For $10 a month, residents aged 14 to 29 will have access to a fully functioning recording booth, high-speed internet and other facilities at the newly launched BeYOUth Centre at the Department of Youth Affairs and Sports.
“We embarked on this journey in 2015, and today is the ninth of April, 2021, and what a journey it has been,” DYAS Director Brenda Lettsome-Tye said during an opening ceremony on Friday morning. “From the onset of the journey, we have solicited the energy and the ideas of the youth, the very people for whom the centre is being established.”
After a few statements, including one from Deputy Premier Dr. Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley, attendees were invited to tour the facilities located on the second floor of the Ward Building.
The centre spans three rooms, the largest of which is a lounge area that includes computers and printers. Another is a fully functioning studio with recording equipment like microphones and camcorders.
A third room, which is still being completed, will hold lockers where members can store their belongings.
Enrollment for the programme began on Monday, Ms. Tye-Lettsome said, adding that the centre will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. from Monday through Friday.
Starting next month, the facility will host workshops on resume writing, professional life, interviewing, job searches, problem solving, conflict resolution, time management, money management, civics, public speaking, health, volunteerism, advocacy, and others.
Desiree Flanders-Harrigan will lead the programmes, and interested youths are encouraged to contact her, Ms. Lettsome-Tye said.
Long time coming
The centre has been in the works since 2015, according to the DYAS director, who said the department first recognised the need for it during a series of community meetings.
In 2016, the centre’s name was coined by Bria Smith, who was later crowned Miss BVI and appointed deputy premier for the Virgin Islands Youth Parliament.
In 2017, furniture was sourced for the space, and internet was secured from Digicel, which sponsored the centre for five years.
But that same year, programme officers in the department either retired or transferred, according to Ms. Lettsome-Tye.
“There was not one left to manage the programme,” she said. “And then the hurricanes happened. But God works in mysterious ways. After the hurricanes of 2017, [DYAS] sustained the least damage of the Ministry of Education and Culture and other departments. We were able to house most of the ministry staff, who relocated from the central administration complex.”
Since then, “every available space” was occupied until February 2020, she said. But after that, the department got to work in securing more sponsors and preparing a space on the second floor of the building.
“Today, we have arrived, but we have just made it to our first leg of a destination,” Ms. Lettsome-Tye said.
Investing in youths
Dr. Wheatley said he was pleased to see the BeYOUth Centre opened after so many years.
“We have to continue calling for more money to be invested — more time, more energy, more volunteerism — because our young people are worth it,” he added. “And the [VI] has some of the most talented young persons I’ve ever seen. God distributes talent all throughout the world, but for some reason there’s a concentration here in the [VI].”
Ms. Lettsome-Tye said the department hopes to open more centres across the territory with the help of sponsors.
Fourteen businesses donated resources to the BeYOUth Centre in Road Town. Donations included an electronic key system, computers, tablets, printers, acoustic panelling for the studio, studio equipment, and more.
“My heart is full: I totally, totally appreciate our sponsors,” she said. “And not only did they give things, they committed to continually working with us as we work towards empowering our young people.”
Sabal’s Law Managing Director Anthea Smith also spoke at the ceremony.
“I urge many more sponsors to come forward, because you know we have to pay back,” she said.
Ms. Smith and Dr. Wheatley both spoke about the increase of crime in the territory in recent months and said that youth centres and other investments in young people will make a positive difference.
“Life is all about choices, and you need those spaces and those environments to help you make those right choices,” Ms. Smith said. “You’re not always gonna make the right one, but with the right encouragement and environment you’ll be able to, and this is one such environment.