Aficia Charles, a member of the Picton Folk Performing Co.
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TriniView.com Reporters
Recorded: March 06, 2009
Posted: March 10, 2009
AFISIA CHARLES: I have been a member of the Picton Folk Performing Company for four years now. This group has been like a family to me and they have helped me to go further in my dancing. My blood family didn't approve of me being here. When I came into this group they started to treat me differently and sometimes this group makes me feel like they are my only family because I cannot depend on them at home. Right now, I am going up for CXC Exams and a little boy is going up for Common Entrance this year. I needed some tutoring so Mr. Stephen Singh, a member of the group is giving us classes on evenings. The kind of things this group has done for me, my aunts and them back home have never done. I was dancing with a group before but the kind of dancing Mr. Carlos Griffith has shown me, I never thought I could have done it. At a point in time, I thought he used to pick on me but I noticed he is doing that to help me improve. If this group doesn't get a place... I am a girl and if I am not around this group or I am not dancing, I get a kind of attitude; I get my mother's kind of attitude and the people in this group helped me and my mother to understand that. I really like dancing and we need a place to practice.
I am just asking anybody out there to help us because we are a group in the ghetto and we are trying to improve and make a difference. We are trying to show people that we still have good in the ghetto. I am pleading with anybody out there who can help us with funds or help us to find a place to practice. In my group, before I came here, I used to be really shy. When I went up on a stage I used to just run off. Now that I am dancing with children my own age and seeing how dancing with them on stage and watching people liking what they are seeing makes me feel real nice to know that I have talent and people like it. The elders in the group helped us to realize that we do not need to hide. Right now, I am still kind of shy but there really isn't anything to be afraid of because if we really need a place we have to speak up. If this group falls apart, the fellas in the group might go astray and it might have more crime in the country; and really and truly, I wouldn't want that to happen because it's really not making any sense. We had a former member who used to be in the group and right now he is not here anymore because he is in the crime thing. Right now, he is crying to come back because he noticed the good thing we have and as a group.
Antonio Daniel, a member of the Picton Folk Performing Co.
ANTONIO DANIEL: My sister got me involved in the group and it has been three months since I joined. It was January 1st when my sister said to me, "Come leh we go and lime with the group," and I said, "What group is that?" and she said, "Picton Folk Performers." I said to her, "Yuh know ah home doing nothing right now; kinda get me involved or something," and she said, "All right, come and join," and that is how I got to know everybody. My sister had asked if I could join and I didn't have any problems joining the group. They asked me what I could do and I told them I could sing, dance, drum and I want to be a pannist also. From then on, I started to get involved with the group. I am praying and thanking God and my sister for joining me into this group because before I came here I was into the bad boys things and I was on the streets smoking weed with my friends. If it wasn't for this group, I do not know what would have taken place. I might have been in jail or in the hospital wounded from a gun shot or I might have been six feet under. Most people here had more problems than I did. I started to talk to people and they got to know me and like me. When we go out people would come up to us and ask what group we were from and I would smile at that because we were also getting published playing the drums and so on. I thank God for having me in the group. I hope and pray for us to get a place before March 31, 2009, and I hope everything else work out for the best.
Shaniqua Julien, a member of the Picton Folk Performing Co.
SHANIQUA JULIEN: I am fourteen years old and I have been dancing in this group since I was three years old. I am happy to be a part of this group because if I wasn't in this group I might have been in plenty bacchanal and confusion at home. When Ms. Carlene used to run this group we used to sleep up here and now that she is gone we have nowhere to sleep so we have to go by friends and so on. When Ms. Carlene died, I never believed it. I am asking for a place where we can practice because when rain falls sometimes we have to borrow people's facilities for practice or not have any practice at all. When we have competitions coming up we do not have any place to practice. I really like this group because we have had things like graduations, outings and other things. It is real fun being in this group. Being here I learned how to dance, sing, act and drum. It feels very nice being on stage. The response from the audience gives you the inspiration to dance and it makes you feel excited. I feel happy when I go to school and my friends are boasting about how they see me on TV. This group is very important to this community. If it wasn't for this group plenty things would have been going on. People say this group keeps things alive on the hills. They like to hear the drums and they like the dancing. Anything you want to do you can do and the group would always push you to do your schoolwork. The group is an inspirational group.
Daria Corridon, a member of the Picton Folk Performing Co.
DARIA CORRIDON: I am eight years old and I am happy to be dancing in this group. Before Ms. Carlene died things were going good but now life come and change and things are going bad and we are only getting trouble. When rain falls we cannot practice dancing. I like everybody in this group and I like the dancing and singing. If you have any place for us to go and practice you can call us.
Shaquille Mitchell, a member of the Picton Folk Performing Co.
SHAQUILLE MITCHELL: I am fourteen years old and I am a dancer. This group has helped me to develop in different things like drumming, acting, singing and so on. Ms. Carlene was the person who brought me into this group. She had asked my mother for me to join this group. She knew I danced but I was never in any group; I just had my own class down the road. When she asked me to come and join the group I came just to see if I would like it. I got interested in the group and started developing myself in other things and then I moved on from there. It feels good being on stage, but sometimes it is hard when people call you names and so on but you don't have to take them on, you just have to keep going and doing the best you can. This group is very important to me because if I wasn't here I don't know where I would have been.
Sherelle Julien, a member of the Picton Folk Performing Co.
SHERELLE JULIEN: I am fourteen years old and I am a dancer in the group. I started dancing at the age of three in the Promenade and then Ms. Carlene came and took over and I was brought up here to dance. It started to be more exciting because I learned new dance steps and so on. The group was an inspiration to me when my grandmother died. They were there for me and I could have leaned on them for anything. Some of my good experiences in the group were performing on many shows and going to Tobago to dance. This group is very important to me because when my mother doesn’t have anything, I could lean on them to help me out like give me money to buy things and so on.
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