Grenada Today - The National Newspaper of Grenada, Carriacou & Petite Martinique

The Guyana Defense Force (GDF) was the recipient of another 'thank you' ceremony last week Tuesday, this time by the students, staff and parents of the Happy Hill Secondary School.

The ceremony was held on the grounds of the school in Happy Hill, where the students and staff gathered to show their appreciation for the replacing of their roof by the soldiers.

Happy Hill Secondary was one of the many schools that lost their roofs during the category three Hurricane that ravaged the island last September. Principal of the school, Daniel Thomas said that once the school roof was replaced the roof, it was able to receive electricity, which would help the school resume its practical classes.

He admitted that the resumption of these practical classes helped to take some of the students out of their frustration since they were limited only to theoretical studies.

The school principal announced that starting this week most of the student population will be able to attend school once again full-time as was the case in pre-Hurricane Ivan. He noted that in the past seven months, classes were held at Happy Hill secondary in two shifts, morning and afternoon which meant that some students came to school in the morning until midday while others came from mid-day until 4.00 p.m.

The entire roof of the two level educational facility was replaced, with labour and some materials supplied by GDF, amounting to $112,000.00. Colonel Bruce Lovell of GDF who also spoke at the brief ceremony said that the stint of his soldiers in Grenada has been one of "labour of love" because of the gratitude showed to them by the people of Grenada. He called the population in the spice Island, "Grateful receivers."

Col. Lovell told the students of the school to "seize the opportunity"given to them through the refurbishment of the school, especially those who are preparing for C.X.C Examinations. He said the students who would be sitting the upcoming examinations in a few months can really show their appreciation to the work of GDF by performing highly in the C.X.C exams.

The GDF soldiers left the island last Friday to end their six-month stint in Grenada. The military contingent was heavily involved in the refurbishing of many schools in Grenada.

Recently, the Ministry of Education held a short ceremony, to thank the Guyanese soldiers for their work on the Grand Anse Roman Catholic School.
The National Water and Sewage Authority (NAWASA) also held a ceremony thanking them for the assistance rendered to the utility company by the soldiers.

The Guyanase were the longest serving military group to remain in Grenada after Hurricane Ivan, providing humanitarian services to help rebuild the hurricane-ravaged island.