The St.Thomas/St.John Republican party will meet at 3 p.m. Saturday June 17 at the Legislative Building on St. John.
The inadequacy of the penalties levied against those arrested carrying unlicensed firearms will be discussed.
Complimentary wine and cheese will be served.
JULY FOURTH CELEBRATION EVENTS AT A GLANCE
The official schedule of events for this year's July Fourth Celebration, presented by the St. John Festival and Cultural Organization, kicked off with Pan-O-Rama on June 3. The remainder of the events resume on Saturday, June 17, and climax with the traditional fireworks on Tuesday, July 4.
This year's celebration has "Dawn of a New Day for Festival Y2K" as its theme. Here's the lineup:
Saturday, June 17
8 a.m. — bicycle race, departing from the National Park Visitor Center in Cruz Bay
8 p.m. — calypso show, Winston Wells Ball Park
Sunday, June 18
6 p.m. — prince and prince competition, Winston Wells Ball Park
Saturday, June 24
7 p.m. — Miss St. John queen competition, Winston Wells Ball Park
Sunday, June 25
All day — Food Fair honoring Enid Francis
1 p.m. — coronation of queen, prince and princess, Cruz Bay Park bandstand
Thursday, June 29
7 p.m. — opening of the festival village, Daniel's Court, honoring Harry Daniel, Cruz Bay parking lot
Saturday, July 1
10 a.m. — boat show, cargo dock area
Sunday, July 2
8 a.m. — half-mile swim competition, Hawksnest Beach to Gibney Beach
10 a.m. — boat races, Cruz Bay outer harbor
Monday, July 3
2 p.m. — Cultural Day observances, Cruz Bay Park
Tuesday, July 4
4 a.m. — J'ouvert, starting at the Water and Power Authority Silver Arrow
8 a.m. — parade route foot race
11 a.m. — parade, from the National Park Visitor Center
9 p.m. — fireworks, Cruz Bay harbor
Applications for village booth space were due June 10. Those for Food Fair vendors and parade permits have a June 20 deadline. Forms are available at the Tourism Department and Licensing and Consumer Affairs offices in Cruz Bay, and at the Board of Elections office on St. Thomas.
For further information, call 693-8036 or fax to 776-6989. For updates on festival activities, call any of the hotline numbers — 513-2728, 513-2778 or 513-3489.
This year's celebration has "Dawn of a New Day for Festival Y2K" as its theme. Here's the lineup:
Saturday, June 17
8 a.m. — bicycle race, departing from the National Park Visitor Center in Cruz Bay
8 p.m. — calypso show, Winston Wells Ball Park
Sunday, June 18
6 p.m. — prince and prince competition, Winston Wells Ball Park
Saturday, June 24
7 p.m. — Miss St. John queen competition, Winston Wells Ball Park
Sunday, June 25
All day — Food Fair honoring Enid Francis
1 p.m. — coronation of queen, prince and princess, Cruz Bay Park bandstand
Thursday, June 29
7 p.m. — opening of the festival village, Daniel's Court, honoring Harry Daniel, Cruz Bay parking lot
Saturday, July 1
10 a.m. — boat show, cargo dock area
Sunday, July 2
8 a.m. — half-mile swim competition, Hawksnest Beach to Gibney Beach
10 a.m. — boat races, Cruz Bay outer harbor
Monday, July 3
2 p.m. — Cultural Day observances, Cruz Bay Park
Tuesday, July 4
4 a.m. — J'ouvert, starting at the Water and Power Authority Silver Arrow
8 a.m. — parade route foot race
11 a.m. — parade, from the National Park Visitor Center
9 p.m. — fireworks, Cruz Bay harbor
Applications for village booth space were due June 10. Those for Food Fair vendors and parade permits have a June 20 deadline. Forms are available at the Tourism Department and Licensing and Consumer Affairs offices in Cruz Bay, and at the Board of Elections office on St. Thomas.
For further information, call 693-8036 or fax to 776-6989. For updates on festival activities, call any of the hotline numbers — 513-2728, 513-2778 or 513-3489.
SOCCER TEAMS STILL GETTING THEIR KICKS
The school year is over, but soccer isn't going on vacation just yet. Men's, women's and youth teams will all be in action this weekend.
In adult play, eight men's St. Thomas Soccer Association teams will compete in a mini- league between Saturday and July 1. Games will be the regulation 60 minutes allowing unlimited substitutions but no re-entry into a game.
Play begins this weekend with two games Saturday and two more Sunday at the University of the Virgin Islands field. On Saturday the Antillean Strikers go up against the UWS Upsetters at 4:30 p.m., with the second game between SK United and Dadlie. On Sunday, it will be Waitikubali vs. Black Stars at 4:30, and Haitian Stars vs. MI Rock Masters in the second contest.
The mini-league champion team is to play the Garden Hotspurs, the second-ranked St. Kitts Premier Men's Division team, on St. Thomas on July 8. The following day, the Kittitian visitors will go up against an all-star St. Thomas team comprising at least 15 members from the eight teams taking part in the summer play.
Meantime, the St. Thomas Women's Soccer Association is continuing to hold practice at 5 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and at 4 p.m. Saturdays at the UVI field. The association plans to participate in a tournament on Tortola the weekend of June 17-18.
As for the younger set: The St. Thomas under-14 Peacemakers had planned to travel to St. Maarten this weekend for a tournament, but they received notice on Wednesday that the event has been postponed. Instead, publicist Tanya Ward Benjamin said, "they will attempt to use their energies" in a re-match with St. John's under-14 team in Cruz Bay Sunday at 3 p.m.
When the two teams met last Sunday, St. John emerged the victor, 4-3. The Peacemakers also played in a scoreless friendly game Wednesday at UVI.
Following Sunday's St. John contest, no further youth games are scheduled, although Benjamin said, "There may be some summer tournaments for particular age groups." Regular season practice is to resume at the end of the summer.
In adult play, eight men's St. Thomas Soccer Association teams will compete in a mini- league between Saturday and July 1. Games will be the regulation 60 minutes allowing unlimited substitutions but no re-entry into a game.
Play begins this weekend with two games Saturday and two more Sunday at the University of the Virgin Islands field. On Saturday the Antillean Strikers go up against the UWS Upsetters at 4:30 p.m., with the second game between SK United and Dadlie. On Sunday, it will be Waitikubali vs. Black Stars at 4:30, and Haitian Stars vs. MI Rock Masters in the second contest.
The mini-league champion team is to play the Garden Hotspurs, the second-ranked St. Kitts Premier Men's Division team, on St. Thomas on July 8. The following day, the Kittitian visitors will go up against an all-star St. Thomas team comprising at least 15 members from the eight teams taking part in the summer play.
Meantime, the St. Thomas Women's Soccer Association is continuing to hold practice at 5 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and at 4 p.m. Saturdays at the UVI field. The association plans to participate in a tournament on Tortola the weekend of June 17-18.
As for the younger set: The St. Thomas under-14 Peacemakers had planned to travel to St. Maarten this weekend for a tournament, but they received notice on Wednesday that the event has been postponed. Instead, publicist Tanya Ward Benjamin said, "they will attempt to use their energies" in a re-match with St. John's under-14 team in Cruz Bay Sunday at 3 p.m.
When the two teams met last Sunday, St. John emerged the victor, 4-3. The Peacemakers also played in a scoreless friendly game Wednesday at UVI.
Following Sunday's St. John contest, no further youth games are scheduled, although Benjamin said, "There may be some summer tournaments for particular age groups." Regular season practice is to resume at the end of the summer.
IT'LL BE A HOT TIME IN THE OLD GARDEN SATURDAY
With St. Thomas havin' a heat wave, a tropical heat wave, with temperatures risin' and all that hot stuff, the monthly Garden Party planners in Tillett Gardens figured, hey, go for it.
So, Saturday's day-long arts and crafts fair will have a fiery finish — a hot sauce competition to be judged by the public at a "Hot Happy Hour" from 4 to 7 p.m.
There's a $5 fee for entering the competition and a $2 fee for each people's choice ballot for those who want to vote (as often as they can afford to), but "it's all to benefit the animals," organizer Cheryl Miller says. Awards donated by Tillett Gardens artists and artisans will be given for the "hottest," "tastiest" and "prettiest" concoctions, and all proceeds will go to the Humane Society of St. Thomas.
The Garden Party, hosted the second Saturday of each month by Tillett Gardens tenants, gets under way at 10 a.m. Visitors will find paintings, pottery, scented candles, beadwork, one-of- a-kind teddy bears, hand-painted fashions, leathercraft, aromatherapy products, jewelry and more. The Ridvan Studio in the complex will offer beading workshops throughout the day.
By 3 p.m., those wishing to compete in the hot sauce contest must submit two bottles or jars of their product, labeled with their name and telephone number. Sauces can be home-made or commercially marketed but must be locally produced.
Polli's Mexican Restaurant in the garden complex will have snacks suited to sauce tasting — taco chips, veggies and chicken tenders — at a special rate, and the bar will be open as usual for happy hour. Miller promises to have heartburn remedies available at no extra charge.
So, Saturday's day-long arts and crafts fair will have a fiery finish — a hot sauce competition to be judged by the public at a "Hot Happy Hour" from 4 to 7 p.m.
There's a $5 fee for entering the competition and a $2 fee for each people's choice ballot for those who want to vote (as often as they can afford to), but "it's all to benefit the animals," organizer Cheryl Miller says. Awards donated by Tillett Gardens artists and artisans will be given for the "hottest," "tastiest" and "prettiest" concoctions, and all proceeds will go to the Humane Society of St. Thomas.
The Garden Party, hosted the second Saturday of each month by Tillett Gardens tenants, gets under way at 10 a.m. Visitors will find paintings, pottery, scented candles, beadwork, one-of- a-kind teddy bears, hand-painted fashions, leathercraft, aromatherapy products, jewelry and more. The Ridvan Studio in the complex will offer beading workshops throughout the day.
By 3 p.m., those wishing to compete in the hot sauce contest must submit two bottles or jars of their product, labeled with their name and telephone number. Sauces can be home-made or commercially marketed but must be locally produced.
Polli's Mexican Restaurant in the garden complex will have snacks suited to sauce tasting — taco chips, veggies and chicken tenders — at a special rate, and the bar will be open as usual for happy hour. Miller promises to have heartburn remedies available at no extra charge.
CARIFEST THEME PARK FILES FOR CZM PERMIT
The planners of the first theme park on St. Thomas have applied for a Coastal Zone Management permit to proceed with developing the "Carifest" Caribbean cultural entertainment facility just east of the West Indian Co. dock. And they hope to break ground this fall, with completion targeted for late 2001 or early 2002.
Carifest submitted the CZM major permit application to the Planning and Natural Resources Department "upon completion of the project's concept design phase," Carifest Corp. chair Leo Barbel Jr. said in a press release.
Barbel emphasized that the developers "are not interested in filling any portion of the adjacent harbor as a landfill extension," and that "no such request was made in our CZM permit application."
Carifest president Eric Matthews said the family-oriented theme park project, nearly a decade in the planning, "will create over 200 jobs during the 12- to 14-month construction period and over 400 jobs once the park is opened." He described the timeline and employment projections as "especially relevant considering the present financial constraints of the government."
In fact, Matthews said, "To us, Carifest is a model development in light of the governor's five-year economic recovery plan — a plan that suggests that the public and private sectors must work closer together as partners" to stimulate economic growth.
Twelve weeks of concept design work preceded the submission of the CZM permit application, Barbel said. Taking the lead in the work were Morris Architects of Orlando, Fla., and designer Tom Reidenbach of TRA Inc., he said, with local input from Robert deJongh on architectural design, William F. McComb on engineering and Brian Moseley on surveying.
The next step, Barbel said, is a nine-week "schematic design process." After that, he said, the project "will be positioned to receive its final construction financing." Carifest Corp. is locally owned, and most of its startup development capital has come from a cross-section of local investors, the release stated.
According to Matthews, the Carifest site is zoned W-1, for waterfront recreation, "and is a perfect fit for the project." He described the concept for the theme park as "a celebration and permanent festival of Caribbean heritage that will serve as a livng tribute to the people and islands of the West Indies."
It will "fill a void in the tourism picture" locally for those visitors in search of more than sun, sand, sea and shopping, he said, and will appeal to residents "seeking more creative venues to express their Caribbean heritage."
The projected employment of 400 encompasses about 300 full-time and 100 part-time positions, Matthews said. The company expects University of the Virgin Islands and high school students and young adults to hold about three-fourths of the jobs.
Carifest submitted the CZM major permit application to the Planning and Natural Resources Department "upon completion of the project's concept design phase," Carifest Corp. chair Leo Barbel Jr. said in a press release.
Barbel emphasized that the developers "are not interested in filling any portion of the adjacent harbor as a landfill extension," and that "no such request was made in our CZM permit application."
Carifest president Eric Matthews said the family-oriented theme park project, nearly a decade in the planning, "will create over 200 jobs during the 12- to 14-month construction period and over 400 jobs once the park is opened." He described the timeline and employment projections as "especially relevant considering the present financial constraints of the government."
In fact, Matthews said, "To us, Carifest is a model development in light of the governor's five-year economic recovery plan — a plan that suggests that the public and private sectors must work closer together as partners" to stimulate economic growth.
Twelve weeks of concept design work preceded the submission of the CZM permit application, Barbel said. Taking the lead in the work were Morris Architects of Orlando, Fla., and designer Tom Reidenbach of TRA Inc., he said, with local input from Robert deJongh on architectural design, William F. McComb on engineering and Brian Moseley on surveying.
The next step, Barbel said, is a nine-week "schematic design process." After that, he said, the project "will be positioned to receive its final construction financing." Carifest Corp. is locally owned, and most of its startup development capital has come from a cross-section of local investors, the release stated.
According to Matthews, the Carifest site is zoned W-1, for waterfront recreation, "and is a perfect fit for the project." He described the concept for the theme park as "a celebration and permanent festival of Caribbean heritage that will serve as a livng tribute to the people and islands of the West Indies."
It will "fill a void in the tourism picture" locally for those visitors in search of more than sun, sand, sea and shopping, he said, and will appeal to residents "seeking more creative venues to express their Caribbean heritage."
The projected employment of 400 encompasses about 300 full-time and 100 part-time positions, Matthews said. The company expects University of the Virgin Islands and high school students and young adults to hold about three-fourths of the jobs.
U.S. TO PROVIDE 90 PERCENT OF LENNY ASSISTANCE
President Clinton has approved the Turnbull administration's request that the federal government cover 90 percent of the eligible costs of assistance in three program areas as a result of damage caused in the territory by Hurricane Lenny last November.
That is an increase from the 75 percent that Washington automatically provides when the president declares a federal disaster.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull said in a release issued by Government House Friday afternoon that his administration estimates Lenny's damages to the territory "to be in the neighborhood of $9.8 million." Using that figure, the federal government's share of assistance would now be $8.82 million, up from $7.35 million. At the same time, the V.I. government's matching share would be $980,000, down from $2.45 million.
Turnbull termed the news, received from the White House earlier Friday, "extremely good news" that "will have a positive impact on our financial condition."
Clinton declared a federal disaster in the territory last Nov. 23 after Lenny struck on Nov. 17. On May 16, the Turnbull administration requested that the president amend his declaration to provide 90 percent federal assistance, rather than 75 percent.
The assistance is for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Public Assistance, Individual and Family Grant, and Hazard Mitigation programs. Public assistance covers local government infrastructure — buildings, highways and the like. The IFG program assists those suffering damage to their residence and/or personal possessions. Hazard mitigation is the process of taking steps to minimize the potential impact for damage in a future disaster — "building safer, stronger, smarter," as the slogan in the Hurricane Marilyn recovery put it.
"The president has determined that the damage to the territory is of sufficient severity and magnitude that special conditions warranted this unprecedented amendment," the Government House release quoted the governor as saying.
Washington also upped the federal/local match in grant funds to 90/10 from 75/25 for assistance to the territory following Marilyn in 1995 and Hurricane Bertha in 1996. The territory has yet to repay loans from the federal government taken out to meet its 10 percent match in those disasters.
Turnbull said the territory has "many friends in Washington who are willing and ready to help the people of the Virgin Islands once we have demonstrated that we are serious about putting our house in order and take action to help ourselves." He termed the increase in federal assistance "another indication that we are making progress in our efforts to recovery from our economic problems."
That is an increase from the 75 percent that Washington automatically provides when the president declares a federal disaster.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull said in a release issued by Government House Friday afternoon that his administration estimates Lenny's damages to the territory "to be in the neighborhood of $9.8 million." Using that figure, the federal government's share of assistance would now be $8.82 million, up from $7.35 million. At the same time, the V.I. government's matching share would be $980,000, down from $2.45 million.
Turnbull termed the news, received from the White House earlier Friday, "extremely good news" that "will have a positive impact on our financial condition."
Clinton declared a federal disaster in the territory last Nov. 23 after Lenny struck on Nov. 17. On May 16, the Turnbull administration requested that the president amend his declaration to provide 90 percent federal assistance, rather than 75 percent.
The assistance is for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Public Assistance, Individual and Family Grant, and Hazard Mitigation programs. Public assistance covers local government infrastructure — buildings, highways and the like. The IFG program assists those suffering damage to their residence and/or personal possessions. Hazard mitigation is the process of taking steps to minimize the potential impact for damage in a future disaster — "building safer, stronger, smarter," as the slogan in the Hurricane Marilyn recovery put it.
"The president has determined that the damage to the territory is of sufficient severity and magnitude that special conditions warranted this unprecedented amendment," the Government House release quoted the governor as saying.
Washington also upped the federal/local match in grant funds to 90/10 from 75/25 for assistance to the territory following Marilyn in 1995 and Hurricane Bertha in 1996. The territory has yet to repay loans from the federal government taken out to meet its 10 percent match in those disasters.
Turnbull said the territory has "many friends in Washington who are willing and ready to help the people of the Virgin Islands once we have demonstrated that we are serious about putting our house in order and take action to help ourselves." He termed the increase in federal assistance "another indication that we are making progress in our efforts to recovery from our economic problems."
U.S. TO PROVIDE 90 PERCENT OF LENNY ASSISTANCE
President Clinton has approved the Turnbull administration's request that the federal government cover 90 percent of the eligible costs of assistance in three program areas as a result of damage caused in the territory by Hurricane Lenny last November.
That is an increase from the 75 percent that Washington automatically provides when the president declares a federal disaster.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull said in a release issued by Government House Friday afternoon that his administration estimates Lenny's damages to the territory "to be in the neighborhood of $9.8 million." Using that figure, the federal government's share of assistance would now be $8.82 million, up from $7.35 million. At the same time, the V.I. government's matching share would be $980,000, down from $2.45 million.
Turnbull termed the news, received from the White House earlier Friday, "extremely good news" that "will have a positive impact on our financial condition."
Clinton declared a federal disaster in the territory last Nov. 23 after Lenny struck Nov. 17. On May 16, the Turnbull administration requested that the president amend his declaration to provide 90 percent federal assistance rather than 75 percent.
The assistance is for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Public Assistance, Individual and Family Grant, and Hazard Mitigation programs. Public assistance covers local government infrastructure — buildings, highways and the like. The IFG program assists those suffering damage to their residence and/or personal possessions. Hazard mitigation is the process of taking steps to minimize the potential impact for damage in a future disaster — "building safer, stronger, smarter," as the slogan in the Hurricane Marilyn recovery put it.
"The president has determined that the damage to the territory is of sufficient severity and magnitude that special conditions warranted this unprecedented amendment," the Government House release quoted the governor as saying.
Washington also upped the federal/local match in grant funds to 90/10 from 75/25 for assistance to the territory following Marilyn in 1995 and Hurricane Bertha in 1996. The territory has yet to repay loans from the federal government taken out to meet its 10 percent match in those disasters.
Turnbull said the territory has "many friends in Washington who are willing and ready to help the people of the Virgin Islands once we have demonstrated that we are serious about putting our house in order and take action to help ourselves." He termed the increase in federal assistance "another indication that we are making progress in our efforts to recovery from our economic problems."
That is an increase from the 75 percent that Washington automatically provides when the president declares a federal disaster.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull said in a release issued by Government House Friday afternoon that his administration estimates Lenny's damages to the territory "to be in the neighborhood of $9.8 million." Using that figure, the federal government's share of assistance would now be $8.82 million, up from $7.35 million. At the same time, the V.I. government's matching share would be $980,000, down from $2.45 million.
Turnbull termed the news, received from the White House earlier Friday, "extremely good news" that "will have a positive impact on our financial condition."
Clinton declared a federal disaster in the territory last Nov. 23 after Lenny struck Nov. 17. On May 16, the Turnbull administration requested that the president amend his declaration to provide 90 percent federal assistance rather than 75 percent.
The assistance is for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Public Assistance, Individual and Family Grant, and Hazard Mitigation programs. Public assistance covers local government infrastructure — buildings, highways and the like. The IFG program assists those suffering damage to their residence and/or personal possessions. Hazard mitigation is the process of taking steps to minimize the potential impact for damage in a future disaster — "building safer, stronger, smarter," as the slogan in the Hurricane Marilyn recovery put it.
"The president has determined that the damage to the territory is of sufficient severity and magnitude that special conditions warranted this unprecedented amendment," the Government House release quoted the governor as saying.
Washington also upped the federal/local match in grant funds to 90/10 from 75/25 for assistance to the territory following Marilyn in 1995 and Hurricane Bertha in 1996. The territory has yet to repay loans from the federal government taken out to meet its 10 percent match in those disasters.
Turnbull said the territory has "many friends in Washington who are willing and ready to help the people of the Virgin Islands once we have demonstrated that we are serious about putting our house in order and take action to help ourselves." He termed the increase in federal assistance "another indication that we are making progress in our efforts to recovery from our economic problems."
U.S. TO PROVIDE 90 PERCENT OF LENNY ASSISTANCE
President Clinton has approved the Turnbull administration's request that the federal government cover 90 percent of the eligible costs of assistance in three program areas as a result of damage caused in the territory by Hurricane Lenny last November.
That is an increase from the 75 percent that Washington automatically provides when the president declares a federal disaster.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull said in a release issued by Government House Friday afternoon that his administration estimates Lenny's damages to the territory "to be in the neighborhood of $9.8 million." Using that figure, the federal government's share of assistance would now be $8.82 million, up from $7.35 million. At the same time, the V.I. government's matching share would be $980,000, down from $2.45 million.
Turnbull termed the news, received from the White House earlier Friday, "extremely good news" that "will have a positive impact on our financial condition."
Clinton declared a federal disaster in the territory last Nov. 23 after Lenny struck on Nov. 17. On May 16, the Turnbull administration requested that the president amend his declaration to provide 90 percent federal assistance, rather than 75 percent.
The assistance is for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Public Assistance, Individual and Family Grant, and Hazard Mitigation programs. Public assistance covers local government infrastructure — buildings, highways and the like. The IFG program assists those suffering damage to their residence and/or personal possessions. Hazard mitigation is the process of taking steps to minimize the potential impact for damage in a future disaster — "building safer, stronger, smarter," as the slogan in the Hurricane Marilyn recovery put it.
"The president has determined that the damage to the territory is of sufficient severity and magnitude that special conditions warranted this unprecedented amendment," the Government House release quoted the governor as saying.
Washington also upped the federal/local match in grant funds to 90/10 from 75/25 for assistance to the territory following Marilyn in 1995 and Hurricane Bertha in 1996. The territory has yet to repay loans from the federal government taken out to meet its 10 percent match in those disasters.
Turnbull said the territory has "many friends in Washington who are willing and ready to help the people of the Virgin Islands once we have demonstrated that we are serious about putting our house in order and take action to help ourselves." He termed the increase in federal assistance "another indication that we are making progress in our efforts to recovery from our economic problems."
That is an increase from the 75 percent that Washington automatically provides when the president declares a federal disaster.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull said in a release issued by Government House Friday afternoon that his administration estimates Lenny's damages to the territory "to be in the neighborhood of $9.8 million." Using that figure, the federal government's share of assistance would now be $8.82 million, up from $7.35 million. At the same time, the V.I. government's matching share would be $980,000, down from $2.45 million.
Turnbull termed the news, received from the White House earlier Friday, "extremely good news" that "will have a positive impact on our financial condition."
Clinton declared a federal disaster in the territory last Nov. 23 after Lenny struck on Nov. 17. On May 16, the Turnbull administration requested that the president amend his declaration to provide 90 percent federal assistance, rather than 75 percent.
The assistance is for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Public Assistance, Individual and Family Grant, and Hazard Mitigation programs. Public assistance covers local government infrastructure — buildings, highways and the like. The IFG program assists those suffering damage to their residence and/or personal possessions. Hazard mitigation is the process of taking steps to minimize the potential impact for damage in a future disaster — "building safer, stronger, smarter," as the slogan in the Hurricane Marilyn recovery put it.
"The president has determined that the damage to the territory is of sufficient severity and magnitude that special conditions warranted this unprecedented amendment," the Government House release quoted the governor as saying.
Washington also upped the federal/local match in grant funds to 90/10 from 75/25 for assistance to the territory following Marilyn in 1995 and Hurricane Bertha in 1996. The territory has yet to repay loans from the federal government taken out to meet its 10 percent match in those disasters.
Turnbull said the territory has "many friends in Washington who are willing and ready to help the people of the Virgin Islands once we have demonstrated that we are serious about putting our house in order and take action to help ourselves." He termed the increase in federal assistance "another indication that we are making progress in our efforts to recovery from our economic problems."
TRADEWINDS PUBLISHER CHARGED WITH ASSAULT
Tom Oat, publisher of St. John's weekly newspaper, Tradewinds, was arrested Friday morning after a fracas at the Susannaberg landfill.
Public Works Deputy Commissioner Ira Wade said he summoned police when a fight broke out Friday morning near the landfill security gate. When he reached the scene, he said, he saw Oat threatening the weightmaster, Ralph Titre.
Titre's co-worker Oswald Sealy said he saw Oat "with a big rock" threatening to hit Titre on the head.
According to Wade, the encounter between Oat and Titre stemmed from an earlier incident involving a damaged vehicle that was once used to deliver newspapers.
"Tom Oat came in, and I told him to go see my boss in the office," Titre said. "That's when he started calling me a thief, telling me I tried to steal parts off his Cherokee."
Titre said the publisher then picked up a camera and starting taking his picture. Titre said he asked him to stop, then grabbed the camera. And then, he said, Oat picked up a rock.
Wade, who was in the Public Works office at the site at the time, said he heard the sounds of the commotion and came down into the landfill area. He said he then heard a woman inside Oat's car scream.
Melinda Nelson, a Tradewinds advertising representative, later said she was present at the incident but declined a request to give her version of what had transpired. "As of right now, I cannot," she said.
Police Lt. Rene Garcia of Zone D Command in Cruz Bay said Oat was charged on a citizen's complaint with simple assault and trespassing. The incident occurred around 10 a.m., according to the police report. Garcia said Oat was taken to the Bureau of Corrections office on St. Thomas because the forensics team assigned to St. John on a part-time basis was not on the island Friday to carry out routine arrest procedures such as fingerprinting and photographing.
Bail was set at $1,000. As of mid-afternoon Friday, Oat had not made bail and was still being held on St. Thomas, according to a Tradewinds staff member. All parties to the incident are expected to appear at an advice-of-rights hearing Monday in Territorial Court.
Public Works Deputy Commissioner Ira Wade said he summoned police when a fight broke out Friday morning near the landfill security gate. When he reached the scene, he said, he saw Oat threatening the weightmaster, Ralph Titre.
Titre's co-worker Oswald Sealy said he saw Oat "with a big rock" threatening to hit Titre on the head.
According to Wade, the encounter between Oat and Titre stemmed from an earlier incident involving a damaged vehicle that was once used to deliver newspapers.
"Tom Oat came in, and I told him to go see my boss in the office," Titre said. "That's when he started calling me a thief, telling me I tried to steal parts off his Cherokee."
Titre said the publisher then picked up a camera and starting taking his picture. Titre said he asked him to stop, then grabbed the camera. And then, he said, Oat picked up a rock.
Wade, who was in the Public Works office at the site at the time, said he heard the sounds of the commotion and came down into the landfill area. He said he then heard a woman inside Oat's car scream.
Melinda Nelson, a Tradewinds advertising representative, later said she was present at the incident but declined a request to give her version of what had transpired. "As of right now, I cannot," she said.
Police Lt. Rene Garcia of Zone D Command in Cruz Bay said Oat was charged on a citizen's complaint with simple assault and trespassing. The incident occurred around 10 a.m., according to the police report. Garcia said Oat was taken to the Bureau of Corrections office on St. Thomas because the forensics team assigned to St. John on a part-time basis was not on the island Friday to carry out routine arrest procedures such as fingerprinting and photographing.
Bail was set at $1,000. As of mid-afternoon Friday, Oat had not made bail and was still being held on St. Thomas, according to a Tradewinds staff member. All parties to the incident are expected to appear at an advice-of-rights hearing Monday in Territorial Court.
CHINESE STUDYING ENGLISH TO LEARN OF V.I., TOO
A St. Thomian voice is going to be heard in The People's Republic of China this summer as Patricia Rogers spends six weeks teaching English via calypso to Chinese teachers of the language who have never heard it spoken before.
What is a former V.I. Carnival queen with a degree in hotel management who works as a legislative assistant doing teaching English? And in Beijing?
Rogers is still pondering that, herself. Actually, she was approached about doing it. "I was more than surprised. I was shocked!" she recalled, seemingly still registering the adjustment to her new role.
"I take paralegal courses at UVI," she explained, "and I have been helping a blind woman in my class, tutoring, which I love to do – I'm her eyes, and she does all the work."
Dr. Thelma Walters, another of Rogers' classmates, noticed her enthusiasm and her natural talent for teaching, and she decided to enlist her in an adventure teaching far from home.
Walters, a sixth grade teacher at J. Antonio Jarvis Elementary School for more than 20 years, will also be going to China to teach English this summer. But she is an old hand at representing the Caribbean in the People's Republic. In fact, this will be her sixth trip.
Now, as to who is sponsoring the teaching project and a training class in California that will precede it, there is a bit of a mystery. Walters said she is not allowed to give the name of the organization, but she provided a toll-free 800 number in California where she said identification might be given.
This did not turn out to be the case, however. The California organization representative who answered the telephone explained it this way: "We are a nonprofit organization that sends teachers to Asia." He added, "You could say we have a counterpart in China." He then said he could not be any more forthcoming because of ticklish political relations with the Chinese government, which, he said, wants no publicity.
Walters said the teaching experience is fun. "The Chinese are so ambitious to learn English," she said. "They just want to talk and talk with you." She added that, despite her multiple visits, there has been little opportunity for her to learn Chinese in return, as "they will speak only a few words, then it's right back to English."
Fun though it may be, getting there is work, as Rogers found out. The catch to participating in the summer program is that she has had to raise $5,000 to cover airfare, books and sundry expenses. The "organization" takes care of room and board, but that's it.
She said she sought advice from "my mentors Ann Abramson and Joanne Bozzuto." Bozzuto has worked in Japan, she noted. Both women encouraged her and suggested people to contact. But before she did that, Rogers said, she approached her V.I. Christian Ministries morning prayer group for grounding and support.
As special assistant to Sen. Donald "Ducks" Cole, she had an "in" at the Legislature, but she didn't stop there. She took her mission to the judicial branch, too, where retired Judge Verne Hodge directed her to new Chief Judge Maria Cabret, who provided her assistance through the V.I. Academic and Cultural Awards Endowment, which she heads.
While Rogers wasn't prepared to give specifics as to how she plans to go about her teaching task, she showed great enthusiasm for the overall summer experience that she anticipates. "We also are on a cultural mission," she said. "I have been working with Tourism and the various branches of government putting together a five-minute slide presentation." That presentation will give her audience some notion of Virgin Islands culture and the workings of the local government, she said.
Rogers said she will be teaching Chinese instructors who have never heard English spoken in person before how to teach it as a non-native language to their students. At the same time, using English, she will explain and illustrate V.I. culture, she said.
The Chinese teachers have learned to read, write and speak English, but they have never actually heard it spoken, she said. "It's like ‘I say patahto and you say potato,' sort of," she said. And this where she can have fun with calypso lyrics, as well, she said.
Her knowledge of any Chinese language is nil at the moment, but she said that when she and Walters go for the week of training in California, she will learn the basic necessities for making herself understood "so I can say ‘hello' and order something to eat."
At the training session, she will also get an introductory glimpse of Chinese culture and learn what is expected of her, she said. Then it will be on to Beijing. She is scheduled to leave St. Thomas on June 25 and return in mid-August.
What is a former V.I. Carnival queen with a degree in hotel management who works as a legislative assistant doing teaching English? And in Beijing?
Rogers is still pondering that, herself. Actually, she was approached about doing it. "I was more than surprised. I was shocked!" she recalled, seemingly still registering the adjustment to her new role.
"I take paralegal courses at UVI," she explained, "and I have been helping a blind woman in my class, tutoring, which I love to do – I'm her eyes, and she does all the work."
Dr. Thelma Walters, another of Rogers' classmates, noticed her enthusiasm and her natural talent for teaching, and she decided to enlist her in an adventure teaching far from home.
Walters, a sixth grade teacher at J. Antonio Jarvis Elementary School for more than 20 years, will also be going to China to teach English this summer. But she is an old hand at representing the Caribbean in the People's Republic. In fact, this will be her sixth trip.
Now, as to who is sponsoring the teaching project and a training class in California that will precede it, there is a bit of a mystery. Walters said she is not allowed to give the name of the organization, but she provided a toll-free 800 number in California where she said identification might be given.
This did not turn out to be the case, however. The California organization representative who answered the telephone explained it this way: "We are a nonprofit organization that sends teachers to Asia." He added, "You could say we have a counterpart in China." He then said he could not be any more forthcoming because of ticklish political relations with the Chinese government, which, he said, wants no publicity.
Walters said the teaching experience is fun. "The Chinese are so ambitious to learn English," she said. "They just want to talk and talk with you." She added that, despite her multiple visits, there has been little opportunity for her to learn Chinese in return, as "they will speak only a few words, then it's right back to English."
Fun though it may be, getting there is work, as Rogers found out. The catch to participating in the summer program is that she has had to raise $5,000 to cover airfare, books and sundry expenses. The "organization" takes care of room and board, but that's it.
She said she sought advice from "my mentors Ann Abramson and Joanne Bozzuto." Bozzuto has worked in Japan, she noted. Both women encouraged her and suggested people to contact. But before she did that, Rogers said, she approached her V.I. Christian Ministries morning prayer group for grounding and support.
As special assistant to Sen. Donald "Ducks" Cole, she had an "in" at the Legislature, but she didn't stop there. She took her mission to the judicial branch, too, where retired Judge Verne Hodge directed her to new Chief Judge Maria Cabret, who provided her assistance through the V.I. Academic and Cultural Awards Endowment, which she heads.
While Rogers wasn't prepared to give specifics as to how she plans to go about her teaching task, she showed great enthusiasm for the overall summer experience that she anticipates. "We also are on a cultural mission," she said. "I have been working with Tourism and the various branches of government putting together a five-minute slide presentation." That presentation will give her audience some notion of Virgin Islands culture and the workings of the local government, she said.
Rogers said she will be teaching Chinese instructors who have never heard English spoken in person before how to teach it as a non-native language to their students. At the same time, using English, she will explain and illustrate V.I. culture, she said.
The Chinese teachers have learned to read, write and speak English, but they have never actually heard it spoken, she said. "It's like ‘I say patahto and you say potato,' sort of," she said. And this where she can have fun with calypso lyrics, as well, she said.
Her knowledge of any Chinese language is nil at the moment, but she said that when she and Walters go for the week of training in California, she will learn the basic necessities for making herself understood "so I can say ‘hello' and order something to eat."
At the training session, she will also get an introductory glimpse of Chinese culture and learn what is expected of her, she said. Then it will be on to Beijing. She is scheduled to leave St. Thomas on June 25 and return in mid-August.
