N.G.C. Announces Slight Changes to November 19th Calendar of Events

Tonight, we resume our Kolcha Tuesday segment after a brief pause due to Hurricane Lisa.  After all, it is the month of November and many are still anticipating a calendar of events for activities leading up to Garifuna Settlement Day.  Earlier today, we spoke with the president and secretary of the National Garifuna Council who explained that notwithstanding a few changes to the itinerary, as a result of the hurricane, this year’s celebration will honor the spirit and resilience of the Garifuna people.  Sheena Zuniga is the president of the N.G.C.

Sheena Zuniga

Sheena Zuniga, President, National Garifuna Council

“One of the two changes that were made because of the hurricane was, we postponed our Miss Garifuna Belize Pageant which will be held this Friday at the Sacred Heart Parish Hall starting at six p.m.  We also had to reschedule our solidarity mass which will be occurring on Saturday at Sacred Heart Church at eleven a.m.  Those are two of the most significant changes.  We do invite the public, especially Grigalizeans, to attend the Solidarity Mass.  We have a lot to be grateful for, the fact that Dangriga was spared from the hurricane, we stand in solidarity with our members and Belizeans on a whole who were affected by the hurricane.  During this hard time recovering from COVID, we know that there is a lot lost and we pray for them and NGC will do its part to give back as well to Belize City residents.”

Ifasina Efunyemi

Ifasina Efunyemi, Secretary, National Garifuna Council

“We are trying to play catch up and the same time raise some funds because if we are going to be able to give some support to our branches, especially now, Belize City branch being the most significantly impacted by Hurricane Lisa then we have to be raising funds.  The NGC is not a business, it’s not a corporate entity.  We make partnerships with corporate entities, we seek support from the government, as well the private sector and individuals so that we are able to raise funds as an organization and then give the kind of support, like in this current situation that we would be able to give to the Belize City branch for example.  Our people, so many Garinagu live in Belize City bow that have migrated from different Garifuna communities and the council wants to be able to render that kind of support.”