2024 Junior Masquerade Project: Nurturing Cultural Traditions Through Corporate Partnerships

In these trying times, corporate partners are essential for the execution of cultural programmes targeted towards our youth.

That is why The National Cultural Foundation was full of praise for the Sandy Lane Charitable Trust and Abed’s for their contributions to its 2024 Junior Masquerade Project.

The Junior Masquerade Project aims to preserve the cultural tradition of costume-making and masquerading throughout various schools and community groups across the island.

The programme gives participants first-hand experience in masquerade.

The Junior Masquerade Project is now in its 22nd year having started in 2002. In the early years, the NCF project targeted four or so schools annually. It has now grown to involve 10 schools and three community groups.

These schools and community groups will be part of Saturday’s Junior Kadooment. They are: Eagle Hall Primary, Ellerton Primary, Wesley Hall Infants, Grantley Adams Memorial, Pinelands Creative Workshop, Selah Primary, Hindsbury Primary, Arthur Smith Primary, Haynesville Youth Club, Shirley Chisholm Primary, Roland Edwards Primary, Erdiston Special School and Weston United Stars Community Club.

At the project’s launch, held recently at the Erdiston Special School, Chief Cultural Officer of the National Cultural Foundation (NCF), Andrea Wells, expressed gratitude for their financial support, describing it as “priceless.”

“It’s really shaping up to be an exciting year and we are thrilled to welcome our sponsors along for the experience,” she said.

Nekei Grant, project coordinator of the Sandy Lane Charitable Trust shared how the project aligned with the trust’s primary goal of leaving no child in need or behind.

She spoke to the charity’s long involvement in cultural projects like Junior Kadooment, where bands would come to them directly for sponsorship, but wanted to foray into a larger contribution on a national level.

So when the opportunity to assist the NCF, the organisation provided a generous donation towards the project and the Youth Volunteer Programme.

“Recognising the impact of both programmes and what they would have on our youth . . . . And in celebrating the NCF’s 50 years and [SLCT’s] upcoming 20-year anniversary, I’m pleased to announce that we decided to ascertain title sponsorship for both categories for $50 000 Barbados dollars. We had to come together and do this for the children of Barbados.”