The Tribune

By ALESHA CADET

Tribune Features Reporter

acadet@tribunemedia.net

Helping those in need will never go out of style. And for the family that makes up the Giveback Girl organisation, the goal each year is to do more than they did the previous year.

Scieska Adderley of Giveback Girl, said as their group continues to make its mark in the community, more and more people from corporate Bahamas, as well as volunteers have joined the effort. What started as a part-time passion is gradually becoming a full-time movement.

Just recently, the team hosted the Giveback Girl Fun Fest held at the New Providence Community Centre. It was a day of games, rides, prizes, face painting, and live entertainment

“Every year around Christmas time my family and I choose to host a feel-good event for a small, deserving group. My Aunt Eithne started and spearheaded this initiative until her death in 2016. As a tribute to her, we documented this tradition for the first time on television in hopes of inspiring others to spread holiday cheers to those in need,” said Scieska, a former ZNS news reporter.

As a family, she said, they have hosted a staff and student Christmas party for the Stapledon School; a Christmas party for the children in the Low Sound Andros community; handed out care packages to the elderly, and held a spa day for 10 cancer caregivers in 2018.

However, the Fun Fest was their biggest venture yet. Entertainment included performances by Bodine Victoria, DJ Counsellor, Rishard Rich, and the Groove Quest band. The Royal Bahamas Police Force’s K-9 unit and the Fire Department also conducted live demonstrations.

“From 2pm to 6pm my family and I hosted 200 children. We wanted to bring some holiday cheer to the displaced children from Abaco and Grand Bahama due to Hurricane Dorian. I wanted to do my part, no matter how small, to assist in the relief efforts. But I wanted to do it in a different way. As it stands, these kids don’t have much to smile about, so it was my mission to what I can to make them smile,” said Scieska.

“We invited all of the children from the children’s homes throughout New Providence. We provided each child with a Giveback Girl’s Fun Fest T-shirt and transportation to and from the event. Upon arrival, each kid was given tickets as their form of payment for everything: hamburgers, wings, ice cream, popsicles, pizza, curry chicken, white rice, coleslaw, water, and soda were on the menu.”

The team’s mission now is to promote the movement to a point where it’s beyond what her family can do. They are leading a community-wide charge for others to take up the mantle as well.

“I want my aunt’s legacy of helping the less fortunate to continue. She’s my inspiration. To me, she’s the ultimate giveback girl. I’m her helper, continuing her work. It’s important to lend a helping hand whenever and wherever you can. Life is better for all when you care for others,” said Scieska.

She said planning this year’s giveback inspired her to look at what else they can do, and how else they can touch lives. So Scieska is now in the process of turning Giveback Girl into a full-fledged non-profit organisation that will be registered here in the Bahamas and in the United States.

“This will put me in a position to help more people. My focus will always be the Bahamas first and doing what I can to make our country better. I see representation on all islands, identifying the needs, and us being able to do at least one project on each island. One day I hope to have an office full of staff committed to making Bahamians’ lives better. The Giveback Girl may have started with my family and me leading the charge, but I truly believe this will become a movement that will do great things in the Bahamas and eventually the world. I truly believe that you have to be the change you wish to see in the world. And for me, that world is the Bahamas. I am a proud Bahamian and so what I must do what I can to make this country better,” said Scieska.

Right now, she is working on completing the hour-long Giveback Girl show that is set to air on local television in early December. It’s an opportunity for the nation to see what the Giveback Girl team has been up to.

“I am also planning a ‘thank you’ event for sponsors and volunteers because there is no way that I could host the Giveback Girl’s Fun Fest without them. Once the show and the festivities are done, I will begin the process of registering as a non-profit as well as brainstorm plans for 2020. But be on the lookout for bigger and better next year, as it marks the fifth show and the second under the Giveback Girl umbrella. The movement has just begun, so join us,” said Scieska.

For all those interested in volunteering or donating, contact Scieska either by phone at 468-1934 or via email at scieska.add@gmail.com.