the spectators sit on blankets and have wine and cheese, fruit and gourmet snacks. We could look down into the theater and see the stage. The people there that night were a wide range of nationalities and backgrounds, very typical of the area we live in. It was a beautiful night. The weather gave us one of the most comfortable summer evenings of the entire season.
I should tell you that we have been to your Virgin Islands these last two years and loved it. We've stayed a few days each at St. Thomas and St. Croix, but our hearts are on St John. So, we were excited, as were most others we encountered walking with our baskets up the hill to the gates.
Most members of the audience were dressed in "island garb" or something close to it. We were ready for limin'. We expected steel drums, island music and all of the other things we would expect to see at a St. John evening. We expected Skinny Legs, Roma's, the dock and some of your beautilful art and artists.
But the evening, although wonderful, was not what we expected, and many there were disappointed in the main theme. We saw one dancer's interpretation of the history of slavery on the island and at the Annaberg sugar mill. It started with a strong reference to slavery in Virginia and the sadness involved. This had nothing to do with St. John.
Then the storyteller wove a long, beautiful tale of a young slave girl who knew a secret and became a threat to her owners — how she was pursued from the ship when she escaped and her adventure getting to a hut on the hill to meet friends.
The music was wonderful, composed to blend with the visuals on the screens and the dancing. Beautiful visuals, great dancing and great music … but all about slavery, not about the joys of St. John.
This was not a project intended to introduce your islands to tourists. I fear it will not encourage tourists to come. This wonderful evening was dedicated to explaining the experience of slavery on your island. A true sadness.
As we were walking on the way back down the hill to our cars, people were openly talking about being disappointed at not having experienced the evening they expected.
As I hope I described, this was a beautiful demonstration of dance and its music with wonderful visuals. My compliments to the artists involved; it was a beautiful piece of work. But it was not what the audience expected. We left a great presentation with less than a happy experience.
I hope others will write and explain their experiences with this presentation. I hope I was fair.
John R. DiMiceli
Germantown, Md.

Editor's note: We welcome and encourage readers to keep the dialogue going by responding to Source commentary. Letters should be e-mailed with name and place of residence to source@viaccess.net.

Oct. 4, 2001 – At Emmaus and Bethany Moravian Churches, there's a female preacher in the pulpit now — the first in the congregations' two and a half centuries of existence.
The Rev. Lillette George, who grew up on St. Thomas, took over as the pastor of the two Moravian churches on Aug. 1. The job had been vacant for several years since the Rev. Ralph Prince transferred to St. Thomas. In the interim, lay pastor Bill Lomax, a St. John resident, conducted services.
As the first woman to serve the congregations as pastor, "I am breaking new ground," George, an Antigua native, said. Calling her job now a challenge, she allowed that not everyone was receptive to the idea. But there are other challenges, too, including working with the church youth in "getting them to understand the centrality of God in their lives."
A church member who asked not to be identified said that the Provincial Elders Conference of the Eastern West Indies Province of the Moravian Church picked George for the job because of her strength in working with youth. Over the years, membership among young people has declined, the church member said.
George came to the post from a teaching job at Agape Total Life Academy on Tortola. A graduate of the University of the Virgin Islands, she taught at Lockhart School on St. Thomas and later in Newport News, Va., before heading off to Moravian Theological Seminary in Bethlehem, Pa., to earn her a degree in pastoral counseling. She was ordained in 1993.
"I studied drug and alcohol counseling, family intervention and domestic violence," she said.
George said she is still getting her feet wet in her new job. Her flocks of about 140 members each are located at opposite ends of St. John, which means she spends a lot of time in her car traveling between the churches. Not one to waste time, she said she uses the trips for reflection.
She also travels frequently to St. Thomas to consult with Moravian Church officials. Her mother, Lillian George, and a niece, Lariesha George, live on St. Thomas. too.
While she has some plans to reach out to the broader community as well as to introduce some new programs in her churches, she's not ready to discuss them yet.
George said she enjoys "the natural environment" of living at the Moravian Church manse in Coral Bay. She doesn't have a lot of free time, but when she does, she likes to write short stories, poems and plays. "And I'm going to make going to the beach one of my priorities," she said.

Oct. 4, 2001 – In celebration of the fact that they seem to have become a fixture, the weekly get-togethers on the American Yacht Harbor deck outside The Color of Joy now have a name: "Friday Night Alternative."
Last week's installment attracted an assortment of talented islanders, including Lightnin' Phil's Band (Phil Robinson on fiddle with Paul Dirk on bass, Morgan Rael on steelpan and Paul Deaton on drums) and vocalist Ron Nimmo ("with his bevy of singing ladies, who all took turns at the mike"), art gallery/shop owner Corinne Van Rensselaer reports.
Adding to the ambience, it was house keyboardist/vocalist Sally's Smith's birthday.
This week, some or maybe even all of them will be back, Friday from 6 to 8 p.m. on the Marlin Deck outside the gallery. With Smith as host, the lineup also includes Andrew Douglas on steelpan and St. John's Marty Beechler on vocals.
As always, the gallery will be open, and complimentary wine, cheese and crackers will be served. Those who head home from St. Thomas to St. John at the end of the day are reminded that The Color of Joy is minutes from the Red Hook ferry dock, making it a convenient stop to unwind, end the week and start the weekend. For more information, call 775-4020.

Students at St. Croix’s St. Joseph High School undertook a "Children for Children, 9.11.01" march for peace last week.
Dr. Susan Diverio, the principal of St. Joseph High School, said that the objectives of the march were to raise money for the children of the victims of the terrorist attack on September 11 and to raise a sense of social awareness and consciousness about the importance of coming together and uniting for America.
Besides St. Joseph High School, six other schools participated in the march, including St. Croix Country Day School, Good Hope School, Manor School, St. Mary's Catholic School, St. Patrick's School, School of the Good Shepherd, Community Methodist School and the IQRA Academy.
About 500 students, teachers, and parents started the march with prayer service on the grounds of St. Joseph High School. Students and leaders from the participating schools shared their thoughts in the prayer service, which was led by Fr. Cecil Corneille, the pastor of St. Joseph Church and a member of the St. Joseph High school board.
Many of the participants wore T-shirts with specially designed American Flag artwork by St. Joseph High School student Alfredo Cuencas. The proceeds from the sale of the T-shirts went to the children of the disaster.
The march, led by the St. Joseph High School contingent, followed a police escort down Centerline Road. With the strong sun being shaded at times by the passing clouds, the participants marched along the road to Sunshine Mall, one-and-a-half miles away.
Traffic passing by honked their horns to show their support for world peace. After about an hour of marching, K-Mart at Sunshine Mall was reached and the long line of participants swerved around the parking lots in front of the businesses. The march paused for a few minutes to take part in some more prayers for world peace and to sing the National Anthem.
Then the march proceeded up the opposite side of Centerline Road to make the hour long journey back to St. Joseph High School. Arriving back at the school, many of the participants had a lunch at the school with the proceeds going to the children's fund. A momentarily heavy downpour did not dampen the spirits of the participants.

Oct. 3, 2001 – The V.I. government announced plans Wednesday to launch a $6.5 million advertising and marketing campaign to promote tourism in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks last month.
The new campaign will be in addition to a $17 million expenditure on advertising and marketing this year, making for the largest advertising push in the territory's history, according to Tourism Commissioner Pamela Richards.
A new "Sea to Shining Sea" campaign will have a patriotic theme designed to appeal to travelers who may feel more comfortable taking their vacations within the United States, she said at a press conference Wednesday afternoon at the Tourism Department offices on St. Thomas.
"It's a message of patriotism and solidarity with the United States," she said. "If the American people are willing to fly, we have a good chance of getting them to fly here."
Advertisements will begin this month, she said, with spots on television networks such as CNN, The Weather Channel and ESPN; newspaper ads; billboards in the largest cities on the East Coast; advertisements on 570 New York trains; and radio spots in the 12 largest markets of the East Coast and Midwest.
Some of the spots will feature a recorded message from Gov. Charles W. Turnbull, while music will be provided by the Territorial Court Rising Stars Steel Orchestra, Richards said.
The campaign has been developed in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, which have wreaked havoc on the world-wide tourism industry. Locally, Labor Department officials have documented about 200 people laid off from hotels. Resort managers have reported severe slumps in occupancy and flood of cancellations for months to come.
Other Caribbean tourist destinations have also launched new marketing and incentive plans in the last two weeks in an attempt to lure guests to their islands.
"This is going to be a very, very competitive period we're entering," said Joe Slay of Martin Public Relations, the territory's mainland p.r. firm. Martin is coordinating the Virgin Islands campaign along with the territory's stateside advertising firm, Ogilvy & Mather in Atlanta.
Funding for the advertising campaign will come from the Tourism Advertising Revolving Fund, which was set up to support tourism promotion, Richards said. She added that the governor's financial officers have assured her the money will be available as it is needed.
The revolving fund has one source of revenue: the 8 percent room tax paid by hotel guests. The amount of revenue that goes into the fund depends on hotel occupancy levels. Local hoteliers have said that August and September were already unusually slow, even for what is typically the slowest time of the year in the territory, prior to Sept 11. Since then, there have been reports of occupancy dropping to as little as 10 percent to 15 percent.
Richards acknowledged that the terrorist attacks put the tourism industry in a crisis, but she said the airlines have reported that their flights have been getting fuller as time passes. "I'd say the glass is half full," she said of the prospects for the coming season. "Of course we're hurting, but we have an opportunity to recover. We've put together a plan, and if you don't have a plan, you're sure to fail."
At the press conference, Richards also said:
– A marketing campaign featuring Looney Tunes cartoon characters was successful and will be expanded to markets in Western Europe.
– The number of visitors to the Tourism Department website is up, with the site getting about 500,000 hits per month.
– Tourism officials have been trying to get in touch with NCAA officials to continue discussions about a proposed basketball tournament in the territory. Assistant Tourism Commissioner Monique Sibilly-Hodge said she expected to speak with NCAA officials Wednesday afternoon.

Oct. 3, 2001 – The V.I. government announced plans Wednesday to launch a $6.5 million advertising and marketing campaign to promote tourism in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks last month.
The new campaign will be in addition to a $17 million expenditure on advertising and marketing this year, making for the largest advertising push in the territory's history, according to Tourism Commissioner Pamela Richards.
A new "Sea to Shining Sea" campaign will have a patriotic theme designed to appeal to travelers who may feel more comfortable taking their vacations within the United States, she said at a press conference Wednesday afternoon at the Tourism Department offices on St. Thomas.
"It's a message of patriotism and solidarity with the United States," she said. "If the American people are willing to fly, we have a good chance of getting them to fly here."
Advertisements will begin this month, she said, with spots on television networks such as CNN, The Weather Channel and ESPN; newspaper ads; billboards in the largest cities on the East Coast; advertisements on 570 New York trains; and radio spots in the 12 largest markets of the East Coast and Midwest.
Some of the spots will feature a recorded message from Gov. Charles W. Turnbull, while music will be provided by the Territorial Court Rising Stars Steel Orchestra, Richards said.
The campaign has been developed in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, which have wreaked havoc on tourism worldwide. Locally, Labor Department officials have documented about 200 people laid off from hotels. Resort managers have reported severe slumps in occupancy and a flood of cancellations for months to come.
Other Caribbean tourist destinations have also launched new marketing and incentive plans in the last two weeks in an attempt to lure guests to their islands.
"This is going to be a very, very competitive period we're entering," said Joe Slay of Martin Public Relations, the territory's mainland p.r. firm. Martin is coordinating the Virgin Islands campaign along with the territory's stateside advertising firm, Ogilvy & Mather in Atlanta.
Funding for the advertising campaign will come from the Tourism Revolving Fund, which was set up to support tourism promotion, Richards said. The governor's financial officers have assured her the money will be available as it is needed, she said.
The revolving fund has one source of revenue: the 8 percent room tax paid by hotel guests. The amount of money that goes into the fund depends on hotel occupancy levels. Local hoteliers have said that August and September were already unusually slow, even for what is typically the slowest time of the year in the territory, prior to Sept 11. Since then, there have been reports of occupancy dropping to as low as 10 percent to 15 percent.
Richards acknowledged that the terrorist attacks put the local tourism industry in a crisis but said the airlines have reported that flights have been getting fuller as time passes. "I'd say the glass is half full," she said of the prospects for the coming season. "Of course we're hurting, but we have an opportunity to recover. We've put together a plan, and if you don't have a plan, you're sure to fail."
At the press conference, Richards also said:
– A marketing campaign featuring Looney Tunes cartoon characters was successful and will be expanded to markets in Western Europe.
– The number of visitors to the Tourism Department website is up, with the site getting about 500,000 hits per month.
– Tourism officials have been trying to get in touch with NCAA officials to continue discussions about a proposed basketball tournament in the territory. Assistant Tourism Commissioner Monique Sibilly-Hodge said she expected to speak with NCAA officials Wednesday afternoon.

Oct. 4, 2001 — The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Virgin Islands collected about $1.3 million over the last year in civil and criminal debts owed to the federal government and third parties.
About $450,000 of the money came from two sources: the V.I. government and Ann Abramson, former Public Works commissioner and prominent St. Croix businesswoman. All of the funds were collected in fiscal year 2001, which ended Sept. 30.
The local government paid a $400,000 penalty for violating a federal wastewater consent decree that occurred in 1997, according to U.S. Attorney David Atkinson. Another $50,000 was collected from Abramson, 77, who along with the fine was sentenced to a 2-1/2-year prison term in August 2000 for making false claims and statements in connection with Federal Emergency Management Agency funds.
"The fines and penalties paid by those who have committed criminal offenses go right back into the community to assist crime victims through the Crime Victims Fund, which was established … in 1984," Atkinson said.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office also collected $205,650 in restitution owed to the federal government, including $60,400 from CNA Enterprises and $97,000 from Glenn Wilcox owed to FEMA. Another $237,000 in restitution owed to third parties was collected, which included $84,000 from the sale of a debtor’s home and $98,500 from Claire and Derrick Romney.
The U.S. attorney also collected about $250,000 in seized assets. The asset-forfeiture program, which seizes the profits of people involved in drugs, fraud or money laundering, was instituted by the federal government in the 1980s.
Seized money under this program can be used for law enforcement purposes and for community groups dedicated to crime prevention, such as the Grove Place Weed and Seed program on St. Croix and its counterpart at Bovoni on St. Thomas.
Atkinson said his office will continue to go after all debts under its jurisdiction, particularly debtors who owe large amounts of money to the federal government. And federal officials will continue to use the enforcement tools available through the federal Debt Collection Procedure Act, including writs of execution, which allow the United States to take cash and other assets from a debtor and apply the proceeds toward the debts owed, he said.