On Thursday the team completed its work in Governor’s Harbor and we shifted to St. Agnes parish 45 minutes north in Gregory Town. Gregory Town has 250 people and is built around a little harbor. Fishing is a major occupation with a wide variety of fish and a specialty shellfish called conch. The rules for fishing in Bahamian waters protect the environment and diversity. Fishermen cannot use spear guns or scuba gear. Conch are found at a depth of about 30 feet and are a main food source. Other fish are found close to shore along the caves in the limestone and as far as 30 or 45 minutes away from the shore. Catch this time of year is slow because of the heat and includes grouper, mahi mahi, and wahoo.
The day started at 6:45 am in order to get the work done in time to return to Governor’s Harbor for a mid-afternoon break and then a community fish fry.
One of our team had visited Gregory Town for the food distribution and had met Sean who was to guide us in our work this day. St. Agnes church sits right on the harbor in the oldest part of town. The walls of the church are about two feet thick and built of limestone blocks covered by cement. The church has a total of 16 pews – 7 to a side. Our job for the day was to sand and stain 7 of the pews under Sean’s tutelage and supervision.
Friday was hot and humid. No cloud cover, no shade and only a tiny breeze. We had one electric finish sander which was used by Chris, Bailey or Camella. The girls were taught to use sand paper. Rachael said that sanding was really hard. “We had to be really thorough. We had to prepare for the stain and if we didn’t do it properly then the stain wouldn’t take.”
The girls teamed up on each pew and then sanded the kneelers. Sanding the seven pews took about an hour. The stain was almost black. Sara said that Sean was very particular about both the sanding and how the stain was applied. The girls had to carefully brush the stain on smooth and straight so it looked like wood and covered completely.
The team finished the sanding and stained five of the pews before lunch. The lunch break was short but blessedly in the shade on a porch of one of the oldest homes – typical colonial architecture that we are getting to recognize. We took a short break to a souvenir shop that is stoked full with locally made handicrafts, lotions, clothing, jams, and jewelry.
After lunch it started to rain so we had to move all the benches across the tiny harbor to large open air gazebo that is used for community festivals. Little flags in Bahamian national colors waver in the wind. The stain was really messy – oil based and hard to get off. The girls were told to use paint thinner to clean up.
The bus arrived at 2pm to take us back to Governor’s Harbor. We were finishing the final bench, cleaning up the grounds, and cleaning ourselves up when there was a loud crash and a scream. Claire had jarred a sink loose from the wall in the men’s room when she was cleaning her legs. The porcelain sink shattered, Claire lost her balance, fell and cut her right arm and hand. There was a lot of blood so it was really scary. Chris responded immediately and wrapped her arm in a t-shirt, Bailey tied a bandana tightly around the lower arm. Sean and Camella contacted the government medical clinic to find out where to take Claire. We were told to take her to Hatchett Bay, about 15 minutes to the south so Camella drove and Claire was accompanied by Chris, Bailey and Faith. The rest of us collected all our stuff and piled into our bus to follow. On the bus we prayed, sang and prepared to support Faith and Claire.
We were sent to the Hatchett Bay clinic because the staff nurse has extensive emergency room experience. The Holy Spirit has been so present on this trip. A spirit of resilience and service and unity. And now protection!! Amazingly, despite numerous lacerations that required stitches, no arteries or tendons were impacted so the nurse was able to stitch Claire up on site. Faith, Chris and Bailey stayed with Claire. Faith is an amazing older sister – she is caring and supportive and most of all kept her cool! Chris provided a warm calm presence for Claire for the two hours it took the nurse to put in 29 stitches in her fingers and arm. Claire trusted. She was hurting and scared but trusted the medical team and Chris to support her. The doctor, in Governor’s Harbor, examined the wounds and stitches and provided prescriptions for pain and antibiotics.
While the nurse was helping Claire, Nancy and Camella took the remainder of the team for ice cream. Eleuthera is an extended and connected island community. Camella’s mom, three aunts, uncles and cousins live in Hatchett Bay. Camella drove us to her cousin’s house, then to a tiny local store for a carton of Oreo Cookie ice cream, bowls and spoons. We ate our ice cream at a beautiful new park and dock in the bay on the Atlantic side.
Alexis said that when we walked out to the dock it was so peaceful, the water was calm, all the trees. When the rain began you could see all the drops and you could look at the ripples. A small school of fish swam by. We met three young men on the dock. At first they were a bit reluctant to talk to us but under Nancy’s determined questioning they told us that they liked Hatchett Bay because it is quiet, the liked the people and weren’t really strict on crime. The boys went to high school one hour south in Palmetto Point. Two were still in school and one had graduated. They told us that Gregory Town is on the Caribbean side and is a fishing town, Hatchett Bay on the Atlantic focuses on agriculture. The town is surrounded by small farms that grow pineapple, mangoes, onions, garlic and other vegetables.
After the doctor we returned to Governor’s Harbor to get ready for the community fish fry. The fish fry stand is located across the street from St. Patrick’s. When we arrived the music was playing, and the stand was rocking. The menu was a choice of pork, chicken or fish, accompanied by peas and rice and your choice of macaroni and cheese, potato salad or coleslaw. In other words, the top choices of local cuisine. The leadership of St. Patrick’s church including Sanda and Arthur, the senior warden, organize, cook and run the fish fry. The fish fry is attended by locals and tourists. We ran into a group of three Kuwaiti students from Boise State who had arrived on the same plane with us last Monday. They were scuba diving and snorkeling their way around the island. Food was great. Music rocked. It poured down rain. The party moved inside the food stand. Fr. Lance and Nancy went inside with several other team members.
Fr. Lance began serving alongside St. Patrick’s team. Rain lasted about 45 minutes. And the party resumed in the street. Many of the team danced in relief for the Lord’s protection and celebration of our mission. The fish fry happens every Friday night!! Ariana said that the fish fry was really fun looking at all the people and seeing the variety of local people mixed with the tourists many of whom we had seen at the pool and elsewhere. She ate the barbequed chicken and macaroni and cheese – food was delicious.
Love your blog. Your writing is very clear and and so full of information!
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