Tourism Week commenced in Anguilla with Government officials in the Ministry and Tourism Board and members of the Anguilla United Movement, attending the divine service at the Seventh-day Mount Fortune Church at East End on Saturday, November 28.

Ministry and Tourist Board personnel with Pastor Sam (at right) and Elder Wilken Harrigan (2nd from right)

Those in attendance from the Government included Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Victor Banks and Second Nominated Member and Tourism Adviser, Donna Banks and from the Tourist Board were Acting Director, Merlin Rogers, Director of Product Development, Gina Brooks-Harrigan, Accountant, James Harrigan and the secretarial staff.

The Anguilla United Movement, which also attended the service as part of its Convention activities, was led by Senior Opposition Member in the House of Assembly, Hubert Hughes. Along with him were his colleague, the Elected Member for District 5, Edison Baird, and the other candidates for the upcoming general election: Sam Webster of District 1; Evans Gumbs of District 4; and Walcott Richardson of District 7. In addition, there were a number of AUM supporters who joined them from several parts of the island.

The sermon, which reflected to some extent on the negative and good times of tourism in Anguilla, was delivered by the newly-appointed Resident SDA Minister, Pastor Virgil Sams. He took his text from Isaiah chapter 43 verses 18 and 19, read by Mr. Banks. The Scripture records where God, through his prophet, Isaiah, comforted the Church with promises of hope. It read in part: “Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old, Behold I will do a new thing…I will even make way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.”

Tourist Board Officials in song

Pastor Sams took the opportunity to refer to the peak years of tourist arrivals in Anguilla and the decline in recent times as a result of the recession affecting the island. He advised that unlike the children of Israel, the people of Anguilla should not dwell on past blessings and progress as having set the limit for greater expectations for the future, but should strive to move forward to achieve greater success. He further advised that God’s promise was that He would do a new thing that would not be constrained by past experiences and that through the period of challenge everyone should be thankful that there was a tomorrow.

Just before the close of the service, Ms Merlin Rogers, thanked Pastor Sams and congregation for affording the Ministry and the Tourist Board the opportunity to attend the Church service. She said that every year a week was set aside for tourism which had a two-fold rationale: “Firstly, to pause and remember whose gifts we are and have; and secondly, to continue efforts to emphasise the critical importance of tourism of Anguilla.”

The AUM Candidates and supporters with Mr and Mrs Hughes and Pastor Sam in foreground

She went on: “This year’s theme… calls on us, in what has been a year difficult with financial crisis in a global context, to not only understand how it impacted a chronically-dependent island, like Anguilla, but to know that there is no national solution to a global problem. The important thing then, is to dig deep within us to find an indigenous and global way to lessen the impacts and carve opportunities out of crisis and live expectantly for God’s new thing”

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