By: Ian Brehaut, Contributing Writer
For two and a half hours from 5:30 p.m. until 8 p.m. on Sept. 10, the Multicultural and International Services Office hosted Bahama Strong, a Bahamian dinner to help support the Bahamas.
On Sept. 1, Hurricane Dorian, category five hurricane, hit the Bahamas and destroyed many homes and businesses. As of the writing of this article, 50 people were confirmed dead. This had led many families to be displaced. Following Hurricane Dorian, the staff and the students had quickly planned the event a few days ago to help commemorate those who were affected by Hurricane Dorian.
The Bahama Strong dinner was hosted to help with the efforts to help the Bahamas by hosting a dinner on campus in the dining hall. The dining hall staff, student volunteers, international students, Giana Fernander, Paige Hamacher, and the Multicultural and International Service staff made this event possible.
Bahamian students brought their recipes and volunteered during this event. They prepared their recipes in support of their homeland. The dining hall had purchased the ingredients that were needed to prepare these dishes. Each of the students then prepared their meals before the dining hall had opened. Paige Hamacher, the director of the Multicultural and International Staff Service, really was loved the idea of this event.
“I’m excited about it, and I am really glad that the students were really interested in it,” Hamacher said. In addition, she mentioned how the planning came into place quickly and how planning and teamwork made this happen.
“I would love it to be interactive where it’s going to be the students who are going to be cooking and serving the foods and talking about their cultures,” she said.
When the community gathered, they were also provided with the opportunity to ask questions and socialize with the students who were from the Bahamas and get to know them better.
When the Saint Leo Community gathered in the dining hall, there was a long line of students getting ready to taste the food. In addition, many students were discussing how they can help support the Bahamas and what they can do to commemorate the Bahamas after Hurricane Dorian.
During the event, there was Bahamian music playing in the dining hall, and there were tons of students at this event socializing. When people went up to grab some grub, they were able to talk to the students who were serving the food and talk to those who had made the traditional Bahamian foods. At the event the following foods were available, peas n’ rice, macaroni, cracked conch, potato salad, coleslaw, guava duff, chicken souse, Johnny Cake, and fried chicken wings. At the end of the line, there was a cake in the design of the Bahamian flag to quench one’s sweet tooth. These Bahamian foods allowed students to get the taste of the foods from the Bahamas and allowed students to get the Bahamian experience.
This event ended up bringing large crowds. Giana Fernander, a graduate assistant with the Caribbean Student Association who is from Nassau, was at the event.
“Saint Leo is the home away from home, and it still is,” she said.
Students can show support by making donations to relief bins around campus, by collecting supplies to help provide aid, and by supporting those who were affected by Hurricane Dorian. The Bahama Strong dinner turned out to bring students together and help bring support for the Bahamas.
