Grenadian-American Ex-Teachers group honors Quake USA, six others at Yuletide Gala

The Brooklyn-based Grenadian American Ex-Teachers’ Association (GAETA) on Dec. 28 honored the Grenadian cultural group Quake USA and six outstanding individuals during its 5th Annual Yuletide Gala at the Nazareth Regional High School in Brooklyn.

Cecily Mason, GAETA’s long-standing president, told Caribbean Life that the honorees were recognized for their “outstanding contributions in the Diaspora in the areas of culture, community service and education.”

Besides Quake USA, who were recognized for their roles in culture, Eudene Mason and Beverly Hood were honored for community service, Hermelene Thomas and Dahrel Cadore for education, Carolann Perry for entrepreneurship, and Eugene McQueen as inspirational motivator.

During the ceremony, the association received recognition from several local elected officials, including a proclamation from Sen. Kevin Parker, representative for the 21st State Senate District in Brooklyn; and citations from Sen. Roxanne Persaud, the Guyanese-born representative for the 19th State Senate District in Brooklyn; New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, the son of Grenadian immigrants; and City Councilwoman Mercedes Narcisse, the Haitian-born representative for the 46th Council District in Brooklyn.

In addition, Mason said the legislators recognized GAETA for its “continuous service to the residents and communities that it serves.”

“The association is very grateful to the services meted out to the group by the locally elected officials, and we are proud of the existing working relationship, which enables it to carry out its goals of service to the community,” she said.

“The association also thanks all its supporters in the Diaspora who make this possible,” Mason added.

Cheryl Vincent, a spokesperson for the Brooklyn-based Quake USA Cultural Organization, told Caribbean Life immediately after the presentation: “It’s an honor to be honored. Our cultural group has been doing this for 37 years.

“It says a lot of the unity and our love for each other, and our love for preserving and showcasing our culture,” she added.

Vincent said the non-profit entity is “the embodiment of a dream, started in 1980 by Spice Island Youthquake (SIY) in Grenada – the prestigious parent folk-liturgical cultural organization, touring England, Scotland, Ireland, United States and Canada, and also gave birth to Quake USA.

“Out of nostalgia and togetherness, members of SIY, who migrated to the USA got together in 1986, formed Quake USA – the longest continuously running Caribbean-American folk-liturgical group in the USA,” Vincent said.

Since its inception, she said Quake USA has been “preserving and showcasing the folk culture of the Caribbean through various staged events, which incorporate singing, choreographed dance, poetry, drumming and drama.”

Although the membership consists mostly of Grenadians, Vincent said Quake USA has opened its doors to members from other Caribbean islands.

She said one of the missions of Quake USA is “to give back to needy causes in Grenada and abroad.”

“In an effort to expand our organization’s impact and influence locally and in our native Grenada and the wider Caribbean, we have consistently raised funds to finance a medical assistance program, which provides much-needed supplies to nursing homes in Grenada,” said Vincent, who is also a registered nurse by training.

“As we celebrate the 40th year anniversary of Spice Island Youthquake, we are extremely proud to be a part of this legacy,” she added. “SIY has left an indelible make in the lives and hearts of its members and all those whose lives we continue to touch.”

Hood told Caribbean Life that the award made her “rather special.”

“What I do for the community, I’m appreciated,” she said. “At the end of the day, you realize that people appreciate what you’re doing.

“As a Grenadian, when people honor you, it’s a great honor,” Hood added. “It makes me feel to do more. It’s the beginning of a journey.”

McQueen also told Caribbean Life that she was “absolutely gratified for this honor.

“I want to thank the Grenadian-American Ex-Teachers Association, especially Ms. Cicely Mason for always recognizing people from the community,” she said, also expressing profound gratitude to relatives and friends for their unconditional support along her journey.

McQueen, who started working for the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) at 30, as an assistant public health advisor, retired as a supervising public health advisor and operations manager at the Point of Dispensing (POD) during the COVID pandemic.

Over the years, she said she has received many awards, but added that the Yuletide honor touched her “deeply because it’s from the Grenadian-American Ex-Teachers Association Inc. and politicians in the community.”

Cadore, was born on May 16, 2001, said he joined a S.T.E.M program in his senior year in high school, creating a prototype for a prosthetic arm with two friends.

He said this creation led them to receiving severalawards and that he was presented with a huge trophy at his high school graduation in June 2019.

After enrolling in City College, City University of New York (CUNY), in August 2019, majoring in biology, Cadore said he switched his major to architecture so that for his love for Math, Science and Art “could co-mingle.”

In December 2023, Cadore said he attained his architectural degree, “but had secured freelance architectural work prior to graduation.”

“His family, teachers, mentors and friends are very proud of the young man Dahrel has become, for what he has already accomplished thus far, and will accomplish in years to come,” Cadore’s biography says.

“He truly is a role model for the young, as well as the old,” it adds.

Founded in 1990, GAETA said it focuses on promoting scholarship and fostering cultural pride among young people of Grenadian ancestry.

Recently, the association held a Poetry and Essay Writing Competition to mark Grenada’s 50th Anniversary of Independence from Great Britain in which 10 students, ranging from ages 12 to 17, received cash prizes and trophies for their literary works.

GAETA said it also assists needy families in the Brooklyn community and in Grenada with school and other educational supplies, provides tuition assistance to Grenadian students studying in the US, and participates in several humanitarian efforts.