The Tribune

VIEWERS will see one of the greatest expressions of unity in the country’s history as the Rebuild Bahamas telethon gets underway today.

The event will be broadcast live at 6pm on ZNS, Cable 12 and JCN, with stations only taking breaks for news. It takes place in the Imperial Ballroom at Atlantis.

“The response has been nothing short of amazing. New sponsors are calling and coming on board hourly,” said Edison Sumner, CEO, Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers’ Confederation.

The chamber is co-hosting the national telethon with the Rotary Clubs of The Bahamas, including Rotaract, Interact, EarlyAct and InnerWheel. Rotary will also leverage the support of Rotary International for matching grants.

The event is organised to raise funds for the restoration of schools and businesses and the provision of clean water for islands in the southern Bahamas devastated by Hurricane Joaquin.

“To have entertainers who are the top names in their industry to children asking what they can do demonstrates how the people of the Bahamas – citizens, residents and visitors alike – care about one another and come together to help when tragedy strikes,” said Karen Pinder, a Rotary representative.

“We’ve had help from Rotary Clubs elsewhere, especially from Haiti where some of the clubs are very small and the people in them not very well off, but they wanted to give to the Bahamas because the Bahamas was there for them,” she added.

More than a dozen acts, including the Royal Bahamas Defence Force Band and the Prison Band, are scheduled to perform.

Musical artist Julien Believe will join top performers, including Willis and the Illest, Ancient Man, Funky D and the Backstabbers, Paul and Tanya Hanna, Veronica Bishop, Lyrically Blessed, Anna Calaix and comedians Patrice Johnson and Will Stubbs from Grand Bahama, among others.

The public is invited to tune in or to attend and bring cash or cheques as well as to call in with credit or debit card donations.