In celebration of Graceway Supermarket’s 20 year anniversary, Graceway Communities began the “Staying Blue Campaign” with the initiative to support our environment through reuse and recycle. Under that program, our customers were rewarded for using reusable shopping bags by being given a token which they could then use to vote towards what they would like Graceway Communities to re-develop or service within the Turks and Caicos Community. A value was put on each token, the number of votes resulted in the amount of money that Graceway Communities donated to that program or service.
The SNAP Center is the first project under Graceway Communities that our customers voted to win overwhelmingly. The planning of this project began in 2019, but COVID faced Graceway with some difficulties which delayed development. In the meantime, Graceway Communities has donated over $25,000 to various under-served projects and those in the community who are struggling amidst the pandemic.
In October 2020, after some delay from COVID-19, Graceway Communities was finally able to hold a Ground Breaking Ceremony to commence the SNAP Center Playground Restoration Project.
In attendance was Deputy Permanent Secretary- Mrs. Tamara Howell-Robinson, Director of Sports- Mr. Jarette Forbes, Senior Sports Officer- Mr. Alvin Parker, President of the Commonwealth Games Association- Godfrey Been, Minister of Public Works- Mr. Roger Harvey, along with, students and faculty of the SNAP Center, and, Graceway Community members.
Remarks were made by Graceway Communities members, Edith Cox, Matthew Brace and Jeffrey Luker, on how this fantastic project came about and what was to come of this. Plans were presented for the public to view, kindly provided by Windward Development. Remarks were also made by Mr. Jarette Forbes, Mr. Alvin Parker and Mr. Godfrey Been on the impact and how the specific designs and works of this project will benefit the students and community.
A SNAP Center student did the honors of breaking ground by digging the ceremonial shovel into the ground for the first time.
Time for development, construction and earth works took some time with some slight bumps but with Jeffrey Luker as the project and construction manager- things ran as smoothly as possible.
This project was made possible with the help of affiliates who donated their time and services at the lowest cost possible. A very big thank you to Graceway Supermarkets for donating the maintenance and landscaping team to help clean up the area, help with event set up and take downs and equipment assembly. Thank you to Mark Tenn and Courtney Crush for providing asphalt at cost and equipment for free, Trevor Musgrove from T-Holdings Ltd. for providing labour at cost for install of equipment and fencing, Andrew Junn from Robinsons Survey for donating survey works, Peter Court and Kyle Smith from Windward Development for donating design and earth works coordination, and, Jay Morris from Caribbean Dredging for donating trucking.
After many months of long, hard work, we are proud to announce the completion of the SNAP Center Playground! The new playground comes fully equipped with a running track, astro-turf area for sports, shaded picnic benches and play areas, sand pits, and for surrounding the track- Graceway Communities and SNAP Center came together in deciding which playground equipment was best suited for the students and gave them the most benefit, this took into consideration sensory features, factors and development- some features were even built in-house!
The Grand Opening of the playground was a major success, with the SNAP Center students and teachers, the Graceway Community team, Director of Graceway Supermarkets- Chris Phillips, Deputy Governor Anya Williams, along with many other ministers being in attendance.
Remarks were made by Hon. Rachel Taylor, Hon. Jay Saunders, Hon. Sammy Been and H.E Anya Williams in regards to the importance and the impact this project will have on the students of the SNAP Center, as well as thanking Graceway Communities and Graceway Supermarkets for their continuous community and charitable work.
Special thanks were given to Jeffrey Luker of Graceway Supermarkets, who has gone above and beyond in managing and overseeing this project. Special thanks also goes to local businesses that assisted in this development: Windward Development assisting in design and earth works coordination, Robinsons Survey assisting in survey works, T-Holdings Ltd. provided labor at cost for installation of equipment and fencing, Caribbean Dredging for donating trucking services, and, Herzog for providing asphalt at cost and equipment for free!
The SNAP Center presented Graceway Communities with a plaque as a token of appreciation, along with a song performed by the students about how much they love their new playground and how thankful they were. Reverend Jupp of St. Monica's Anglican Church completed the blessing and dedication of the playground, followed by the cutting of the ribbon by students, marking the official opening of the playground.
Graceway Communities recognizes the importance of child development and education, and the long- term impact it has on our community. We are proud that this new development will assist in the development for kids with special needs by creating a fun, safe and judgement-free environment, allowing them to express themselves and explore their capabilities and opportunities just as any other child.
We are proud that this project has been chosen by our valued customers and people of the Turks and Caicos, and proud that this project has brought together the community in delivering this new playground to the children of the SNAP Center.
