Basseterre, St. Kitts (August 17, 2016) — Chairman of the St. Kitts Nevis National Carnival Committee, Mr Noah Mills, has commended the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis for extending its sponsorship to the National Carnival Miss Swimwear Queen, Ms Alsanarda Hanley, when she travelled to Anguilla in July to take part in a regional pageant.
Mr Mills made the remarks on Friday August 12 at an appreciation luncheon held at Sweet Lime Restaurant in Port Zante to thank the various carnival winners who would have done duty on behalf of the Federation as ambassadors and contestants in regional carnivals and pageants.
They were Mr Nicha B. Byron the current Groovy and Super Soca King who in February travelled to Trinidad to participate in the International Soca Finals, and Ms Alsanarda Hanley who won the Miss Venus Caribbean Swimwear Pageant held in Anguilla in July.
Others were Mr Oscar ‘Astro’ Browne, the reigning National Carnival Calypso King who travelled to Anguilla for the Leeward Islands Calypso competition, and the Miss National Carnival Queen first runner-up Ms Khyla Browne who travelled to Nevis and won the Miss Caribbean Culture Queen Pageant.
Not present at the luncheon was the St. Kitts Nevis National Carnival Queen Ms Orngel Erskine, who travelled to St. Vincent for the Ms Carival and to Antigua for the Ms Jaycees Pageant, and the Miss National Carnival Flow Talented Queen Ms Kadeema Blanchette who will be representing the Federation at the Caribbean Talented Teen Pageant that will be held in St. Kitts.
Invited for the appreciation luncheon was one of the sponsors, the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis, which was represented by Ms Vernitha Maynard its Support Officer for Marketing.
“As I add up figures in my mind, it tells me that we would have contributed to date up to $60,000 in all of these ambassadors going forward and travelling overseas to represent the Federation,” said Mr Mills.
“We had Ms Alsanarda Hanley, the reigning National Carnival Miss Swimwear Queen who was then in Sugar Mas 44 sponsored by the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis and again sponsored by the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis as she travelled over to Anguilla in July and won the Miss Venus Caribbean Swimwear Pageant.
“We say congratulations to Ms Alsanarda Hanley and especially our thanks and appreciation go to the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis.”
According to the chairman, it gave the National Carnival Committee great pleasure as they believe in partnerships noting that they would have visited several companies across St. Kitts and Nevis seeking sponsorship in Carnival for respective participants and contestants travelling as Federation’s ambassadors.
“Development Bank was the only one who would have come on board and financially contributed, and partnered with us in sending one of our ambassadors overseas,” commented Mr Mills. “We really appreciate them displaying this sort of civic duty, this sort of corporate social responsibility and we are looking forward to working with them not only for the upcoming carnival but carnivals in the future.”
Ms Vernitha Maynard said that as an institution that believes in social investment, the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis was proud to be on board as a sponsor for the National Carnival and proud to sponsor Ms Alsanarda Hanley who not only won in St. Kitts in December, but also as in Anguilla in July.
“We just want to congratulate everyone that participated and won,” said Ms Maynard. “And even if you did not win, you did a good job and you represented the country well. On behalf of the Board of Directors and Management and the staff of the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis we just say congratulations.”
Speaking at the same function, Mrs Marissa Hobson-Newman, Deputy Chair, National Carnival Committee, thanked the four representatives present and the two that were not present.
“We appreciate all the work that you have done, because we know it is not easy to prepare yourself for a pageant once and to prepare yourself for a pageant twice,” said Mrs Hobson-Newman. “So we appreciate all the hard work, we congratulate you and your achievements and we hope that you will continue to achieve success in anything and everything that you choose to do.”
The reigning National Carnival Miss Swimwear and Miss Venus Caribbean Swimwear Queen Ms Alsanarda Hanley thanked the Ministry of Culture, through the National Carnival Committee and her sponsor at the national and regional level, the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis, and her loving and supporting family and friends for encouraging her.
“A heartfelt thank you is extended,” said Ms Hanley. “The encouragement really helped because I achieved both crowns successfully. Entering the national carnival pageant was a joy, I have a love for pageantry and to be in a pageant is something that I have always partaken.
“Being on stage in the National Carnival Pageant I had a wonderful time with the other contestants, we became close friends and also when I travelled to Anguilla the contestants there were also friendly as well.”