From tribune242.com

FAMILY Island hoteliers said it was back to business following Hurricane Sandy, with several executives telling Tribune Business their properties had not sustained any major damage.

Sandals Emerald Bay’s general manager told Tribune Business the resort had suffered no structural damage as a result of the storm, and the property had already been cleared of debris.

“We did OK. The entire island fared pretty well. We suffered no structural damage. There was some landscaping, which we took care of, and there is the golf course that will take a few days because of flooding, but other than that we did well,” said Jeremy Mutton.

“The hotel is 100 per cent operational. Right now we are at about 85 per cent occupancy, and later in the week we will be at 100 per cent.”

Adam Showell, co-owner and interim general manager of the Green Turtle Club and Marina in Abaco, told Tribune Business that the resort’s opening had to be postponed because of Sandy, noting that the storm surge had caused some damage to the resort.

“We had a significant storm surge,” he said. “We were supposed to open last Friday, but that got pushed back because of the storm. We had to delay the opening to November 16, so we will be open for the Thanksgiving holiday.

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EXUMA, Bahamas -- Higher education and lifelong learning both have broad ramifications for community development and national progress. This is particularly true for Exuma where The College of The Bahamas operates a Centre for Continuing Education and Extension Services (CEES) in Hooper’s Bay.

Exuma has a growing economy that is primarily bolstered by hospitality and tourism. But evolution is apparent in other sectors and soon there will be a need for highly skilled workers in the health care and allied services sectors now that a community health care facility is under construction in George Town. These are the kinds of national needs that The College has a demonstrated record in meeting, but nonetheless, there is still room for growth.

“We have to direct the energies of The College of The Bahamas to fill the indigenous needs of each island, otherwise it would just be an institution that is out of place. In the case of Exuma there has already been dialogue with the members and leaders of the community to see how we can best serve the community,” said Dr. Earle Cash, Deputy Chair of the College Council, following a recent Council meeting in Exuma.

“With the transition to university status we are trying to do our best to improve the quality and extent of the service that The College provides to these communities,” he added.

ELEUTHERA, Bahamas -- South Eleuthera Emergency Partners, also known as SEEP, in partnership with the Wemyss Bight Community and The Island School, continues with the development of its second Emergency Operation Centre in Wemyss Bight, Eleuthera.

This new site, which was designed with sustainable features including a 30,000 gallon water tank, solar pumps and a composting garden, will drastically reduce the response time for ambulance and fire services to the southern communities.

This will give volunteers a better chance at protecting property and saving lives.

Photo 1: Wemyss Bight Emergency Operations Center is currently up to belt. SEEP is seeking funding to complete the remaining phases of the project.

Photo 2: Schematic rendering of the new Wemyss Bight Emergency Operations Center with vendors and visitors along the front of the building.

ELEUTHERA, Bahamas -- It was more than two and a half years ago when the Tarpum Bay Historical and Heritage Society set out to undertake the restoration of one of the most important buildings in this small quaint waterfront township. It is what has become known as the “Lil Prep.”

Older members of this community remember this space fondly as the place where they had many “firsts” - voted for the first time, went to school for the first time, saw their first black and white movie or attended their first dance.   

Under the leadership of Mr. Cleveland Knowles and Mr. Eugene Carey, the restoration began with a bang as more than 65 spring break volunteers from Clemson University, South Carolina, USA along with local volunteers began the process of stripping the walls of plaster that had become compromised by the fig tree roots that were penetrating from the back.

Mr. Cleveland Knowles who is also the Chairman of the Local Township said that the whole community worked hard to make this happen. “No one on the committee thought the work would be easy” remarked Mr. Knowles. “We knew there was a lot to be done, but we knew that if we all pulled together we could get it done.”

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ELEUTHERA, Bahamas -- The One Eleuthera Foundation, in collaboration with co-sponsors The Cancer Society of Eleuthera commenced “Step Up to Health: 6 Weeks to Wellness/Fitness Boot Camp” September 10th and 11th with two sessions, one held in South Eleuthera at Preston H. Albury High School’s Track in Rock Sound and another in Central Eleuthera at the Cancer Society’s Wellness Center in Palmetto Point. The boot camp was led by Nurse Bianca Edwards, Mrs Tamara Moncur and Mr Brian Babbs.

Six Weeks to Wellness received an overwhelming response of more than 100 participants from various communities who were all enthused about taking on such a challenge. These persons were then divided into teams who worked together for the duration of the boot camp.

The program, part of  One Eleuthera’s Health Initiative goal  of “reversing the trends” by promoting healthy lifestyle changes, focused on children and adults that may suffer from ailments such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, gout, arthritis, insomnia, thyroid disease, lupus, fibroids and/or polycystic ovarian syndrome and a host of other health issues.  Aerobics, nutritional counselling, body weight exercises, crunches, endurance exercises, skipping, weight lifting, abdominal exercises and other activities were incorporated. The intent was to enable participants to adopt healthy self-management behaviours, reverse disease trends and create a healthier community through diet, exercise and healthy lifestyle changes.

NASSAU, Bahamas -- A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Sheraton Cable Beach Resort and the Ministry of Education for the North Andros High School's Agriculture Department to provide locally grown produce to the resort.

Pictured from left: Glenn Sampert, GM, Sheraton Resort; Keith Saunders, Senior Education Officer in the Ministry of Education and Terrice Curry, principal at North Andros High School.