The Clinton Phipps Sr. Racetrack was home to some fierce weather and fiercer competition Friday when the 2025 Carnival Races brought the Sport of Kings back to St. Thomas.
The 2025 Carnival Races continue with the seven-and-a-half-furlong Clinton Phipps Cup Classic Friday on St. Thomas. (Source photo by Kit MacAvoy)Wicked Queen, right, and Amargura, left, kick off the 2025 Carnival Races with the Special Delivery Cup Challenge Friday at the Clinton Phipps Sr. Racetrack on St. Thomas. (Source photo by Kit MacAvoy)
Floki’s Flight, from Most Wanted Stables, took this year’s Governor’s Cup after winning out against four other racehorses, including defending champion Ghostinyou from the British Virgin Islands. This race came with a $30,000 purse.
Floki’s Flight, right, of Most Wanted Stables, leads the pack during the first lap of the Governor’s Cup Friday at the Clinton Phipps Sr. Racetrack on St. Thomas. (Source photo by Kit MacAvoy)Governor’s Cup winner Floki’s Flight breaks away from the pack — including defending champion Ghostinyou — Friday at the Clinton Phipps Sr. Racetrack on St. Thomas. (Source photo by Kit MacAvoy)
That win followed victories by: Barrio San Jose in the Enrique “Ricky” Ashby and V.I. Lottery Invitational Cup; Relentless in the Bonnie Bonita Cup Classic; First Degree in the Pickle Whip Handicap Cup; Highly Noted in the Clinton Phipps Cup Classic; and Wicked Queen in the Special Delivery Cup Challenge. The seventh and final race of the day — the 1 and 1/16-mile Albert Boyzie Benjamin Cup and its $20,000 purse went to Guillaume.
Clinton Phipps Cup Classic winner Highly Noted takes a moment in the winner’s circle during the 2025 Carnival Races Friday on St. Thomas. (Source photo by Kit MacAvoy)
Friday’s rain showers also gave race fans an opportunity to see how the newly-reopened track surface held up under inclement weather.
“Actually, we don’t control the rain,” St. Thomas/St. John Horse Racing Commissioner Chair Hugo Hodge Jr. noted wryly. “But I love how the surface is reacting to the rain — it’s great.”
Sporadic rains don’t stop the action during the 2025 Carnival Races Friday at the Clinton Phipps Sr. Racetrack on St. Thomas. (Source photo by Kit MacAvoy)
The commission announced a temporary closure of the track in February amid an investigation into track conditions. That commission launched that investigation the previous month after a disastrous December race day that led three racehorses to be euthanized. In a letter it wrote to the V.I. Sports, Parks and Recreation Department at the time, the commission said, “[s]everal factors have been identified that may have contributed to the events, including pre-existing injuries, the age and overall health of the horses, the ease and availability of medication used by owners, and the condition of the racing surface.”
Crowdmembers cheer from a full grandstand during the 2025 Carnival Races Friday at the Clinton Phipps Sr. Racetrack on St. Thomas. (Source photo by Kit MacAvoy)
Shortly before announcing the track’s reopening last month, the commission heard that the track was determined to be up to code and not responsible for the racehorse’s deaths.
“We wanted to get about a month to train before the race day,” Hodge said. “So we had a deadline of the second of April, which we got it open that day. So that was … key for us — to make sure that everybody had a month to train — and then we also had to do some decisions as far as rules are concerned.”
Hodge acknowledged that some horses on St. Thomas were unable to train while the track was closed for maintenance and that some people wanted to bring their horses to the island in time to qualify for the Governor’s Cup, which requires that they be on island for 30 days ahead of the race.
“It was tough,” he said, “but we found a happy medium.”
Gov. Albert Bryan Jr., right, takes in the 2025 Governor’s Cup Friday on St. Thomas. (Source photo by Kit MacAvoy)
Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. said he felt good about keeping the Governor’s Cup in the hands of U.S. Virgin Islanders.
Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. hands out the 2025 Governor’s Cup to winner Floki’s Flight from Most Wanted Stables. (Source photo by Kit MacAvoy)
“Last year we gave it up to the BVI. I love Natalio [Wheatley] — the premier — and company, but I was glad to retain it here,” he said. “And the track looks good. We did put a lot of work in over the last month or two trying to get the surface ready, and we’re ready to get St. Croix together as well.”
A company is protesting the V.I. Public Finance Authority’s recent award of a $378.5 million contract for design-build services on St. Croix. (Shutterstock image)
Construction company Kiewit is protesting the V.I. Public Finance Authority’s recent decision to award up to $378,481,860 to Persons Services Corp. for design-build services on St. Croix, noting that their own bid put pre-construction costs at $143 million less than the amount awarded to Persons.
“Over the past several weeks, Kiewit has become increasingly concerned about VIODR’s selection and award for this Project,” a company representative wrote in an April 22 letter viewed by the Source. “These concerns include, but are not limited to, the bonding capacity of other proposers, VIODR not following or adhering to the RFP scoring and selection criteria, and awarding a contract that is not compliant with the requirements of the RFP.”
Kiewit claimed the government solicited bids “for what is clearly a multi-billion-dollar project to reconstruct the Territory’s critical water, wastewater, electrical utilities and associated roadways.”
“However,” the company continued, “the award being considered by the PFA Board is for a completely different and much smaller scope of work and a cost that is inconsistent with the bid sheet provided with the RFP.”
Kiewit argued that awarding such a contract wasn’t just unfair — it could run afoul of federal procurement requirements.
“Doing so may very well jeopardize the federal funding for hurricane recovery, which is critically needed to restore the Territory’s dilapidated infrastructure,” according to the letter.
The protest marks at least the second time a company has questioned the V.I. Public Finance Authority and Disaster Recovery Office’s procurement practices since the Virgin Islands Government began issuing multimillion-dollar procurement “bundles” under its Rebuild USVI initiative.
Construction firm Hill International sued the government in September after the PFA awarded a three-year, $137 million contract to manage the territory’s disaster recovery effort. Hill’s bid came in at just under $30.3 million, a disparity “so great as to make the award to [rival bidder] CH2M arbitrary and capricious,” according to the complaint.
A federal magistrate judge recommended dismissing Hill’s claims, writing in March that he was unconvinced by Hill’s argument that the award was improper because it went through the PFA and not the government’s Property and Procurement Department.
“In sum, it is purely speculative whether the award to CH2M instead of Hill … can be fairly traced to PFA, and not [Property and Procurement], conducting the procurement,” U.S. Magistrate Judge G. Alan Teague wrote, adding that Hill was simultaneously arguing that the PFA lacked statutory authority to award the contract and that the PFA should have awarded the contract to Hill because its bid price was lower.
Hill objected to the judge’s report and recommendations in April, arguing that it “is well-accepted that a plaintiff is permitted to plead alternative theories of liability and relief that are inconsistent with one another.”
“Hill has challenged this procurement decision on four different grounds, and its prayer for relief can include relief that is applicable to one ground but not another,” the company’s attorneys wrote.
Michael Pese (left) and other Whittier, Alaska, residents born in American Samoa face felony charges for allegedly illegally voting. Neil Weare (second from the right) and other supporters said rules denying American Samoans full citizenship are unconstitutional. (Screenshot from Microsoft Teams meeting)
Alaskan officials arraigned 10 people born in American Samoa with felony perjury, voter misconduct, and related charges Friday for allegedly participating in local elections, a move rights advocates said puts Virgin Islanders and other U.S. territorial residents’ citizenship in jeopardy.
The 10 accused live in Whittier, Alaska, where they were on the official voter rolls, according to court records, but Alaska only allows U.S. citizens to vote in any election — federal, state, county, or municipal. Although part of the United States, the federal government considers people born in American Samoa “U.S. nationals” but not full citizens.
Prosecutors said it didn’t matter if the 10 were registered to vote. They knew or should have known that, as non-U.S. citizens, it was wrong for them to register, vote, or run for office in Alaska, according to court records.
One of the accused, firefighter Michael Pese, allegedly filled out a Department of Motor Vehicles form in 2022 on which he indicated he knew he was a non-citizen U.S. national, according to court records. “The defendant told investigators that he had voted in state and local elections but never in a federal election,” prosecutors said in charging documents.
Authorities started investigating Pese and the others after another American Samoan, Wittier firefighter Tupe Smith, won election to a local school board, according to media reports in Alaska. Investigators looking into her case were soon tipped off that other American Samoans had voted.
“On December 20, 2023, following the recent filing of a criminal case involving alleged voter misconduct that occurred in Whittier, the Division of Elections received an anonymous complaint that alleged that ‘a large family group, many of whom were not U.S. Citizens,’ had also registered to vote and had voted in a recent election. The anonymous complainant mentioned one person by name, Mark Pese, who the complainant alleged had admitted he was not a U.S. Citizen but had nevertheless voted in the most recent municipal election. The complainant requested that the Division of Elections look into this alleged legal voting,” prosecutors said in court records.
Like many states, DMV and other government forms are designed to automatically enroll residents as voters. Receiving notices to vote, Pese and others made good-faith assumptions they were allowed to participate, said attorneys from the Washington D.C.-based voting rights advocacy group Right to Democracy.
Neil Weare, Right to Democracy co-founder, said a two-tiered system for people born in the United States was a clear violation of the Constitution, which guarantees birthright citizenship. If citizenship for people born in the five U.S. territories was only granted by an act of Congress, a capricious piece of legislation could end U.S. citizenship for millions.
“The federal government’s position has been over the last decade that we’ve been working on these issues that there is no right to citizenship for people born in U.S. territories, that it’s a switch that Congress can turn on and off,” Weare said on a video call from Alaska. “It’s the federal government’s position that if Congress chooses to stop recognizing some of its citizens tomorrow, it can do so.”
“In this day and age we don’t know what lies ahead in terms of issues of citizenship and immigration in the United States and without having that constitutional grounding and bulwark for birthright citizenship, really the citizenship of people born in any of the U.S. territories remains at risk,” Weare said.
Weare said it was unclear if Alaskan authorities would have to prove the defendants knowingly violated the law. He was certain, however, that prosecutors would have to prove American Samoans were not U.S. citizens — something Weare said would not be possible given that the Constitution’s 14th Amendment guarantees birthright citizenship.
Either way, Pese said the charges have shaken his faith in what he considered his home.
“All I want is to give back to my community. I love my community,” Pese said Friday. “Now, with this, it feels like everything we give to our community, they threw it back in our face. After everything is done, I don’t know if I want to stay in Whittier. I don’t feel welcome.”
Worse, Pese said, worry about the case has adversely affected his mother’s health.
“Fear is the biggest thing impacting me and my family right now,” he said.
The main beach at Caneel Bay on St. John reopened to the public in August after being closed since 2017. (Source photo by Amy H. Roberts)
A panel of Third Circuit Appeals Court judges heard oral arguments Friday in EHI Acquisition’s appeal of a 2024 V.I. District Court ruling granting ownership of St. John’s Caneel Bay Resort and its improvements to the National Park Service. As with the lower court case, the meaning of the words “to convey an offer” factored heavily in the hourlong discussion.
At issue is whether the resort on 150 acres of prime St. John beachfront real estate belongs to EHI Acquisitions, which had managed the property since 2004 under an agreement known as a Retained Use Estate, or to the federal government after the RUE expired Sept. 30, 2023.
The RUE was created in 1983 by Laurance Rockefeller, who donated some 5,000 acres of St. John land to the National Park Service but reserved the Caneel Bay property for the Jackson Hole Preserve, the family’s land trust. Under the agreement, the preserved land was transferred to the NPS with the understanding the RUE — also known as the 1983 Indenture — would remain in place for 40 years. The resort has been managed by different entities since then, the latest being EHI Acquisitions, an affiliate of CBI Acquisitions.
The question in the District Court case, and that the appeals court pondered Friday, is whether language in the RUE obligated the federal government to pay EHI for its improvements to the property over the years; whether it reverted to EHI because the Interior Department rejected its 2019 offer to relinquish the RUE for $70 million after the resort was destroyed by hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017; or whether it belongs to the NPS free and clear.
Third Circuit Judge Cheryl Ann Krause, who was appointed to the case in December 2023 after V.I. District Court Chief Judge Robert Molloy was removed without explanation, ruled last April that the intent of the indenture was clear: The property and its improvements were to be given back to the government at the expiration of the RUE for a nominal consideration of $1.
“Examining the plain language of Paragraph eight in the context of the whole Indenture, we are convinced that this meaning was entirely philanthropic. The dispute between EHIA and the United States hinges on the meaning of the word ‘offer’ as it is used in the Indenture,” she wrote.
“It does not say that the Grantor shall make ‘an offer to convey for value’ or ‘an offer to sell.’ Indeed, commercial language like ‘bargain’ or ‘fair market value’ is conspicuously omitted from the Indenture. When parties use clear and unambiguous terms, we will not insert additional terms that are contrary to the parties’ plain meaning,” Krause stated. “Thus, here, the plain language of Paragraph eight indicates that the parties did not intend to make the improvements’ transfer contingent on payment.”
EHI appealed the decision to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals last July and on Friday its attorney Julien Adams argued before the panel of three judges sitting on St. Croix that the RUE did indeed set commercial terms “to address how to run this for-profit entity and is silent on what would happen to the improvements” when it ended.
“The context is not philanthropic. The context is commercial” and “an offer to convey” under normal contract terms means a bargain for consideration, Adams said. Otherwise, the RUE would have included words such as “gift,” he said.
Appearing for the government, V.I. Acting U.S. Attorney Adam Sleeper argued that in the context of the entire document, the intent of the RUE was for the land and its improvements to revert to the NPS without charge when the 40-year term ended.
“At every step in this contract, steps were taken to ensure that the United States did not bear the cost for these improvements. If we expand out even further, we see the philanthropic intent that Judge Krause emphasized. We see that this says it’s in way of a gift, that there is one dollar of consideration. We see the intent that it be part of the property, that it composes the park,” said Sleeper. “At every step, there’s this contemplation of a philanthropic agreement.”
Not in dispute by either side on Friday was the fact that the RUE was not particularly well written, with Judge Theodore A. McKee calling it “confusing” and “not artfully drafted.”
“My argument will not be that this is an artfully drafted contract,” Sleeper replied.
“Let’s assume hypothetically that we find the contract is not clear. What do we do and what do we make of these other documents that have been referenced?” McKee asked, referring to extrinsic evidence — letters from Rockefeller about his plans, a press release announcing the RUE, among others — that the government says supports a transfer free and clear, and that EHI argues should have no bearing on the case.
“When you look at the terms of the contract as a whole … [it] is fundamentally a philanthropic document. What was contemplated here was a donation of land, followed by the transfer of improvements after enough time had passed for those improvements to be built so they could be used for the Park Service. It is not, as the plaintiff advances here, a commercial document seeking to provide the greatest incentive to a for-profit entity to maintain the [RUE] as long as possible and extract as much value as possible from the property. That is not what was contemplated here,” said Sleeper.
Adams, however, argued that the “parties are bound by the ordinary meaning of the words they put in the document. In any other scenario, I would say this is a straightforward application of well-established rules of contract interpretation,” he said.
Adams also said that should it regain ownership of the resort, EHI has pledged that the property “will always be in the possession of the people of the Virgin Islands,” referring to public statements by Caneel Bay director of marketing Patrick Kidd when the company filed suit in June 2022 that EHI would create a charitable trust for the benefit of the people of St. John and the USVI and donate the resort property to the trust.
“I say this for a reason. I’ve been doing this for 30 years. I practice in the United States. I practice in California. I am what is known as a child of the soil. I was born and raised here. This is the very first time I’ve ever spoken to a panel in an appellate court, and I appreciate the opportunity to come home and talk to your honors and have you entertain my argument,” Adams said.
The judges — McKee, L. Felipe Restrepo and Arianna J. Freeman — will take the arguments under consideration and issue a ruling at a future date.
Friends of Virgin Islands National Park will be holding the Practice Swim for Joe Kessler’s Beach To Beach Power Swim on Sunday, May 4, 2025.The Practice Swim will start at 8:00am on Maho Bay beach with participants swimming to Cinnamon Bay beach.Registration for the practice swim is from 7:15am to 7:45am on Maho Bay beach near the dinghy channel. Parking at Maho is limited so participants are encouraged to car pool or use safari buses.
Participants in the Practice Swim do not need to be registered to swim in the 22nd Joe Kessler’s Beach To Beach Power Swim which takes place on Sunday, May 25.
Every Memorial Day weekend, hundreds of swimmers take to the azure waters of Virgin Islands National Park on St. John to raise funds for kids’ swim programs, marine conservation, education outreach and more! Participants choose their distance starting at Maho Bay beach and swimming to Cinnamon Bay, Trunk Bay, or, the full 3.5 miles, to Hawksnest Bay.
Registration for the Power Swim has reached capacity so all new registrants will go onto a waiting list. Registration will close on Wednesday, May 21. Registration for the event can be found on the Friends of Virgin Islands National Park’s website at www.friendsvinp.org.
Friends of Virgin Islands National Park is a non-profit organization and is the official philanthropic partner of Virgin Islands National Park. Since 1988, the Friends has worked to support the National Park Service in assuring the Park’s unique terrestrial and marine resources are protected, the Virgin Islands’ cultural treasures in the Park are preserved, and visitors and community are connected to their Park through volunteerism, education and advocacy. For more information on their programs and work, visit www.friendsvinp.org.
I’m part of Generation X, born in that quiet space between the Boomers and Millennials — those of us who learned early how to be self-reliant, how to adapt without much applause. Now, we’re facing perhaps our most sacred “after-school chore: caring for our parents as they journey into their final chapters. Both of mine are now over 90 years old. Here on St. Croix, in the U.S. Virgin Islands, caregiving has become not just a part of my siblings’ and my lives — it is our life.
The numbers tell one story. Over the past decade, costs for eldercare in the United States have soared. In-home care rose nearly 70 percent, with home health aides now averaging $34 an hour. Assisted living costs average around $71,000 annually. Nursing home care, almost unthinkably, costs nearly $128,000 annually.
In the U.S. Virgin Islands, costs are slightly lower — $3,000 to $5,000 monthly — but our options are severely limited. Specialized facilities for conditions like Alzheimer’s and dementia are nearly nonexistent. Families are left making painful decisions, sometimes sending loved ones off-island, separating them from the culture and community that defined their lives.
We face these choices against harsh realities: a 22.8 percent poverty rate, significantly above the national average, and a cost of living nearly 59 percent higher than the U.S. mainland. The burden on Gen X caregivers here is especially acute. Demographically, the USVI is experiencing a shrinking population, decreasing from 108,579 in 2000 to 84,905 in 2024 — a 21.8 percent decline. However, the proportion of residents aged 65 and older has surged, now comprising 22.7 percent of the population, up from 8.4 percent in 2000. Every grocery bill, every utility payment, is a stark reminder of the financial pressures we live under, leaving fewer resources to support aging parents.
The recent federal funding cuts, by the Trump administration, have only deepened these wounds. Critical programs such as Meals on Wheels are being reduced, depriving seniors of essential nutrition and human connection. Alzheimer’s research centers, vital for advancing care, face significant budget reductions. Resources for family caregivers are shrinking precisely when we need them most, leaving many of us isolated and overwhelmed.
But beyond the numbers lies something deeper — it’s the feeling when you realize your parents, once your protectors, now need your protection. It’s the quiet, relentless ache in the heart, seen in my sister’s eyes. It’s grieving even while they’re still here. It’s loving them through the moments they forget.
Studies also confirm what my brother and I feel: caregiving brings depression, anxiety, sleeplessness, and exhaustion. And yet—there are moments of grace. Moments when my mother’s smile, a touch, or a fleeting glance brings the past rushing back. Those moments fuel each of us.
We are not helpless. Programs like the National Family Caregiver Support Program can offer training and respite to lighten the load. The Lifespan Respite Care Program can give us moments to breathe. The CMS GUIDE Model can build a healthcare system that supports — not overwhelms — families like mine.
We need policymakers, healthcare leaders, and communities to recognize caregiving as a public, not just a private, responsibility. Because love alone should not have to carry this weight. We must advocate for local implementation and expansion of proven national programs, pushing our leaders to prioritize eldercare support.
Your parents, my mom and dad too, deserve dignity in their twilight.
Brad Nugent is a government policy and media advisor who previously served as Assistant Commissioner of Tourism for the USVI and Director of Communications for the Virgin Islands Legislature.
It’s with sadness and heavy hearts, the family announces the passing of Berecia L. Innis-Gumbs also known as “Bea” who passed away on Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Berecia was born on St. Thomas, Virgin Islands on December 21, 1945 to the late Ivanna Canton-Innis and Edwardo L. Innis, Jr. Bea was a dedicated employee of the Virgin Islands Lottery for over 30 years before retiring in 2009.
Berecia L. Innis-Gumbs
Berecia survived by her son, Alvin “Bello” Richards; daughter, Angela Wade-Smith; sisters, Lorraine Branford and Beryl Innis; brother, Randolph “Askia” Innis, Sr.; grandchildren, April Milliner, Jahmal, Jareem, Jakeema, and Caprisha Richards, Adante Martin, and Adajah George; great grand-children, Aniya Lincoln and Ja’Reya “Bella” Richards; aunts, Hortense Innis, Lillian Greaux, Mae Odlum, Clarice Canton-O’Connor and Harriett Canton; uncle, Alvin Canton; nieces, Debra “Debbie” Williams, Nilka Branford, Princess and Tova Innis; nephews, Randolph “Lil Randy” Innis, Jr., Jermaine Branford, Askia, Wachumbee, Jason, Askiban, Zedekiah, and Quon-Z Innis; son in-law, Roylando Smith, Sr.; close friends, Norma Gumbs, Leonard A. Smalls, Jr., Josephine “Josie” Henley, Bernice Fredricks, Ethlyn Saunders, Jean Howard, Corralie Emmanuel, and Mrs. Rose Dawson.
Berecia also survived by many other relatives and friends too numerous to mention.
Tributes and pictures can be sent to bereciagumbstributes@gmail.com by May 14.
Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend the first viewing on Thursday, May 29, at 4-6pm at Turnbull’s Funeral Home. Funeral services will be held on Friday, May 30, 2025, at St. Andrews Episcopal Church. A second viewing will begin at 9 a.m. followed by the service at 10am. Interment will follow at Western Cemetery #1.
Michael Edwin Trueblood passed away peacefully on April 29, 2025, in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, just three days after celebrating his 74th birthday. Born on April 26, 1951, to Edwin and Doris Trueblood, Michael lived a vibrant and full life guided by curiosity, courage, and a deep appreciation for the journey.
Michael Edwin Trueblood
A graduate of Kansas State University, Michael was a passionate swimmer and an adventurous traveler who preferred roads less traveled. His spirit of exploration was matched only by his kindness, humor, and wisdom—qualities that touched everyone fortunate enough to know him.
Michael was a husband to Dara C. Trueblood, and a loving father to his children: Maily M. Trueblood, Ren D. Trueblood, and Clayton J. Trueblood, as well as daughter-in-law Kelsey L. Trueblood. He was a caring brother to the late Linda Hubbard and to his surviving sister, Marsha Pomes. He also leaves behind dear friends Laura Schrader, Nikki Newman, and Debby Armstrong.
Michael often said he was unafraid of the final journey, only sorry for the loved ones he had to leave behind. He encouraged everyone to live life according to their own rules—a philosophy he embodied every day. His legacy is one of authenticity, love, and the unwavering belief in living life fully.
In lieu of flowers, the family encourages those who knew him to honor his memory by embracing adventure and living with purpose or donating to the St. Croix Animal Welfare Center.
With heavy hearts, we announce the passing of Celestin Raymond Clovis, who departed this life on April 16, 2025, at the age of 81.
Celestin Raymond Clovis
Born on April 11, 1944, Celestin was a man known for his resilience, quiet strength, and unwavering love for his family. He was predeceased by his beloved wife Adelaide Gustave-Clovis, his parents Jeanne Charlamagne and Raymond Clovis, and his brothers Patrick Clovis and Norbert Clovis.
Celestin leaves behind a cherished legacy in his daughters Fay Fletcher, and adopted daughters Regina Clovis and Marella Clovis. His love continues through his grandchildren, too numerous to mention, each of whom held a special place in his heart.
He is also survived by his loving sisters Mary Henry, Agnes Maynard, and Francess Clovis. Celestin’s memory lives on in the hearts of his nieces, especially Veronica Llanos, who served as both caregiver and closest confidante, along with many others who were dear to him. He is also remembered fondly by his nephews, including Michael Henry, and numerous others who enriched his life.
Celestin’s presence was a source of strength and comfort to those around him. Whether through his quiet guidance, warm humor, or deep devotion to family, he left a mark that will not be forgotten.
A funeral service will be held on May 16, at the St. Anne’s Catholic Church, viewing at 9 a.m. and service at 10 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, the family encourages acts of kindness and remembrance in his honor.
He now rests in eternal peace, reunited with those who went before him, and forever remembered by those who remain.
Mrs. Henrietta Delcina Sandy was born July 9, 1921, in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago on the Island of Tobago. She is the second of eight siblings. At an early age Mrs. Sandy moved to Trinidad where she later met and married her husband, the late Francis W. Sandy (deceased) who moved to St. Croix, where they resided for over 60 years. She later moved to North Carolina in Chinquapin where she lived for the past eight years until her passing. Serving the Lord was truly her passion.
Henrietta Delcina Sandy
Mrs. Henrietta Delcina Sandy, of Hannah’s Rest, Frederiksted, was also preceded in death by her mother, Anna Cupid; father, Henry Cupid; sons, Anthony Richards, David Sandy; grandchildren, Nichole Hazel-Ann Baptiste.
She is survived by her daughters, Joycelyn Norgriff of Trinidad, Sharon Bennett of North Carolina, Helen Hector; son, Curtis Sandy; grandchildren, Ancil James, Natasha Dillon, Darrel Dillon, Kareem Richards, Anthony Shane Richards; Wendy Richards, Keith Richards, Ann Marie Richards, Jason Norgriff, Julius Norgriff, Johann Norgriff; Naeema Sandy-Best (husband Franklin); Roberto Sandy; Leo Sandy; Tashia Bennett, Kenneth Bennett, Jr. (wife, Yolander), Jamal McNeill; Kirk Kendall Grant, Kimberly Hector, (husband Jeremiah), Kelcia Hector; sister, Mrs. Ruth Francois of Trinidad; nieces and nephews too numerous to mention; sons-in-law, Ernest Norgriff of Trinidad, Arthur S. Hector, Sr.; brothers-in-law, Vernon Sandy of Trinidad; cousins and other relatives as well as special friends too numerous to mention.
Funeral service will be held on May 14 at St. Patrick Catholic Church. Viewing will begin at 9:30 am with service at 10:30 am. Interment will follow at Frederiksted Cemetery.
Professional services entrusted to James Memorial Funeral Home, Inc.
Participants in the Practice Swim do not need to be registered to swim in the 22nd Joe Kessler’s Beach To Beach Power Swim which takes place on Sunday, May 25.
