The Tribune

FOX Hill marked the first anniversary on Saturday of the shooting that claimed four lives in the community when the Kiwanis Club of East Nassau, in conjunction with the Fox Hill Urban Renewal Project Office, organised a Christmas parade and family fun day.

Claudzino Davis, Shaquille Demeritte, Eric Morrison and Shanique Sands were gunned down as they assembled on the basketball court in Fox Hill, awaiting the results of the 2013 Boxing Day Junkanoo parade.

The fun day – a time of fellowship, food, fun and games, including hoopla and basketball – was designed to bring the community closer together and facilitate the healing process and was held on the site of the tragedy.

The vice-president of the Senate, Joseph Curry, paid tribute to the victims and brought a message of continued healing.

“As we reflect on the four members of this community who lost their lives in that tragic and regrettable event a year ago today at this very spot, let us remember and pray for their families … they will always have a special place in our hearts and memories. The message which I wish to leave with you is that the healing must continue. This event is one of the ways in achieving this.”

Senator Curry said that a contract had been signed for the construction of the monument – a planned memorial to the victims – and work is expected to commence “early in the New Year”. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in August.

Fox Hill MP Fred Mitchell said Saturday had been “a bittersweet day in Fox Hill”. In a statement, he said: “We celebrated the magnificent performance and finish of the Original Congos Junkanoo group of Fox Hill. At the same time, we remember the four people ... who were killed last year this time. Let us commit ourselves to taking care of one another and to work for peace and the end to violence and crime in our society.”

The organisers of the Christmas parade and family fun day included Arrie Wilmott, chairman of the fun day project committee; Kelly Hanna, President of the Kiwanis Club of Nassau; Andrea White, Lieutenant Governor, Kiwanis Clubs of The Bahamas; Reuben Rahming, President of the Kiwanis Club of Fox Hill East Nassau; and Eric Adderley, Past President of Kiwanis Fox Hill and club mentor.