Ins & Outs of SVG 2020

INS OUT from model boatbuilding to construction, working on the new Gingerbread Hotel in Belmont. “My mother, she was always strict,” he continues, smiling with pride. “She was my moral compass… teaching me right from wrong. And she made me work hard at school, even insisting that I learn ‘proper’ handwriting by giving me a book on calligraphy! “ Those urgings soon paid off. Patrick was selected to have his education sponsored by the Canadian-based Bequia Mission, and after a stint at St. Martin’s Secondary School in St. Vincent, he ultimately graduated in 1999 from Bequia’s Seventh Day Adventist Secondary School as Valedictorian. He also received the RBTT Young Leaders Award, and the Rotary Club of St. Vincent’s George Phillips Excellence Award for his community volunteer work outside of school. Young Patrick Hutchins, at only 17, was already quietly standing out. After a series of interviews – all involving work in the Tourism sector – Patrick was offered a job as a receptionist at the new Gingerbread Hotel by Bequia’s formidable doyenne of tourism, Pat Mitchell. “It was new for me to be interacting with visitors,” says Patrick, “but Mrs. Mitchell encouraged me first and foremost to be courteous, relaxed and confident. And the ladies in the café who were so friendly with everyone - I learned a lot from them too…” In 2000, after little more than a year at Gingerbread, Patrick was offered the opportunity to train for the British Navy, or to train as a Customs Officer. It was potentially a life-changing decision. “I wanted to do something that would be meaningful in my life and for my home,” explains Patrick, “so I chose to stay here, and become a Customs Officer”. For most young men, having their foot on the first rung of such an honourable career ladder would be enough. Not so for Patrick. After just two paychecks and experience of the internet only from the Bequia library and his work at Gingerbread, Patrick had bought his first computer. From this initial step into digital technology he later launched his company Cloud Island Media, specialising in web design for Bequia-based clients. Photography became yet another string to Patrick’s bow when his grandmother sent him a camera as a wedding present in 2007. (Patrick met his future wife Narissa, whose mother hails from St. Vincent, in 2003 when she was on trip to Bequia. She moved to Bequia in 2005 and the rest, as they say is history. “I just wish I’d married her sooner!” says Patrick with a twinkle). Balancing being a Senior Customs Officer with his self- taught photography and videography work keeps Patrick (very!) busy, but fulfilled. Like his friend and mentor Wilfred Dederer, you will see Patrick everywhere when he is not in uniform: volunteering to work long hours throughout the Regatta and Music Fest, flying his drone into the fireworks on New Year’s Eve, or shooting a wedding by the beach. And then of course, there is Rise Up Bequia, a not-for profit NGO run exclusively by young Bequians, of which Patrick is a founder member and currently President. Formed in January 2014 after the terrible flood of Christmas Eve 2013 and the massive volunteer clean-up effort that followed, Rise Up Bequia was the brainchild of Patrick and his friends, including current Vice President Solana Gooding. “When everyone came together to help, we realised that we wanted to – and could – do so much more for ourselves as a group”, Patrick explains. The concept of volunteerism and selflessness is central to Rise Up Bequia’s mission to contribute to “an active, healthy and sustainable local community.” Since its inception, this inspiring group has gone from strength to strength, raising funds for school books for every primary schoolchild in Bequia, coordinating aid for hurricane-stricken Dominica, Barbuda and Bermuda, holding clean ups, talent shows and a host of other events, withmuchmore planned for the future. Love of his work, his family, and above all of Bequia and its community, shines through Patrick’s words and deeds. When asked for his one wish to be granted, his reply was instant: “A mountain for Bequia to bring us more rain!” Spoken like a true Bequian. Love of his work, his family, and above all of Bequia and its community, shines through Patrick’s words and deeds. MEET A BEQUIAN 77 Packing water for Dominica hurricane relief, 2017 Rise Up Bequia’s school book donations in 2018