The post Organisations Unite to Encourage Mathematics appeared first on RG Magazines.

Photography by Akil Simmons

Mark Wade, president of the Bermuda Football Association, is in no doubt about the significant role that football plays in Bermudian culture. For men and women, for girls and boys, the sport is an integral part of the cultural milieu.

“It’s the first sport that most kids play – it was for me,” says the former player with Pembroke-Hamilton Club (PHC). “I played in kickarounds at school, and in the neighbourhood before I joined PHC at age 14.

“We even used to call part of my yard ‘Wembley’,” he says, referring to the iconic English stadium. “Football is the biggest sport in the world, and it is the biggest in Bermuda, too.”

The numbers support that view

The BFA’s most recent strategic planning exercise pulled together figures that demonstrate the vital role that football plays in Bermuda. For example:

• The BFA organises some 2,500 matches annually involving more than 3,000 registered players over a 32-week season that runs from September to April.
• Some 47 male senior teams and 95 male youth teams, are registered with the BFA for the current season, and there is an active – and growing – level of participation among girls ages 6-17. Most encouraging for the future of girls’ football was Bermuda’s Division Two championship at the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) under-15 girls’ tournament in August.
• Some 30 nationally registered referees participate in an average of three matches or training sessions weekly.
• More than 300 BFA and club administrators contribute approximately four hours per week to football. That translates to 1,200 hours per week, and 38,400 hours per season.

The BFA reckons that, together,

administrators, referees, players, coaches, and spectators, contribute nearly four million hours of football activity annually in Bermuda.

“Four million hours is actually on the low side,” Wade says. “That’s only for football under the BFA umbrella. That’s the bulk of it, but there are players in our sister leagues – the Corona League and Sunday Morning League that are independent of the BFA – and then there are the pick-up games, the kickarounds in neighbourhoods, kids playing at primary school and middle school. To say that football is an integral part of life in Bermuda is understating it.”

David Sabir, the BFA general secretary, heads up the organisation’s day-to-day operations.”This is how important football is generally,” Sabir says. “Football is almost embedded in our DNA. Before a baby is born, mothers would often say ‘I can feel my baby kicking!’ This is an exciting moment! Emotional moment! This is football! The expectations that we place on football, the core values of respect, fair play, teamwork, commitment, dedication, integrity, etc. is what we desire in life generally.

Football is a game of life!

For a select few, the sport has offered a career path – as the current season began, Bermudians were playing at professional clubs in England, Spain, Holland, Iceland, Sweden, Finland, Estonia and the United States.

Many more go away to US prep schools, and then perhaps on to university, on scholarship.

Twins Richard and Robert Calderon have been helping players to obtain scholarships to American high schools for some 20 years. In that time, Richard – a former president of the BFA – says that they have helped 48 student-athletes acquire scholarships with a total value in the millions of dollars.

“I would never suggest that someone should not pursue a professional footballing career,” Richard says, “but the more realistic and safer goal is to use football as a means to a college education. My brother and I are tangible evidence that it works as we both attended prep school in the US, and then the University of Alabama, on scholarships. Today, a significant percentage of players who are doing well in football in Bermuda have partially developed at the prep school and college level.”

Many of those players eventually return home and find that the US college game is excellent preparation for life on and off the field in Bermuda.

“The qualities that make someone a good footballer – teamwork, respect, fair play and co-operation – are also the qualities that employers look for in the workplace,” says Wade, who has spent his career in the telecommunications field.

Of course, there is also a commercial angle to football in Bermuda as any visitor to The Robin Hood, Docksider, Flanagan’s Outback, Astwood Arms, Bulldog’s Sports Bar, either of the two Swizzle Inns – or any number of other sports bars and pubs that screen football matches — can attest. Seats can be hard to come by during the quadrennial World Cup, annual mid-week Champions League matches or English Premiership matches.

“Football brings a significant amount of business to many of Bermuda’s pubs,” says Jay Correia, owner of the Swizzle Inns. “While the NFL, MLB, NHL and rugby have their supporters nothing equals the attraction of ‘footy’.

“In recent years, pubs have taken to becoming the home of certain teams like Chelsea at Swizzle Inn and Liverpool at Docksider. While many games can be watched at home the atmosphere of a pub crowd cheering their favourite team wins out for many people.”

Even Bermuda’s outgoing Chief Justice, Ian Kawaley, said his farewells at a special sitting of the Supreme Court in July of this year with a not-so-subtle mention of the side he supports, Manchester United, by saying that he “hopes the Bermuda Bar will in future be…United!”.

So, whether it’s on the field, in the classroom, in the bar – or in front of the Bar – it’s undeniable that Bermudians view football as an essential part of their lives.

Duncan Hall also finds football indispensable. He has attended four World Cups, two Euro tournaments, two Champions League finals, and once joined a group led by legendary Bermudian footballer Clyde Best that travelled to Buenos Aires to watch Argentina play Brazil.

The post Football: A game for forward movement appeared first on RG Magazines.

Jomell Hewey

Construction Worker

To build a stable foundation for our coming generations.

Faux Fur Coat, Mango, Gibbons Company

Earrings, Rings, Neckpieces, all Touché

Belt, Desiree Riley, vintage collection

Headpiece, custom-made by stylist

Kamilah Cannonier

Baker

To revive traditional family baking.

Earrings, Rings & Hairclip, all Touché

Blouse, Violet & Claire

Skirt, United Colors of Benetton

Shoes, Cape Robbin

Juanita Jones

Tourism Ambassador

To captivate the wondering minds of our visitors.

Earrings, Touché

Outfit & Neckpiece, Juanita’s Vintage Collection

Jacket, Basler

Top & Pants, Gerry Weber

Head Wrap, Stylist’s Own

Tasha Johnson

Waitress

To keep them wanting to return again and again.

Animal Print Sweater, Skirt & Cap, Mango, Gibbons Company

Rings & Earrings, Touché

Jacket, Orange Bay Company

Nicholas Cardoso

Mechanic

To work as if it was for family.

Bug Neckpiece & Rings, Touché

Shirt, The Edge

Jacket & Pants, James R. Lee

Gold Choker, Desiree Riley

Art Director & Styling

Amie B. Rodriguez – @amie_bonnie

Photographer

Nhuri Bashir – @nhuribashir

Hair Stylist

Traci Witherbee-Amaral – @stylzbytraci

Production Head

Marq Rodriguez – @i.marqr

Photograoher’s Assistant

Dahlano Simons – @dahlano_simons

The post Playing dress-up appeared first on RG Magazines.

Whether they have the skills or not, all children are eventually launched into society expected to create relationships – at work, at home, in school. Without someone to model after, habits turn into unhealthy (and unwanted) qualities. Positive or negative, “this can allow them to eventually enter into one of the most important relationships of all – marriage – already thinking that marriages fail.”

This, by no means, implies that nuclear families are the only healthy relationships. “Single parents can be amazing, and couples can be terrible.” It’s possible even in single-parent families, to demonstrate love, respect and care to those around you. Olds suggests that even if that love and care are not present in the home, “to send a child to a friend’s house, or have them read books where they can watch how healthy relationships work.”

Most healthy relationships are directly related to self-care. If you’re healthy and happy with who you are, that’s when you are able to effectively “show up” in a relationship. “Parents can get caught up in the baby, in work, in the house,” says Olds, “but they have to find time for themselves and each other. If the parents are taking care of the primary relationship, the kids notice”, and emulate. Many parents tend to be too exhausted to remember that children are paying more attention than we give them credit for.”

Without a doubt, they are watching as you work hard, but say no to being taken advantage of.  They pay attention to your you-time, and how that makes for better them-time. They don’t necessarily need an audience 24/7, they need to see what self-love looks like.

What is the key to relationship success?

Marriage expert John Gottman, who has conducted 40 years of breakthrough research with thousands of couples, tells us the key to successful relationships. He says that it does not lie in candlelit dinners. It is not found in trips to Paris or horse and carriage rides under moonlit skies. The key to relationship success is: in small moments of positive attention and communication.

Communication skills are essential, especially in the age of smartphones. Being the “strong silent type” may be all very well in films or novels of a certain era, but does little to show your partner, or child that you care for and love them.

Focus on:

• How to greet them and initiate a conversation
• Listening (a seriously under-rated skill)
• How to show understanding
• Being able to empathise with their feelings and concerns
• Knowing how to read social cues to avoid miscommunication and potential embarrassment
• Working with them to address and solve problems openly and candidly
• Learning how to apologise. Everyone is fallible, makes mistakes and can be wrong

Technology in relationships

While, smartphones and other devices can be used to enhance relationships (both Skype and WhatsApp are incredible communication tools that have changed the way we do distance relations), but be aware of how dangerous the seductive distraction of a cell phone can be.

Jacqueline Olds and Richard Schwartz bring up the term “fubbing”, which refers to the act of snubbing someone with your phone. “If we are feeling lonely, neglected or left out, we look at our phones to suddenly feel included in something”. These devices, dating apps and social networks increase temptation by creating the illusion that there are more opportunities for happier relationships outside of the marriage.

With smartphones, we have other people at our fingertips, namely our co-workers, with whom we spend the majority of our lives. Temptation comes quickly with people that we become close with at our workplace, giving the potential for something Schwartz calls a “work spouse”, where we prefer to talk to our co-worker about our problems than our partner.

This can bring about jealousy, and while Schwartz explains that a little bit of jealousy should be welcomed as a healthy alarm to change needed in a relationship, on-the-edge living combined with poor communication can end it.

Sex! Do it for the family

Sex, and even intimacy, after birthing babies, a significant death, or 10, 20, 30 years of marriage can get difficult to initiate. After so long with little or no intimacy, we fall into something called the “rustiness phenomenon”, where we become shy, timid, and, even though the love is still there, a little bit cold. At this point, the fairy tale relationship is obsolete, and we actually have to work at everything in the couple.

Good, connected sex is something that shows on your face and runs through your movement, including how you engage outside of the bedroom and interact with your children. Olds understands that initiation can feel like one of the most difficult things, and suggests that to start, a couple lay completely nude together without the pretence of intercourse. “Nine times out of ten, the couple ends up having sex!”

To have good sex involves all the skills needed for healthy relationships – practising empathy, asking the right questions and listening to the answers. The bedroom is a good place to put it into practice. Married couples who have sex regularly live longer, have better heart health, enjoy a deeper connection, and can let go of annoyances easier. This, at the helm of the family, can only be a model for a healthy relationship as a child grows older. So, get the kids to bed early tonight!

Intimacy and a healthy sexual relationship between committed and caring adults are not something to be hidden (as in “Not in Front of the Children”), but shown to be a natural part of a loving, adult relationship. Its power should never be taken for granted.

Society can also play a role in this philosophy by adding it too early learning. The couple suggests that sex/health education should also include the physiological and emotional differences between the way that men and women argue. For instance, men take longer to reach a stress peak, but they also take longer to calm down (hence, the reason why men are often perceived as uncaring in a fight, until they care too much.) Most decide to walk away from a heated argument, to then come back later for a calmer and more rational solution.

The post What Goes Into a Healthy Relationship? appeared first on RG Magazines.

Martha Dismontfounded The Family Centrein 1990 as a tutorial organisation, and has since shifted its focus from academic tutoring to a more clinical servicewith a clear focus on wellness for children through family-based counselling services – this responding to the needs of at-risk families.

In 2015, Mrs Dismont received the Cablevision Rollin R. Nathan Community Service Award for Outstanding Service in the Community. And, in 2016, Mrs Dismont was listed on the Queen’s Honour List and awarded the Member of the British Empire (MBE). She also received the Bermudian Magazine ‘Best of Bermuda’ Community Activist Award in 2016, and in 2017 she was named one of five “Bermudians of the Year” by the Bermudian.com magazine.

Meet Dr. Saadia Bean, Owner and Operator of the Family Intimacy Centre

Dr Saadia Bean spent 18 years as an elementary school teacher, after which she went into the field of counselling. In 2000, along with her husband of 41 years, Dr Detroy Bean, founded the Family Intimacy Centre to provide mindful counselling, mediation, empowerment workshops, and offer group sessions for individuals, couples and families. Dr Bean is a motivational speaker providing the tools to businesses, government, churches and organisations to maintain healthy and satisfying relationships.

Meet Ms Cherie Robinson

Cherie Robinson, who moderates the following conversation, is a Graphic Designer at Bermuda College, and the voice of the “family member” in the conversation with the experts as seen below.

A coffee with the family experts

Below is a transcribed conversation between Ms Martha Dismont MBE (Executive Director of the Family Centre) and Dr Saadia Bean (Co-founder of the Family Intimacy Centre), moderated by Ms Cherie Richardson (Graphic Designer and voice of the family member)

Cherie Richardson: I find it quite amazing that the two of you are in the same space, because funnily enough I’ve received services from both of you, and your advice, guidance and love that was shown through the process was beneficial to my family. I want to show that to families in Bermuda. To start, can you tell us what you consider to be a healthy family?

Martha Dismont: Well, it’s not about people as much as it is about the qualities that you feel when you’re with people. There’s a saying, “People don’t always remember what you say, but they remember how they felt when you were with them.” A healthy family is a feeling. What do you think Saadia?

Saadia Bean: Your family is made up of those with whom you feel most bonded, those who you’re caring for and are caring for you. The ability to strengthen those bonds brings about a strong family.  Sometimes people come to me each week, and after five to 10 sessions, we form a relationship, and we feel like family. There’s no blood relation at all. Family is to be happy to be with each other, even if things don’t go well; to experience progress and feel free to learn new things – especially about ourselves.

MD: Exactly, I love the thought of it being “progress”; that people are aspiring towards something. Often people ask, “What is the world coming to?” Well, it’s coming to what you make it. So, we need to be looking more at the progress that can be made, and how we can be a stronger part of the family, as an individual. If we focus more on what’s going on within our family, instead of being concerned with what is going on in the world, the storms of the world will probably settle down.

CR: We have all different types of families in Bermuda now: blended, same-sex, etc. What are the pillars that every family is standing on?

SB: I think that people want the same thing now as they did way back when. So, no matter the type of family – let’s call it traditional vs modern, we still want the same things. People try to find that feeling of “valuing” and “being valued”. A drug addict may find belongingness, and feel cared for and valued with others who are also addicted. We enjoy being valued wherever we can find it.

MD: Love and care is a basic human need.

SB: Love and care are vital like air.

CR: You both have 20+ years with families, how has the family developed over the past 50 years in Bermuda?

SB: The fast-paced society is probably one of the biggest challenges of today, because people have to work two and three jobs. When I was younger, my mom worked, but somehow, she was always home whenever I was there.

CR: Well, looking at history, I think the day’s schedule has shifted too. Thursday afternoons used to be off, for weddings and other events. Now, it’s not just nine to five, but Saturdays and Sundays.

MD: Too, think about our economy. It’s had a huge impact on how we live our lives. The “two to three jobs” is based on the fact that we need more money to simply live. The high cost of living in Bermuda is affecting many families. Now both parents have to work, or the one and only parent has to work two to three jobs to keep up with providing food on the table.

We know that if the child is leaving the education system without adequate skills, it’s not easy to get a job. And so, we have unskilled young people trying to survive in a high-cost economy. Families are struggling to make ends meet, but also young adults are not prepared for a high-cost economy in Bermuda.  This is not ideal.

CR: Is there such a thing as an “ideal family” in Bermuda?

SB: You have to ask the question, “What is your ideal? What would work for you given your circumstances?”  Sometimes the conditions are not what you want them to be. You can observe problems and talk about them over and over. Or you can become creative and ask yourself, “What it is that I want – individually and as a unit – and then plan how you want to create that. Sometimes we end up complaining about what is.  Instead, we could ask, “What do I need to do to create what I want [in my family]?”

CR: This is the beginning of the creation of intimacy that’s needed for a productive unit, right? What is intimacy?

MD: I think of it as feeling safe with self. When you’re good with who you are, you’re okay with being intimate with yourself and with another. Peter Kerry used to talk about how the country’s families weren’t as intimate as they should be. For instance, a mother should feel comfortable being intimate with her daughter, to help her find out who she is. And doing that on a precious level, where they both feel safe and have the opportunity to develop who they are.

CR: How can families exercise this trust and confidence in their daily lives?

SB: Whenever anyone comes in for counselling, we don’t start working on what they want until they build internally and know who they are. If you don’t know who you are, you don’t know who you’re bringing to a relationship. Those who don’t know, change to suit their environment, live from the outside, in, and soon find that this never works. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to always know who you are, and then be who we are in every circumstance?It’s much easier. If you just know who you are internally, you can create beautiful and satisfying relationships.

CR: On the other side, what is loneliness? And how does it affect the family?

MD: When do we usually feel lonely? When we’re by ourselves working through a difficult situation. It’s interesting because I don’t know how many people would feel lonely if they were working through a positive situation on their own. I think you feel lonely, when it’s a difficult circumstance, and you don’t feel that you have the support and help that’s needed. That’s why the nurturing and support and help from family is important 24/7.

MD: These are difficult times across the world and what’s going to help individuals, families, and communities get through, is family love and care. When we think about the gangs in Bermuda, we have to think about [the gang] as being their brethren. So, how do we create that same sense of brethren outside of that environment?Parents have to become courageous and creative to make sure that they are taking care of the child and themselves. Love and care are going to be a piece that strengthens our families. And in order to overcome the situations, we have to think about how we can find the value in ourselves to help our family and our community.

CR: Then it will be a ripple effect.

MD: Absolutely.

SB: The way to experience ourselves fully and to find great love in ourselves is to be in a family. Flowing out love feels good. I’ve been married for 41 years, and we’re having a wonderful time because I’ve figured out not to worry about the marriage any more. It’s easier to focus on who I am, and have fun being the best me. Then, the marriage is always fine.

For those wishing to learn more about the two organisations and the excellent work that they do, please use the following links:

The Family Centre: https://www.tfc.bm/

The Family Intimacy Centre:

Facebook

familyintimacycentre.org

The post The Experts Weigh in On “Family” in Bermuda appeared first on RG Magazines.

The Chef Competition kicked off last Wednesday, October 17,  in a stunning setting at Fort Hamilton with the First round. Elizabeth Blankendal and Mohamed Elfeky went head-to-head in an appetizer showdown. They each had to use the five ingredients provided – shrimp, coconut milk, peppers, beets and butternut squash. On Thursday, in Round Two, three more chefs – Antonio Belvedere, Marcella Smith and Ibrahim Elassal took on an entrée challenge using lobster, feta cheese, onions, spinach and sweet potato.

Ticket holders to the two preliminary rounds were provided with samples of the dishes as the chefs led a live demonstration of their recipes. A welcome cocktail and wines served with dinner were provided by Goslings. Each chef was allocated thirty minutes to prepare and plate their meal and fifteen minutes to clean their work area. Judges allocated points to each dish based on taste/flavor, creativity, use of ingredients and presentation.

The winning chefs from the first two rounds, Elizabeth Blankendal and Ibrahim Elassal, moved on to the third and final round, the Dessert challenge, on Saturday night.

Guests on Saturday were treated to a 4-course dinner provided by MEF/Fourways Catering. Accompanying the meal were a selection of rums, courtesy of Bacardi, to complement each course. The chefs were challenged to create desserts for the final course, again using five compulsory ingredients. The competition was fierce but it was ultimately Ibrahim Elassal from Fairmont Southampton that was declared the victor.

On Friday night, the Bacardi Bartender Competition got underway at Bacardi Headquarters. Five local bartenders – Matt Francis, Ryan Gibbons, Kazim Muhammed, Keishaun Majors and Sula Foggo all brought their A-game to the table and wowed a packed house with their impressive skills. Judges graded the competitors on visual appeal, balance of flavors and taste, creativity/originality, inventive use of ingredients, use of sponsors brands, knowledge and accuracy of recipe, ability under pressure and time of production.

The judges were so impressed with each creation that there were only mere points between the winning cocktail and its competition but it was Matt Francis, representing The Blind Pig

Cocktail Co. that walked away with the top prize – $400 in cash from the City of Hamilton and a trip to Puerto Rico to visit one of the Bacardi distilleries. Matt’s winning concoction, the Mellow Season, is a delicious medley of Bacardi 10, lime, strawberry, black pepper syrup, egg white with a vanilla sugar rim.

The City of Hamilton would like to thank all of the contributing sponsors of this year’s fall Food Festival as well as all of the judges and volunteers that participated and lent their support.

The post City Food Festival winners announced appeared first on RG Magazines.

Photos by Akil Simmons

The post Gallery: Bermuda International Gombey Festival appeared first on RG Magazines.

She agreed to meet at Devil’s Isle. I was unsure of who I was looking for, but a brief conversation on the phone a few days earlier gave me an idea of Shanell Vaughn’s energy. I imagined an aura over the head of the martial artist, yoga specialist, business owner and social entrepreneur behind “Peace Within” — a programme that brings yoga to Bermuda’s prisoners.

She was sitting up against the restaurant’s white drapery, an apt backdrop of serenity. There was no circle of light, but her movements came with that surety and humility that I expected when she got up to say hello, ordered her Classic Harvest Bowl, sipped her water, and talked to a total stranger about her life’s work. Her answers came with a confidence only 15 years of self-reflection could give.

Shanell’s business, Shambhala (a Tibetan word meaning “a place of peace where enlightened beings dwell”), started in 2014 as a holistic healing practice. Destroyed by the fire at 79 Front Street in 2016, it temporarily lives at The Healing Centre on Euclid Avenue, until she can find somewhere to revive it.

In the meantime, Shanell launched a project, working with the seemingly forgotten part of the Bermuda community. “The Peace Within Prison Yoga Programme [started in January 2018] came from a desire to make the yoga that I teach accessible to more people.” With calm excitement, she explained, “One day, I saw a video of yoga classes being held in a penitentiary in Washington State. The idea immediately grabbed me and I wanted to do that in Bermuda. I wanted to reach people who may not, for various reasons, ever step foot in a yoga studio”. So far, that reach has made it to the Prison Farm (men) and the St. George’s Co-Educational Facility (women).

“What is yoga?” A question that all yogis are asked and answer different. Specifically, what was yoga to her that it should live in these places that hardly mattered to anyone? “Yoga is a practice in the art of peace.” She began to explain. “I found in my personal life when I was going through a difficult transition many years ago that yoga had this subtle way of dissolving the walls that I had created around my heart, and introducing me to an inner peace that I hadn’t experienced before. Yoga is a way to calm and purify the mind so that we can bring balance to each level of our existence –– body, mind and spirit. It is the science of self-realisation, meaning that when the mirror of our minds is clear and quiet, it reflects the true peace and joy that is innate in each one of us. In this way, offering yoga to inmates aids in their rehabilitation process by helping them to find a space and peace within themselves to manage their situation, to learn to use breath control to master their minds and overcome negative reactions, and ultimately their improved mental and physical health serves the well-being of the whole community when these individuals are released.”

Many people commonly think of yoga as just a workout, but Shanell has made her offering different. “Yoga is a systematic practice that gives us the skills to go beyond our base emotions rooted in the ego: fear, anger, greed etc., so that we can access our higher emotions rooted in love. We practice on our mats to be with whatever arises physically or mentally, and to be gentle with ourselves.” For the 5 to 10 prisoners –– men and women –– who participate in each Peace Within class, this sounds like freedom behind bars.

“Yoga in popular Western culture leans towards certain demographics just because of the way it is marketed, but this is changing slowly as men and women of all ages and backgrounds become more aware that yoga is for them too. It is for everyone because freedom is for everyone –– freedom from limiting beliefs, freedom from stress, and the freedom to feel comfortable in your own body.”

Shanell’s contribution touches a level of community that almost no one is willing to serve. These men and women have been imprisoned for one reason or another, serving anywhere from a few months to years, and life sentences, but she describes a common thread running through all of them –– openness. “They are all open to new experiences, open to change and open to introspection”.

She says that this has been one of the most rewarding things she has done as a yoga teacher, and she continues to plan for the long-term with the Department of Corrections hoping to take the programme to Westgate Correctional Facility. “It takes courage, vision and faith to step out of the ‘comfort zone’ of a studio and do something a little different for the benefit of the greater community, but more yoga teachers are doing just that. I am always thinking of more ways to extend myself and teach a more diverse demographic.”

Before paying the bill for one of the most insightful conversations of my summer, at this point, it seemed appropriate to bring up the topic of the universal application of yoga to our lives. What about those who are prisoners in their mindsand are looking for alternative healing in these times that we’re living in? To that, she says, “This ancient practice is so needed in the world right now because there is a lot of despair and negativity, and we need to see positive models of our humanity reflected through people who embody a more holistic, harmonious and conscious life.”

“Yoga can be a guiding map for those who want to know what steps they can take for real personal transformation: to be more peaceful, more joyful and more heart-centred in day-to-day life. Yoga means “union” also, so in my classes I try to foster a sense of community and acceptance, seeing grace and beauty in all forms, regardless of shape, size, age, religion, nationality, race, sexuality, etc., The intention is that when yogis are off their mat and in the world, they radiate a presence that is peaceful, that seeks to unite and uplift, not divide or oppress. A true yogi is the living embodiment of these values.”

Before we said goodbye, she slid a small white card, across the table. I squinted when I read in big bold green letters, “Namaste –– I see and honour the purity, goodness and light within myself, that I may see and honour the same within you,” a card that she presents to every participant of the Peace Within Programme. I walked away with a thought that will always stay close to me and a statement that should be applied to everything we do in this exciting time of forward social movement on the Island.

Shanell gives credit to the Department of Corrections, specifically Dawnita Grant, Vocational Officer, and the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation, specifically Tiffany Paynter of the St. George’s Community Centre for their administrative support of the Peace Within Prison Yoga Programme.

This article was originally published in the Fall 2018 edition of RG Magazine.

The post Peace Within Bermuda’s Prisons appeared first on RG Magazines.

Loved ones gathered to remember those who have lost their lives to violence in Bermuda.

Full story on royalgazette.com

Photography by Blaire Simmons

The post Gallery: Break The Silence vigil appeared first on RG Magazines.

In November of last year, vice-president of Somerset Cricket Club, Vashun Blanchette succeeded Alfred Maybury after his seven-year term and became the club’s youngest president. The 32 year-old, has been involved with the club for the majority of his life — starting as a child and serving on the executive side of the club since 2009. Now … an added level of responsibility as his first term also happens to be a Cup Match year in Somerset.

Mr Blanchette “never had dreams of becoming the president” but has always gravitated towards the role. “I’ve been around the club my whole life, starting as a pewee footballer in the early 1990s”, he said. “It was always an environment where I was able to be around my friends having a good time under the guidance of positive role models”.

“I grew up in the Somerset football and cricket programs — playing football right through to the senior team. I didn’t really play much cricket as I got older. I’ve actually had to fill in for a couple games for the senior team in the last couple of years, but I wouldn’t classify myself as a cricketer.”

Although, not a big player, Mr Blanchette recalled many weekends at the club watching the sport. “One Cup Match in Somerset, I must have been about 9 or 10, I actually did the scoreboard. Now it’s is all electronic, but before it used to be rolling pins and metal sheets that you used to ‘have to hang up. I was standing on a milk crate putting all the numbers up. So, I understand cricket, I just never really played it at a higher level.”

Months before the Island’s most-anticipated, two-day emancipation celebrations, Mr Blanchette describes the preparations as “organized chaos”, saying that “it really is a full-time job” outside of his career at the Bermuda Monetary Authority.

“There’s just so much to do and it’s a collaborative effort. With Cup Match, I feel like you run through the finish line and then you’re still sprinting. It really involves that much co-ordination with security firms, police, caterers, decorators, scaffolding, organizing staff for gates and bars, getting the vendors and you need electricians, plumbers, its endless. It’s a lot that goes into the biggest event in Bermuda.

“Over 2 days we attract upwards of 15,000 people so that gives it some context. It we have 60,000 residents that 25% are coming through those gates for 2 days.”

Blanchette’s main objective this year? That everyone comes to SCC and has a “safe and enjoyable holiday, incident free”.

“Often times Cup Match is the place where you see people you haven’t seen all year or since the previous holiday, right? So, it is a time for family and friends to come together. But also, an opportunity for us to reflect on why we really celebrate.

“Yes, the cricket game and the social aspect around it is what we come through the gate for, but the historical context and the abolition of slavery is important and we should use it as an opportunity to reflect.

With the game — the intent is to always win, but if we can’t win… don’t lose. I don’t want that on my resume: “became president when Somerset lost the cup”, he joked.

Discussing the future of his club, Mr Blanchette expressed that re-establishing SCC as the center piece for the Sandy’s community is his teams’ top priority. “We also, want to continue to strengthen our youth programs. We are probably one of the only clubs, that have a football and cricket team in every age group. So, we want to continue to have a thriving program where parents feel or see value in bringing their child.”

He is adamant that the club’s responsibility is focused on building individuals through sports. “Now if we get a professional then great, but I don’t think that’s our objective. It’s to help mold upstanding citizens who ultimately go on to do good things. Whether they go away to school and come back, or don’t go away at all — but we equip them with tools they need to be their own boss, entrepreneurs or whatever they decide to pursue.”

When asked what he would say to younger people, admiring him in his new position, Blanchette said he would tell them to “simply be yourself. Follow your instincts, let your conscience guide you and obviously not be naive. We are living in times with distractions and outside influences, but you know be diligent and dedicate yourself towards whatever positive goal you wish to achieve”.

This article was originally published in the 2018 edition of the RG Cup Match supplement.

The post Vashun Blanchette: From Peewee to President appeared first on RG Magazines.