[dropcap]S[/dropcap]oufriere basketballers will certainly have a new spring in their step when playing on their refurbished basketball court, courtesy of Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain Resorts together with the Soufriere Regional Development Foundation (SRDF). The organisations have just completed the first stage of major renovations of the Soufriere community basketball court as part of a new project they co-funded and operated. The initial idea came about from discussions between Linzel Alcee, representing the basketballers of Soufriere, Director Cornell Jones of the Soufriere Foundation, and Yasha Troubetzkoy of Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain Resorts. Months of planning were required to ensure they would be investing in materials that could withstand wear and tear and provide a long-term solution to the dilapidated court, and they hope the community is pleased with the final result.
Yasha Troubetzkoy said, “Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain have a long history of supporting the community of Soufriere and we’re very pleased to have undertaken these renovations. We look forward to seeing the development of our basketball players now they have this fantastic new facility and we will continue to pursue projects like this one in order to further better the community we are a part of. We would also like to say a big thank you to the SRDF who have been invaluable partners on this project and we hope to collaborate with them again in the future.”
Director Cornell Jones of the Soufriere Foundation said, “We are very happy with the final result; basketballers can truly be proud of their new facility. We will continue to look at the other sporting facilities in the Soufriere and, in particular, Fond St Jacques area and see how we can improve them to make sure our young athletes have the best chance for success!”
After this first stage, the three collaborators are also working together with the Honourable Minister Stanislaus to acquire permanent seating for the court as well as new light fixtures. By doing so they hope to empower the basketballers to be able to operate professionally organised tournaments and use the funds generated to maintain the facility going forward.
