London, UK Saturday 12 November 2022
The warmth of the sun and Caymanians overseas, coupled with an abundance of Caymankind on Saturday 12 November was exhilarating, as hundreds came out to celebrate the Cayman Islands at the second annual Cayman Day in the UK (London), brought to Caymanians and friends in the UK by the Cayman Islands Government Office UK, produced by Cayman Connection.
The inaugural Cayman Day event took place in September 2021 in London, and this second year, built on the success of the first, with an increased number of artists, performers and deejays, an expanded Cayman Islands product range, a curated kids area called Bobo & Tedee’s Yard, greater numbers of friends and family and an extended schedule to accommodate new elements. While originally scheduled for the warmer month September, the CIGO-UK and Cayman Connection postponed the event and chose the 12 November date following the passing of H.M. Queen Elizabeth II in order to pay respects to the Royal Family and observe the mourning period.
Over 170 Caymanians, guests, friends and family joined the day of Caymanian culture, heritage, Caribbean and Cayman-inspired food and beverage, world-class entertainment, shopping, prizes and activities for all ages!
The day began with a special reception and “The Cayman Day Folk Band” – Rita Estevanovich, Nicole Wood, King Navassa and Nayil Arana on the fiddle – serenading guests as they entered, including them in the impromptu chats and choruses of beloved folk tunes such as Munzie Boat. The famous Cayman Mama beverage, Prosecco and Caribbean Fruit Punch were served as our very own Sir Turtle greeted and danced with guests, thanks to the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism.
Hosts for the day to evening event were Dr. Tasha Ebanks Garcia, Kate Kandiah, Rita Estevanovich, and King Navassa. The event formally opened with a welcome from Dr. Tasha Ebanks Garcia, Cayman Islands Government Representative to the UK, who introduced the Hon. Minister Andre Ebanks, Minister for Financial Services and Commerce, Innovation, Investment and Social Development.Hon. Minister Ebanks said of the event: “It was such a pleasure to be able to attend the second ever Cayman Day in the UK in person and tp see it all first hand! It was inspiring to meet so many Caymanians in the UK and to learn about all of their endevours overseas. It was particularly important and poinigniant to me, having been at the table at the time the event was conceived by the CIGO-UK in 2020. With many thanks to the CIGO-UK team led by Dr Tasha Ebanks Garcia for hosting and Cayman Connection for putting on an extraordinary event and giving it life”
King Navassa opened all further proceedings with a heartfelt and moving rendition of the Cayman Islands National Song, with guests standing and joining in.
Guests were directed to a special video message from Hon. Premier Wayne Panton, who welcomed Caymanians in the UK to Cayman Day and reminded them that while they may be far from home they were not forgotten, and that he hoped to see them return home soon. Responding with gratitude, Caymanians overseas sang a Happy Birthday song to the Hon. Premier led by host Rita Estevanovich.
The Minister for Youth, Sports, Culture and Heritage, Hon. Bernie Bush MP, attended the event and gave remarks, sharing how pleased he was to be able to attend and that his Ministry looked forward to supporting future events and partnerships with the Cayman Islands Government Office in the UK and Cayman Connection for the Caymanian community overseas. He commented “I am very happy to have been invited to Cayman Day 2022 and also to have been invited to help sponsor it. It’s so great to bring all the Caymanians together where we celebrate our culture, and what is so unique about the Cayman islands. I am very impressed with the number of young people in the UK studying and some people even came to the event and they are studying in Switzerland, so we have people coming from that far away for it, so it shows you how much pride and love they do have for our country.”
Among the highlights of the day was mouth-watering food, including a Caribbean buffet by Christopher’s Caribbean Caterers, made possible in part with the kind sponsorship of by The Wharf Restaurant and Grand Old House.
The “Creative Showcase and Shop” was set up to sell a range of products to support Cayman Islands businesses and Cayman Connection members; this year’s vendors included All That Glitters, Beach Bubbles, Clarke Palmer Jewellery, ContessaBlack Entertainment, Deal Ebanks, Dready, Esteban Gallery, Gordon Solomon, Guy Harvey, Isy B, Jan Barwick, John Doak, Laurene, More Vibes, PressedKY, Waterbugs International, White Dog Art, and 3 Girls and A Kiln. Caymanian cultural heritage was also highlighted in this area and throughout the venue with a collection of Cayman Islands books, artefacts and historical images on display. Vendors from the Cayman shop kindly offered amazing prizes and gifts for a raffle hamper worth over £300.
Excellent children’s entertainment was provided by Allison Farmer of Non-Stop Kids Entertainment in Bobo & Tedee’s Yard, which also featured a popular turtle sandpit. Cayman trivia, party games, a magic show, and a disco party with Caribbean and Top 40 songs for all ages were a hit with children and the entertainer used Pirate’s Week as inspiration to dress as a wench for her three-hour show.
This year also saw the return of the Heavy Cake Competition, which was renamed from Cassava Cake Competition to allow for additional cake varieties to be included in future, also saw growth.
The first year three bakers competed: Athena Robinson, who won the Best Heavy Cake Baker title; Nicole Wood; and Judy “Jazz” Rivers. This second year saw both Ms. Robinson (representing Spot Bay, Cayman Brac) and Miss Wood (representing Bodden Town) return to the competition. Two new home bakers, Natasha Jervis of North Side and Demetra Mighty of East End joined, and all bakers chose to bake cassava cakes.
The exciting Cayman Day entertainment line-up included special guest appearances, performances, artist talks, and Q&As. In addition to Cayman Day Folk Band’s interactive performance, Caymanian DJ Zeeky played homegrown tunes and Caribbean music throughout the day, and enthusiastic audiences heard from Caymanians and guests including the reigning Ms. Exquisite World Sheril McField and daughter, Miss Exquisite World Daeizha McField; 2022 Miss Caribbean UK second runner-up Sarafina Mitchell plus guests Odavia Moffat (first runner-up) and winner Samara Telesford; fiddler Nayil Arana; vocalist Nicole Wood accompanied by guest Marie Marshall on guitar; Alternative Hip-Hop artist/songwriter Caxxianne, brought to the event in partnership with Parcel110; fashion designer/artist Jawara Alleyne; interdisciplinary artist John Reno Jackson; Hip-Hop artist Precious Shordee backed up by dancers Tianne Morales-Levy and Daiezha McField and guest dancers from Younique Studios; and singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Arianna Broderick known as Maeve. An impromptu trip down memory lane story was offered up by attended Ms. Lana Mae Smith, who recalled her first hurricane experience in Cayman and shared with eager audiences. King Navassa and Rita Estevanovich shared hosting duties introducing artists and guests while entertaining audiences throughout.
The second ceremony for Cayman Connection’s 2022 Making Waves Awards took place at Cayman Day, with two UK-based award winners receiving their awards in the early evening. Kate Kandiah congratulated King Navassa, winner of the Davenport Arts and Culture Award, presented by Hon. Minister André Ebanks, and Dr. Mark Paramlall, winner of the Health and Wellness Award, presented by Hon. Minister Bernie Bush. Ms. Kandiah handed over not only the microphone but also her position of Executive Director of Cayman Connection to Cayman Connection’s incoming Executive Director Ashlea Jade Smith who gave the finale performance of the day, enlivening the crowd with a blend of Socasize choreography, carnival jumping and waving and a fun dance-off circle. The evening ended with a DJ sound clash between DJ Zeeky and DJ Just Vibes, with Just Vibes taking the title of “Super DJ”.
The event was presented by the Cayman Islands Government Office in the UK, and sponsored by the Ministry of Youth, Sports, Culture and Heritage. The Ministry of Education also supported the initiative.
Outgoing Executive Director of Cayman Connection, Kate Kandiah commented, “This event was special for so many reasons; it was the second year of an initiative born from the CIGO-UK during the pandemic, and it was so wonderful to see how much it has grown just by year two! The Cayman Connection partnership with the Cayman Islands Government Office in the UK is longstanding and important to the organisation, and we are honoured to be given the opportunity to produce this huge event again this year with thanks to Dr. Tasha and her amazing team at CIGO-UK for all they do for Caymanians overseas as an extension of the Cayman Islands Government in the UK.
We were especially delighted to be joined by special guests Hon. Minister André Ebanks and Hon. Minister Bernie Bush, as well as Cayman Islands Government Representatives for the US, Asia and Brussels. It was wonderful for Caymanians overseas to connect with each other and to mix and mingle with our overseas Government Representatives and private sector friends and associates whilst enjoying entertainment and culture from home.
We are thankful to the Wharf and Grand Old House restaurants who assisted with the sponsoring our delicious menu and the Department of Tourism for supporting the event for a second year assisting with decor, as well as our community partners. We’re also grateful to all of the vendors who provided beautiful products for use in our raffle and spot prizes. The performers, volunteers, and the Cayman Connection team did an amazing job putting this all together and I would like to say a special thanks to Rita Estevanovich who took the lead to pull it all together. As my finale as Executive Director of the organisation it is a pleasure to pass over to the fabulous Ashlea Smith to take the helm, and I know she will do a fantastic job. I very much look forward to enjoying Cayman Day as a guest next year!”
A special Cayman Connection Virtual Yard Meeting was held on 16 November at 7pm GMT to make the official announcements of the 2022 winner of the Heavy Cake Competition, and to conduct the special prize draw from the Cayman Day raffle. The raffle hamper prize included gifts and products form the Cayman Islands worth over £300. The winner of the draw was Jake Hoffman. Gift bags were also awarded to each baker of the Heavy Cake Competition with additional prizes for this year’s top baker.