Sunshine Insurance (Agents and Brokers) Limited, a leading insurance provider, has reaffirmed its unwavering support for Bahamian culture with a substantial donation of $40,000 to One Family Junkanoo and Community Organization. The generous contribution aims to assist One Family in defraying the costs associated with preparations for the highly anticipated 2023 Boxing Day and 2024 New Year’s Day Junkanoo Parades.
The check presentation ceremony, held on Tuesday, featured Sunshine Insurance President Paul McWeeney personally presenting the donation to One Family’s Chairman, Christina “Muffin” Fernander.
“Junkanoo is the most precious expression of our culture, and we all have a duty and responsibility to ensure that it is promoted adequately, receiving the prominence it deserves,” stated McWeeney during the presentation. “It is a natural fit for our organization, and certainly our Chairman, Sir Franklyn Wilson, is a strong advocate for preserving our cultural heritage. Everything is culture to him.”
This significant contribution of $40,000 signifies an increase in sponsorship from Sunshine Insurance Limited, reflecting the company’s decade-long commitment to supporting One Family. Notably, Sunshine Insurance and Royal Star Assurance sponsored One Family ahead of its victories during the 2022 Boxing Day and 2023 New Year’s Day Junkanoo Parades.
Expressing her heartfelt appreciation for the timely donation, Fernander emphasized the challenges faced by Junkanoo groups due to rising costs of building materials, compounded by global shipping difficulties.
“Sunshine has been a sponsor of ours for over ten years now. To come here and see that the sponsorship has increased means a lot to us, knowing that coming off the heels of Covid-19 and everything, the price of materials to do what we do on Bay Street has increased tremendously and because of the shipping crisis,” said Fernander.
Before the surprise check presentation, Fernander reciprocated the generosity by presenting McWeeney with three prestigious trophies, acknowledging One Family’s recent triumphs.
“On our 30th anniversary, we became the back-to-back champions, claiming the Boxing Day 2022 and the New Year’s Day 2023 parades. During those parades, we were also the music champions, which made us the season champions. Today, we saw it fitting to present Sunshine with these music trophies, which are the first-place trophies for the Boxing Day and New Year’s Day parades,” she said.
One Family Junkanoo Group, a formidable force in the Junkanoo arena, secured numerous accolades, including Best Off- the-Shoulder, Best Shirley Street Performance, Best Overall Performance, Best Music, and Best Overall Costume categories, culminating in the group’s triumph as the overall ‘A’ Division winner with an impressive score of 92.37 points in the New Year’s Day parade. On Boxing Day, One Family clinched awards for Best Choreography, Best Music, Best Off- the-Shoulder, Best Performance, and Best Overall Costume.
Fernander, brimming with confidence, expressed her belief in the group’s capacity to achieve two more back-to-back victories in the upcoming senior parades, proclaiming, “We’re coming, we’re coming again, and we’re going to capture two more for sure.”
Sunshine Insurance’s commitment to preserving Bahamian culture through its support of Junkanoo remains unwavering, strengthening the bonds of unity within the Bahamian community and celebrating the rich cultural heritage of the islands.
Source: Vaughnique Toote
