On the night of October 31st, 2010 Hurricane Tomas destroyed many homes and agricultural crops, especially banana production, in the north Windward and Leeward areas of St. Vincent. Funds were donated by Homeowners on the island of Mustique to the Mustique Charitable Trust (MCT) for disaster relief and the rebuilding of communities in the hurricane stricken areas.

Funds donated were used for house repairs, the building of new homes for those who had their homes totally destroyed, repairs and renovations to St. Benedict’s Children’s Home and for assistance to 120 farmers in the agricultural sector.

In early April 2011 heavy rains caused extensive flooding in the Windward area to communities just recovering from Hurricane Tomas. The Trust donated a further EC$200,000 to the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines to assist with repairs to infrastructure and homes caused by the extensive floods.

The Trust thanks the following for their collaboration in reaching as many families as possible to rebuild their lives after these two disasters:

• Mustique Homeowners
• The Mustique Company
• Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Transformation, Forestry and Fisheries
• Ministry Of Housing, Informal Human Settlements, Physical Planning, Land And Surveys
• Republic of China Technical Mission Horticulture Development Fund
• National Emergency Management Organization

All the families thanked the MCT for its assistance and being so proactive in providing building materials quickly after Hurricane Tomas. Many provided their own labour to repair homes enabling the Trust to assist more families than originally anticipated.

Support to Charities in 2011

During 2011 sixteen charities, organisations and schools received support from the Trust. The Community College: Technical & Vocational Division received funding for a new Sickbay and Counselling Room. Sport for Life! a Saturday cricket programme with a strong educational component for 40 under achieving children benefitted from a grant towards operational costs. Often a small grant, as in the donation of a gas cooker to a school providing remedial education, makes all the difference to the students who are now provided with breakfast and lunch and hands-on experience in Home Economics classes. Teachers and parents have commented on improved performance and behaviour by students who have attended the Drug Awareness Resistance Education and Sport for Life! Programmes.

Thanks to our generous donors and to the administrative support from Mustique Company, costs are kept to a minimum allowing donations to be spent in an effective way to deliver help where it is most needed. Several new projects including a grant for a new computer laboratory at the Engineering Department of the Technical & Vocational College will be funded in 2012. In January the Trust will begin free diabetes and hypertensive testing in two locations in St. Vincent as the high incidence of these conditions is a cause of concern.

We invite all homeowners, renters and friends of Mustique to become donors to the Mustique Charitable Trust and give support to these worthwhile causes in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.