Two great reasons to celebrate

I couldn’t pass up the chance to blog about something exciting we have to celebrate here on St Croix… afterall the blog is called “Celebrate St Croix”!  And actually we have two great things to celebrate today.

The first is something that’s near and dear to my heart (I’ve done some volunteer work with sea turtle conservation) – the release of a rehabilitated hawksbill sea turtle who was injured last year at one my favorite beaches – Sandy Point.  Sandy Point Wildlife refuge is one of the few truly pristine beaches left in the Caribbean.  It is only open from 10am to 4pm Saturday and Sunday from roughly October through the end of April.  Why, you ask… Well, because it is critical nesting habitat for the endangered leatherback sea turtle and heavily used for nesting by our local hawksbills and greens too.  It seems that this unlucky girl was minding her own business, laying her eggs in the sand when she was happened upon by a group of feral dogs.  Sadly, her front flippers were so mauled that eventually one had to be amputated. 

However, the wonderful biologists of US Fish & Wildlife that monitor the wildlife refuge found her, brought her to local veterinarian Paul Hess at Island Animal Clinic, who stabilized her, and then they enlisted the help of The Turtle Hospital, a non-profit institution on Marathon Key where she spent a year gaining strength and rehabilitating.  Yesterday, with the help of American Airlines, who donated her flights both ways, and the many friends she has gained along the way – our little sweetie was returned to her native St Croix and released into the waters of Sandy Point.  A success story made possible by kind people who volunteered time and resources to do the right thing in our community – a true reason to celebrate!  For more information read the full article here

Another thing that Crucians are celebrating today is the passing of legislation to ensure that Cruzan Rum stays here on St Croix.  Cruzan Rum has been produced on the island of St Croix for over 200 years by the Nelthropp family.  While they don’t own the brand anymore – they still run the plant and make the run that not only becomes Cruzan Rum, but also the base rum for many other brands as well.  In fact, only 25% of the rum they produce is branded as Cruzan - the rest is sold as “bulk rum” and is used as the base of other rum products.  Its that good.  Recently, our government entered into a 30-year deal that was the driving factor in bringing a new state-of-the-art plant to produce rival Captain Morgan rum to St Croix.  Last night, the legislature passed a similar bill that gives a similar 30-year deal providing bonds backed by rum tax rebate monies.  It also allows for the development of the plant and to bring it up to EPA standards.  (It had been grandfathered out of certain requirements in the past which effectively had allowed it to release untreated effluent into local waters).   So, I’m celebrating the fact that Cruzan will remain Crucian… and they are going to clean up their act in the process!