The new South Caicos Regatta Committee, commissioned on August 9th, 2022, is already set its sights on stagging the 2023 event - Regatta 56.
The new executive consists of: President- Ludell Goldman; Vice President -Mickey Clare; Secretary - Bryada Howell; Public Relations Officer - Leo Lightbourne; Treasury - Garrico Fulford; Controllers Alicia Swann and Soreka Brown.
The new committee wishes to express a sincere thank you and appreciation for the work and efforts rendered by the previous board in hosting the 55th annual Big South Regatta. Due to damages sustained from hurricanes and the Covid-19 pandemic, the celebrations were not held in the past five (5) years.
“The previous committee encountered a lot of challenges and difficulties in hosting the 55th annual activities and I would like to say a huge thanks to all of the sponsors who pledged donations big or small which made the event successful,” said Ludell Goldman, President.
The community of South Caicos is one of the places in the Turks andCaicos Islands where the “family-orientated” environment is sociallyintegrated into all aspects of community involvement.
In recognizing this, President Goldman stated that “one of the main objectives of this committee is to re-engage the community with a lot of outreach and restoration projects leading up to the 56th celebrations to promote more community adhesiveness.”
Recently deceased Queen Elizabeth II made her only official visit to South Caicos on Friday, February 25th, 1966. Her visit birthed the oldest festival in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
“This local festive was initiated by her visit and we intend to honor her by doing a special tribute during the celebration,” said Vice-President Mickey Clare.
Ms. Clare further mentioned that the new committee is planning to make next year’s celebrations the biggest one to date.
“We want to create a new party experience for the island of South Caicos with a fusion of local and regionally artists and DJs.”
The new executive team plans to revive sailboat racing, donkey cart racing and other local customs during the festive celebrations. Theexecutive will also be rebranding “Little Miss Regatta” by changing the format with a new name “Miss Teen Regatta.”
Lisa Swann, Controller, Head of Pageantry said: “The goal of this change is to create an avenue for the teens to be introduced to pageantry with guidance and support so that they can transition into Miss Regatta and hopefully Miss Turks and Caicos Universe in the near future.”
Beauty pageants provide young girls with the opportunity to walkthe stage and show off their talent.
“The girls will learn how to handle competition in a healthy way and create a positive body image which is a huge component of their self-esteem. This is not just a pageant, we are preparing these young ladies for the world,” said Ms. Swann.
The 56th Annual Big South Regatta is set for May 25th to 27th 2023. The committee encourages everyone to mark their calendars early as next year’s celebration will be “BIG!”.
For members of the public looking to pledge a donation, become sponsors, partners or inquire further please email thebigsouthregatta@outlook.com or call us directly at +1 (649) 243-1773 or +1 (649) 343-8193. Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/thebigsouthregatta