Caribbean community bands together at debut event to help Dorian victims

Ottawa's Caribbean community joined forces Saturday to showcase their cultures at a brand new event that also offered the chance to raise money for victims of Hurricane Dorian.

One of the strongest Atlantic storms ever recorded, Dorian bulldozed parts of the Bahamas earlier this month, with sustained winds of 295 km/h and flooding that reached about seven meters high in some areas. 

• Ottawa man helping with Dorian relief effort
• Bahamians in Ottawa closely watching Hurricane Dorian's devastation

The death toll currently stands at 56, with 600 people still missing, said Bahamian Prime Minister Hubert Minnis Friday at the U.N. General Assembly.

Homes, schools and hospitals were devastated by the storm. Some people clung to tree branches or perched atop furniture for days in the floodwaters.

Canadians able to help

Flo's Seniors, a health and care program network, and Rhythm Movements Community Association, which works with youth, collected donations Saturday at Ottawa's first-ever Caribbean Culture Days.

The free event at the Ottawa Masonic Centre encouraged Canadians to get engaged in the arts and cultural life of their communities.  

When disaster strikes — no matter where it is — as a people, you try to help.- Joanne Robinson

"We want to make sure that everybody gets assistance. We here in Canada are very lucky and what we're trying to do is just share some of that resources with the people in Bahamas," said Flo's Seniors director Joanne Robinson.

"We have many friends from Bahamas, but when disaster strikes — no matter where it is — as a people you try to help each other."

Michael Brooks said his group, the Rhythm Movements Community Association, is fundraising at all the events it attends and organizes.

"The same way they hurt is the same way we hurt, right? So we make sure that we all come together … and make things happen," he said.

'Unifying everybody'

While Culture Days have been around for about 10 years and have taken place in hundreds of cities and towns throughout the country, this was the first year for a Caribbean-inspired version in Ottawa.

Saturday's event featured booths with information on various Caribbean countries, along with local entertainment, workshops, activities for kids and Caribbean cuisine.

Organizer Judith Headley said she plans to hold the event annually, and hoped it would not only bring together the Caribbean community but also showcase their cultures to the rest of the city.

"It's unifying everybody. It's bringing all the Caribbean islands together," said Headley, whose parents are from Jamaica.

"Each association does their own events, but we haven't really come together. We have a health seminar that we put on every year where we all come together, but other than that, there's nothing."

Tourists needed

While Minnis appealed for world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly to tackle climate change, he also urged travellers to come visit the island and provide a tourist boost as the Bahamas strives to recover from the hurricane.

Dorian was "a physical apocalypse" for parts of the Bahamas, but many parts of the island chain weren't affected, Minnis noted, inviting travelers to visit them.

Tourism is the Bahamas' main industry, and revenue from visitors will "play a vital in role in reconstructing and rebuilding the affected areas," he said.