Popular blues and jazz singer Leeolive Tucker has made a decision to pack her bags and head back home to New York after many years on the St. Croix and St. Thomas entertainment scene.
Her friends will stage an informal bon voyage party on Thursday, Jan. 6, beginning at 7 p.m. at Blackbeard's Castle, a venue where she has entertained many residents and visitors over the years.
Sally Smith, one of the organizers, said "We' ll be there all evening so Leeolive can say goodbye to her fellow entertainers and friends, and especially to her friends at V.I. Find, a non-profit organization very close to her heart."
Tucker said she' s returning to her roots in New York City's Harlem, where her family still lives. " lost my mother just before Christmas," said Tucker, " and that helped me make up my mind to go back home."
But, she said, it is with bittersweet feelings that she leaves the island.
"While I' ll miss St. Thomas and my friends, associates, fellow musicians, poets and everyone I met — especially the audience who has always embraced me — I must enter this new phase of my life. It' s time for me to move on. I have to get back to my poetry and I must record my songs."
Friends can drop by Blackbeard' s on Thursday evening from 7 p.m. until closing to bid her a fond farewell.
For information call Sally Smith at 777-5467.
