The group of volunteers on Saturday included VROMI Minister Patrice Gumbs (third row, third right) and Minister of Justice Nathalie Tackling (third row, second right).
PHILIPSBURG--More than 100 volunteers have participated in the ongoing Alleyway Transformation project, a community initiative led by Be The Change Foundation’s @ColorMeSXM.
The project involves cleaning and painting both walls of an alley and creating a 200+ square metre mural.
This past weekend marked the third volunteer day in Afloop Steeg, Philipsburg, guided by artists Nascha Kagie and Daphne Prevoo. “Given the scale of the mural, volunteers are essential in bringing the design to life. We also want to highlight the importance of volunteerism, which unites people and fosters positive community change,” said Laura Bijnsdorp, project coordinator.
Saturday saw the largest turnout yet, with several project sponsors in attendance, including representatives from LICCOM Construction, Sherwin Williams, the St. Maarten Tourism Bureau and Cultuurfonds Caribisch Gebied. Members of Parliament (MPs) and the Council of Ministers were also invited to witness the community effort first-hand.
Among those present were MPs Sarah Wescot-Williams, Darryl York and Sjamira Roseburg, as well as Minister of Justice Nathalie Tackling and Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure VROMI Patrice Gumbs, who all contributed to the painting.
The alleyway project is being executed in collaboration with Plastic Free SXM and the St. Maarten Development Fund. “The final mural will include messages about human impact and plastic pollution,” Bijnsdorp explained. “As part of the Plastic Free SXM initiative, a legislative framework was developed to ban several single-use plastics. The legislation has been handed over to the government of St. Maarten for further review and progression toward Parliament. Having public officials on-site allowed us to showcase both @ColorMeSXM and Plastic Free SXM in an interactive way.”
The Foundation extends its gratitude to all volunteers, sponsors and supporters of the project. The fourth and final volunteer day for the alleyway transformation is scheduled for this weekend. Additionally, the Foundation plans to create two more large-scale murals featuring regional artists in the coming months.
For more information and updates on the project, visit www.facebook.com/bethechangesxm or follow @colormesxm on Instagram.
