Roxi painted this village scene of Mount Moritz when she lived in Grenada in the 1990s

As Hurricane Ivan tore through Grenada in 2004 destroying over 90% of the island’s infrastructure, Roxi Hermsen worried about her friends.  She and her husband had lived in Grenada for a year in the late ‘90s in the Mount Moritz area, just north of the capital city, St. Georges.  They fell in love with Grenada and had quickly become part of the local community.  She impatiently waited for word about their former neighbors.  Finally, word got through – no deaths in the village, but massive destruction.  Roxi started painting and planning.

An Artist by trade, Roxi sent paintings to Byron Campbell to sell and raise funds to replace the damaged water system at Mount Moritz Anglican school.  She also wanted to send seeds to her friend Ashton Goddard, a local farmer, so he could begin replanting his garden and have food to eat and sell.  Little did she know that her idea would transform into a massive relief project.

Work in Progress – Portrait of Ashton Goddard. Artist Rebecca Shepherd

Roxi went to her local Canadian seed distributor, Pacific North West Seeds, to buy some seeds for Ashton.  The owner generously gave her all his leftover seeds.  It was the end of the season when stores return their unsold seed.  Seeds can’t be resold the following year, so the owner had a glut of unsalable seeds, and Grenada had an immediate, desperate need.  Roxi left with boxes, and boxes, and boxes of seeds.  Her next step was to organize seed packing parties.

Roxi hosted parties, inviting friends to pack a variety of vegetable seeds into Ziploc bags that could easily be distributed to different families throughout Grenada. Now she had to figure out a way to get them from her small hometown in western Canada to Grenada.

Roxi contacted the Spice Isle Relief Organization in Toronto, a group that was coordinating hurricane relief supplies to be shipped to Grenada.  The former Council General to Grenada happened to be in the office when she called. He asked her where she had lived and, of course, knew her former neighbors Tanty Deli and Uncle Everest and said they were ok.  He was also able to tell her more information about her other friends in Mt. Moritz. He paved the way for the seeds to get through Customs and the Agricultural inspection without delay or charges.

Roxi then contacted WestJet Airlines. The owner, Clive Beddoe, agreed to fly the seeds to Toronto at no charge if Roxi could get the seeds to the Kelowna airport in British Columbia. Caesar’s Trucking stepped up and trucked the seeds to Kelowna. It took two WestJet flights to get all the seeds to Toronto.

Once in Toronto, the seeds would ship via container to Grenada.  Spice Isle Relief added buckets, shovels, and other farming supplies to the shipment so families would have everything they needed to replant. Roxi’s cousins added their support by sending large plastic containers filled with medical supplies, water purification tablets, baby formula, diapers, school supplies, etc.  Everyone was willing to pitch in and help.

While this was happening, Roxi contacted her friends in Grenada to let them know about the seed project. They used their farmers’ network to inform the farmers that relief was coming and to start cleaning up and preparing everyone’s gardens to receive the seeds.

The Mt. Moritz community pulled together after the hurricane to make sure everyone in their community was taken care of.  They started by making sure all the elderly people had shelter, then they began pooling food and supplies and distributing them based on the size of the family.  Last, they made sure everyone’s garden space was prepared for the seeds to arrive. It’s heartening to see how Grenadians pull together in their tight-knit communities and support each other.

Roxi had always dreamed about coming back to Grenada.  In 2017, she met a fellow Artist, Rebecca Shepherd, at an elementary school in Canada. Artists were showcasing different kinds of art so kids could see the many ways art can be expressed and have a chance to try things out.  They became friends and then collaborators. As they were co-painting a large canvas, a seed appeared in it, and Roxi spoke about her dream to return to Grenada. Rebecca said, “I’ll go with you.” In January 2018, they hatched a plan to raise funds by selling their artwork. They had a show in Kelowna, Canada that filled a 70-foot wall at Buvez Wine and Art Bar.   By August, they had saved enough money for the airfare, and they purchased their plane tickets.

Rebecca and Roxi at their house in Mount Moritz – where I interviewed them for this blog post

They were now committed. Roxi and Rebecca created an art workshop for 16 women to raise additional funds for lodging and food.  The local Arts Council in Enderby, graciously sponsored the workshop.  The Enderby and District Arts Council paid for the room and paint supplies and provided refreshments. The workshop proceeds covered their rent and paint for the murals while they were in Grenada.  Finally, it was time to return to Grenada.

Roxi and Rebecca arrived in Grenada on February 5^th and, once again, found a home in Mt. Moritz.  It was only one house away from where Roxi had stayed the first time she lived in Grenada.  They immediately started painting so they could have an exhibition at Aquarium, a favorite beach restaurant and place Roxi had shown her paintings 22 years ago.

This is a sample of five the paintings that were for sale at Aquarium Restaurant

At the same time, Roxi and Rebecca created a large mural in a private home, something they wish to do more of, either in private or public spaces.  They planned to paint three small murals and one large mural at the Mount Moritz Anglican Elementary School to brighten up the school.   They started designing the murals and working with the school staff to determine where the art would be installed.

One of the beautiful murals at The Mount Moritz Anglican School

Next, it was time to begin painting the murals. They painted during the school day, and the kids were excited to see the art emerge before their eyes. Roxi said it was pretty chaotic and also lots of fun with children exclaiming each time a new ‘creature’ appeared. As Roxi and Rebecca painted a reef with fish, octopus, crab, and shells, the kids cheered them on and made suggestions like adding a shark to the mural. Roxi said it was like painting on demand. The hardest part may have been keeping the kids from touching the murals until they were dry.  The refrain “Is it dry yet?” was heard over and over.

Another mural with a specially requested shark.  Is it dry yet?

Picking out the future Artists was easy.  While all the children were engaged watching Roxi and Rebecca paint, a few Artists at heart sat completely still, mesmerized at the magic appearing before their eyes.  One boy sat with a serious expression on his face.  Finally, he couldn’t stand it anymore and grabbed the paintbrush from Roxi’s hand and started placing dots on the mural.

Roxi and Rebecca just laughed.  They understood his artistic desire.  They said they were planting seeds with this project and creating sparks of creativity that might take years to develop and bloom.  Roxi has taught Art, Drama, and Media in Canada. One of her former students has become a respected movie producer, another has won an Academy Award for scenic painting, and a third student has opened a successful Dinner Theatre.  I wonder where this boy’s passion and talent will take him in life.

The teachers were also happy and excited about the project.  Schools in Grenada, tend to be pretty sterile environments.  There is barely money for necessary supplies.  Parents buy all the school books and are often asked to contribute basic supplies like copy paper, tissues, and toilet paper.  Funds for ‘decorations,’ even educational ones, are nonexistent.  Everyone was thrilled with the colorful upgrade to the school walls.

The magnificent mural highlighting the school seal surrounded by Ginger Lilies

The highlight of the murals was a large painting of ginger plants surrounding the school seal.  Each ‘flower’ was a handprint of an individual child.  Roxi and Rebecca rolled each of the children’s hands in red and white paint and had them stamp their handprint at the top of a leaf. The principal and teachers got involved and added their handprints to the masterpiece as well.  The finished mural was both beautiful and touching.  Everyone was uplifted by the new art and was proud to have their personal contribution as part of the mural.

A close up so you can see the individual handprints that became the Ginger Lily flowers

After the murals were completed, Roxi and Rebecca realized there was a good bit of paint left over and had the idea to paint the school’s playground space.  The playground was basically a large, empty concrete space. During recess, the children just ran around unfocused, they had no way to direct their energy. Roxi and Rebecca wanted to create a virtual playground with hopscotch, jumping jacks, square ball, race tracks, and circuit circles with run here/hop there sections. Roxi engaged her friends in the community to help paint the playground to create local ownership of the project, and then the community would take over the ongoing maintenance of the playground.

Roxi transforming the bland concrete recess space into a virtual playground

The next Sunday afternoon, members of the community turned out to paint the virtual playground.  Roxi was the mastermind and determined where each painting/play area would be placed.  I was impressed with how she could sketch out the designs using a long stick with a large piece of chalk taped to the end.  Rebecca was the detail Artist, defining all the outlines, painting numbers, and then adding splashes of color and shapes to the completed works.  The community members filled in the blocks of color and, as they got more confident, they added lines and decorations like dots and stars.  It was a collaboration of ideas that meshed seamlessly.

Rebecca adding numbers to the hopscotch board

                                       

The Transformation was Magical

As the afternoon wore on, a few children patiently watched the playground come to life.  Later, they became the first ones to try out each play area, running, hopping, and skipping through the games. They had either huge smiles or determined faces as they tried their best to jump the farthest or run the fastest.

Run on the Spot!

If the footprint fits, JUMP!

One of the community members who helped paint the playground, Kwabena Amen, is an instructor at Marryshow Community College (MCC).  He was impressed by the teamwork, the enthusiasm of the school staff, and the joy in the children’s eyes. He plans to encourage his MCC students to help other communities around the island to recreate murals and virtual playgrounds in other elementary schools.

Everyone joined in the fun, trying out the new playground

As Roxi and Rebecca’s visit came to an end, many townspeople stopped them on the street and thanked them for their gift of art.

I know that Roxi and Rebecca are already dreaming about their next trip.  I can’t wait to see what they plan to do when they make their way home again to Grenada.

Photo credit: Photos without the CandiandMichaelontheMove.com logo are courtesy of Roxi and Rebecca.

Artists comments:

Roxi and Rebecca wish to thank those who helped them along the way, Byron Campbell, Ashton Goddard, Kwabena Amen, Pip Stokes, Gylfi Hilmisson, Raymond and Lady C.

    Rebecca, Roxi, and the community members who painted the virtual playground.               (Left to right – Ashton, Rebecca, Roxi, Lady C, Kwabena, Raymond, Gilfi, and Pip)

Pip and Gylfi run Attach a Leg Grenada, a non-profit organization which provides a cost-efficient and high-quality service for amputees.  Through serendipity, they met Roxi and realized they owned one of her paintings that she created 22 years ago.  Both Roxi and Rebecca donated paintings to Attach a Leg, to help in their fundraising efforts for their worthy cause.

Thank you to Rachel Forte at Mt. Moritz Anglican School for being open to art and allowing Roxi and Rebecca to show the community how art can make a positive change with color and uplifting imagery.

If you might be interested in a mural, please contact Roxi and Rebecca directly.  Their websites are listed below.

This is the mural Roxi and Rebecca painted at Byron Campbell’s house.

To see more of Roxi and Rebecca’s artwork, check out these websites:

www.RoxiArtwork.ca

www.rebeccas-art-studio.com

The Stairway to Heaven and to the new virtual playground