Committee and BTC put on ‘Best Flag Day Yet’
Nassau, N.P. – Intermittent showers didn’t deter Haitians, Haitian-Bahamians, and culture enthusiasts from showing up in droves at the Botanical Gardens, Nassau, for the BTC Haitian Flag Day celebrations. Nearly 6,000 supporters clad in the red, blue, and white of the Haitian Flag, came to enjoy the party with entertainment, regional food choices and chances to win a variety of prizes.
The event was an ode to the blend of Haitian and Bahamian culture within the country’s ethnically Haitian communities. Classical Haitian dishes like the fried pork griot and the mackerel-stuffed dumplings called patae, could be found side-by-side with local favourites such as conch fritters and Bahamian baked macaroni. The DJ seamlessly moved from rake ‘n’ scrape to Kompas beats and the MC’s rallied the crowd in both Kreyol and Bahamian dialect.
Janet Brown, BTC’s Chief Marketing Officer also addressed the crowd, giving a well-received rousing speech in Kreyol. As the title sponsor of the event, BTC gave prizes and discounts on phones and phone cards, BTC t-shirts, bottles, lunchboxes and other branded items. BTC also sponsored a health and wellness tent for free screenings and information.
BTC’s neighbourhood stores – independent locally-owned franchises – were also invited to participate. The franchise owner at the bi-lingual Cowpen Road store, Christian Dean, set up shop at the party and gave good discounts on the Alcatel Pop S3 and Samsung Galaxy J1 smartphones and usefully, with data packages too.
BTC’s CEO Leon Williams said that the company’s participation reflected its active mandate to bring community service, not just mobile service, to its valued customers. –more-
“With over 200,000 BTC subscribers, most of the persons in the crowd today are customers. It is extremely important for BTC to support community events that resonate, such as this. Recently, we were the lead sponsor for the CARIFTA teams, the IAAF/BTC World Relays, and the inaugural Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival and we will continue to support meaningful community initiatives, large and small.”
The event’s MC Louby Georges, renowned radio personality and prominent Haitian-Bahamian community leader, said that he was ecstatic to see the numbers of persons that came out and the level of support received from BTC and other sponsors.
“The turn-out and the sponsorship are great! We have BTC here in full force, one of the country’s oldest corporations, and I think that says a lot. We can really feel the unity out here, we can see a lot of Haitians and a lot of Bahamians out in the crowd, and that is the highlight for me.”
Event organizer, Harry Dolce, thanked BTC for their support and for being instrumental in the success of the event.
“BTC was the presenting sponsor of the event for the first time. I can say that without BTC’s support the event probably couldn’t have been the success that it was. They didn’t just sponsor the event, Carole Barnett, BTC Manager of Events and Sponsorship and La’Shawn Cartwright, BTC sponsorship lead, and their team worked along with our team to set up and make sure the event space was organised and beautiful. We have never gotten that level of support from past sponsors.”
He continued, saying that the support translated to an excellent turnout and a quality event. “There was a far greater turnout than previous years. It was also the first time we ever had the four major local bands – Elite Christ Stars, Fresh Number 1, Fresh Music Revolution, and New Stars – performing at one event. This may well be the best Haitian Flag Day in the 16 years of the event.”
