Dear Source,
Sometimes a simple act of kindness can restore your faith. Such an act happened to me yesterday, and I would like to share it.
After doing some shopping in Sunny Isle, I hailed a taxi for the ride to the Golden Rock Shopping Center near my home in Orange Grove. When I got out of the taxi bus, I grabbed my packages but forgot my shoulder bag containing personal information and did not realize I had lost it until I walked through the door of my home.
In a panic, I began to retrace my steps and realized where I must have left the bag. With no way to contact the driver, I figured it was a lost cause and I was saddened at my loss.
I remembered, however, that the taxi driver was listening to Mario Moorhead's radio program as the word "Beloved" echoed in my head. I called Mr. Moorhead on the air, and he allowed me to describe the bag and the items it contained along with what the taxi looked like.
Five minutes after I got off the air with Mr. Moorhead, I realized just how popular he and his show are here on St. Croix. I received a call from my "beloved" driver who said he had my bag. The driver, Cosmas Laurent (CP 303), met me at the Pueblo and returned my bag to me completely intact.
His honesty and integrity, I have found, is not unique among the taxi drivers of our island home. Having lived here for a number of years and being without a car, I have had occasion to use the taxi buses quite a bit. It has been my experience that most of the drivers exhibit the same kind of integrity and kindness Mr. Laurent showed.
It made me reflect on some unkind letters I read in The Avis and elsewhere about these hard-working members of our community, and it saddened me that people only write about the problems they experience, even though they are few and far between. No one writes when they are happy about the job these drivers do.
We celebrate our sports heroes for doing well. We give out Emmy Awards, Grammys, Tonys and Oscars to celebrities who excel on television, in music, in the theater and in films, respectively. We give gold medals to our Olympic stars. But no one takes the time to say "well done" or even "thank you" for the kindnesses we see in our everyday lives.
Mr. Moorhead commented that I had some bad luck yesterday prior to recovering my bag (with his and Mr. Laurent's help), but the truth is that I am truly blessed in my life with a loving family, good friends and the chance to live in this beautiful island paradise. I hope that losing my bag (as bad and upsetting as it was at the time) is the worst thing that ever happens to me.
After the tragic events of Sept. 11, I have seen the blessings in my life in a new light. I am taking the time to say "thank you." Christmas is difficult for me with my family and many friends being far away from me, but the people here ease that sense of loneliness in so many ways.
And so, as Christmas Day approaches, and having just been bathed in the warmth of Ramadan and Hanukkah, I wanted to publicly say "Thank you" to Mr. Moorhead and Mr. Laurent for their kindness yesterday but also to express my gratitude to everyone in my life for the blessings I have been given. I expect to be on the phone a lot over the next few days!
And to the people of the Virgin Islands, no matter what holiday of peace and light you celebrate at this time of the year, thank you for the warmth of your spirit. It is clear that it is not the balmy breezes or the temperature that make this "America's Paradise." It is the generosity of spirit of its people. Thank you!
Tony Swanick
St. Croix

Editor's note: We welcome and encourage readers to keep the dialogue going by responding to Source commentary. Letters should be e-mailed with name and place of residence to source@viaccess.net.

Dec. 20, 2001 – There will be no food handler clinics at Myrah Keating Smith Community Health Center on Dec. 24, Dec. 26, Dec. 31, Jan. 4 or Jan. 7 due to the holiday season.
Food-handler clinics will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. on Jan. 2.
On Jan. 9 the clinics will resume the normal schedule — from 2 to 4 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Dec. 20, 2001 – Territorial Court Judge Ive Swan on Thursday denied a request from the Environmental Association of St. Thomas-St. John for a temporary restraining order to halt the proposed development at Botany Bay.
But Swan scheduled a hearing for Dec. 27 on EAST's requests for preliminary and permanent injunctions against the developers, Botany Bay Associates; an injunction to prohibit the Planning and Natural Resources Department from changing zoning maps; and an order to stop the Legislature from passing acts of "arbitrary and capricious spot zoning."
Earlier this week, EAST and several West End landowners filed suit against Botany Bay Partners and the V.I. government. The lawsuit asks the court to overturn the Legislature's Dec. 11 vote to rezone the Botany Bay property — the first step in allowing the proposed $160 million resort development to move forward.
On Thursday, Botany Bay Partners attorney George Dudley said he would file papers as early as Friday asking Swan to dismiss the lawsuit. Dudley said that the law clearly gives the Legislature the authority to make zoning changes, and that the lawsuit is asking the court system to interfere with what is supposed to be a decision made by elected officials in the Senate and later signed by the governor.
Botany Bay Partners is proposing to build a five-star resort hotel, time-share and condominium units, and about 40 residential homes at Botany Bay on the far western tip of St. Thomas. The plans have drawn a storm of criticism from environmentalists noting the pristine nature of the area, the healthy coral reef systems of the bay and the use of the area's beaches by endangered sea turtles; and from preservationists concerned for what will happen to archeological sites and a historic sugar plantation on the property.
The developers have said they would build the resort in an environmentally sensitive manner and preserve the historic and cultural resources as an educational center.
Planning and Natural Resources officials recommended to the Senate that, instead of the requested rezoning, the developers be granted a zoning variance which would allow them to move forward with their project but bind them to the specific plans they have proposed. Many rezoning opponents — including members of EAST and the League of Women Voters — said they supported the variance recommendation as a reasonable compromise.
The Senate, however, ignored the recommendation, instead voting for Sen. Celestino White's bill to grant the rezoning. Opponents of the development have said that once the land is rezoned, the developers will not be bound to stick with their proposed plans and could, in fact, sell the land to some other developers.
In its lawsuit, EAST states that the Senate acted arbitrarily by not taking DPNR's recommendation and instead changing the zoning from the previous low-density residential use.
But Dudley said making that decision is the prerogative of the Senate.
"The Legislature acted constitutionally when it rezoned the property," he said, noting that the law is clear that the Senate can accept or reject recommendations from DPNR on zoning matters.
Swan did not offer reasons Thursday for his denial of the request for a temporary restraining order. Dudley noted Thursday that, as no construction has started at Botany Bay, there can be no irreparable harm done at the site before Swan holds the Dec. 27 hearing. It is scheduled for 9:30 a.m.

Special entertainment will be featured during the first day os Gloria Joseph's Food Fair tomorrow at the Frederiksted Vegetable Market.
10 to 11 a.m. – D.J. Sax
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. – Blinky & Masquerades
1:30 to 2 p.m. – D.J. Sax
2 to 3 p.m. Steel Pan & Mocko Jumbies
3 to 5 p.m. Stanley & the 10 Sleepless Knights Quadrille Dancers
5 to 7:30 p.m. Image Band
For further information contact Bradley Christian at 719-4538.

Dec. 20, 2001 – The Gloria Joseph's Food Fair will start at 11 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 21, at the Fredericksted Vegetable Market with special events featured during the day. 10 to 11 a.m. – D.J. Sax
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. – Blinky & Masquerades
1:30 to 2 p.m. – D.J. Sax
2 to 3 p.m. – Steel Pan & Mocko Jumbies
3 to 5 p.m. – Stanley & the 10 Sleepless Knights Quadrille Dancers
5 to 7:30 p.m. – Image Band
For furtherinformation contact Bradlwy Christian at 719-4538.

Dec. 20, 2001 – The Nature of the Islands: Plants and Animals of the Caribbean is the theme of an environmental poster contest that V.I. students are invited to compete in.
The sponsor, Florida Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA), invites local students to participate in the 2002 FCCA Foundation for the Caribbean Children's Environmental Poster Competition.
The competition has two divisions, with the following rules and guidelines:
Junior Division – open to students 12 and under (may not have had 13th birthday by March 15, 2002).
Senior Division – open to students 13 to 16 years of age (may not have passed 17th birthday by March 16, 2002).
The FCCA seeks to promote and stimulate environmental awareness and creativity among Caribbean students, while providing a medium to educate persons outside the Caribbean, a release said. To meet these criteria,
—Each student must submit one poster, depicting at least three each of plants and animals of the Caribbean and the effect each has on the environment.
—Words may be used to highlight the ideas illustrated.
—Posters should be on standard size (22" x 28") poster board.
—Posters may be in color, black and white, or a collage; and may be done in whatever medium the entrant chooses (i.e., paint, watercolors, etc.)
—Entries will be judged on the following: creativity, relevance to the theme, content, quality of the presentation (layout/design).
—Each entry must be accompanied by the following information: country, name of student, student's date of birth, student's address and telephone number, name and address of school, name of school principal and school's telephone number.
Interested students are asked to contact their respective school offices to obtain packages, or the V.I. Department of Tourism at 774-8784, 773-0495, or 776-6450.
Teachers and staff/selection committee for each school will choose two winners, one from each category. Each school must submit their entries by Jan. 14, 2002 to their country's selection committee. The committee will choose one winner from each age category to be sent to the FCCA by Jan. 21, 2002. The FCCA selection committee will determine first, second and third place winners for the two age categories, and all winners will be notified by Feb. 4, 2002.
First, second and third-place winners from each category will receive monetary rewards of $2,500, $1,500 and $1,000, and their school will receive art supplies. The two first-place winners will be invited to Florida on March 14, 2002, for a gala dinner, with all travel expenses for student and a chaperon to be paid by FCCA. Additionally, both first-place winners' class will be treated to a tour and lunch aboard a FCCA member line cruise ship while it is in port in their island of residents.
To reward students for their efforts, FCCA will award $200 to all country-level finalists except the three top placers.

Dec. 20, 2001 – Perhaps Joe should have just stayed a nobody. However, Tim Allen doesn't think so, and, so, "Joe Somebody" chronicles his quest from obscurity to, well, to … something.
Let's see. It all starts out when Joe (Allen), a divorced corporate and personal nobody, is beaten up in the parking lot in front of his adoring and astonished daughter (Hayden Panettiere). Abashed, Joe initiates a martial arts program to ensure this will never happen again. He enlists the help of a washed-up martial arts star (Jim Belushi) to learn to fight back.
Now, what do you think will happen? Does Joe win the respect of his daughter and the whole corporate world? Would they film the story if he didn't?
The "Rotten Tomatoes" online review service gives the movie an eponymous rating — "rotten." The actors "contend gamely," acccording to the review, but "in vain, against the deluge of chiches and banalties." Maybe Allen should have stayed safely with the comedy of TV's "Home Improvement."
On the other hand, Allen and Belushi are quite likable actors, so maybe you should arm yourself with chocolate Santas, or any other seasonal refreshments they'll allow you into the theater with, and give it a go. Oh, yes — it was filmed in Minnesota, and that state's notoriously camera-shy governor makes a cameo appearance. So there's three reasons to spring for a ticket: Allen, Belushi and Jesse Ventura.
"Joe Somebody" was directed by John Pasquin, (Allen's on-set buddy from "Home Improvement") and features Julie Bowen, Kelly Lynch, Patrick Warburton and Greg Germann.
It starts Thursday at Sunny Isle Theaters.

Dec. 20, 2001 – The work of St. Thomas artist Madeleine I.E. Meehan and the wines of Chateau Ste. Michelle will be featured at the final Da Da Wine Down of 2001, Friday, Dec. 28, at Cafe Amici in Riise's Alley.
Meehan has become known for her "Mostly Music Art" drawings and paintings, which capture musicians and other artists in live performance. She often can be found seated near the front of the stage at concerts, drawing pad and pens in hand.
The event runs from 5 to 8 p.m. Admission is free; there will be finger food compliments of Cafe Amici and door prizes of dining certificates and artwork. There is a $10 fee for the wine tasting and seminar. A cash bar also will be in service.
A representative of Bellows International, distributor of Chateau Ste. Michelle wines, will conduct the seminar and tasting, which will be ongoing throughout the evening.
Meehan's themes incorporate performance art from classical to carnival. A life member of the Art Students League in New York, she is a graduate of New York's High School of Music and Art, Cornell University and L'Ecole des Beaux Arts in Fountainebleau, France. Her images convey the kinetic energy of the performers — soaring, swirling and reverberating, "striking chords, stroking innuendoes, moving lyrically and unceasingly forward," she says.
She got her musical immersion experience at rehearsals and recording sessions with the London Symphony and London Philharmonic Orchestras, Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Field, several U.S. orchestras, and artists performing at the Edinburgh and Spoleto U.S.A. Festivals. In the Caribbean, she has "jammed" with calypsonians and carnival troupes, Caribbean Dance Company and Carifesta artists.
Meehan works in the mediums of pen and ink, oil and aquarelle. Her work can be seen locally at the MAPes MONDes gallery in Grand Galleria, Tillett Art Gallery, Nisky Art & Craft and The Color of Joy.

Dec. 20, 2001 – There will be no food handler clinics at Myrah Keating Smith Community Health Center in St. John on Dec. 24, Dec. 26, Dec. 31, Jan 4, and Jan. 7 due to the holiday season.
Food handler clinics will be from 2 to 4 p.m. Jan. 2.
They will resume the normal schedule on Jan. 9. The clinics are held from 2 to 4 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Dec. 20, 2001 – The Public Service Commission will have a largely new look when it convenes Friday with a full slate of members for the first time in years. PSC officials anticipate a quorum, something that has not always been a given in recent times, and that the commission will begin to tackle the matters before it with renewed energy.
"This new commission is fired up to do the people's business," Keithley Joseph, PSC executive director, said.
Newly appointed and confirmed to the commission are Jerris Browne, deputy Police commmissioner; Verne David, business consultant; Valencio Jackson, assistant Finance commissioner; Desmond Maynard, attorney; and Alric Simmonds, Gov. Charles Turnbull's deputy chief of staff, who replaces Walter Challenger as PSC chair.
Browne, David, Jackson and Simmonds are new to the body; Maynard was reappointed to a second three-year term. Also continuing to sit as members, although their terms have expired, are Alecia Wells of St. John and Luther Renee of St. Croix.
PSC members whose terms have expired continue to sit until a successor is confirmed. The terms of immediate past members Challenger and Dora S. Hill, both of St. Thomas, had expired in June 1999. That of Patrick N. Williams of St. Croix expired in March 2000. Wells' term expired last April and Renee's, last July; Maynard's had expired in July 1998. In addition, there had been a St. Croix vacancy on the commission.
In addition to the seven voting members, the PSC has two non-voting members who are named by the Senate president. Sens. Donald "Ducks" Cole and Emmett Hansen currently hold the non-voting positions.
The job of the PSC is to watch over public utilities — local telephone service, water and power, cable television and inter-island ferries.
The first item on the agenda of Friday's meeting is the election of a chair and vice chair, although Simmonds' appointment designated him as chair to succeed Challenger.
Business items range across the spectrum of the commission's areas of responsibility: action on hearing examiner's reports and interconnection agreements involving Innovative Telephone and Blue Sky, Centennial, Sprint and Telecorp; an emergency application from the St. Thomas-St. John ferry operators; cable television and Water and Power Authority rate investigations; and a WAPA/Caribe Waste Technology matter.
The commission has come under fire in recent years for a lack of effective oversight and for allegations of wrongdoing. In nomination hearings earlier this year, Maynard said that the tarnished reputation is deserved and that the new commission must work to regain the public's trust.
Maynard noted at the time that the commission was taking far fewer actions as part of its oversight responsibilities than it had in the past, and he questioned the ethics of some decisions it had taken in rate investigations of Innovative Telephone. He told senators he had missed PSC meetings not for lack of interest, but because he felt he could not ethically take part in some of the proceedings.
Friday's meeting begins at 10 a.m. in the PSC offices in Barbel Plaza on St. Thomas.