PHILIPSBURG--St. Maarten’s community came out in full force for the second annual SXM DOET event held on March 11 and 12.
Around 1,000 volunteers successfully completed 43 projects registered by some 30 organizations from all around the Dutch side of the island. The team was thrilled to see that so many organizations and volunteers that participated last year signed up for Sxm Doet 2016.
A number of new organizations joined in on the cause, which the team had hoped for, increasing the number of projects and thus the positive effects of Sxm Doet on the community at large.
Sxm Doet is part of the largest volunteer initiative ever launched in the Dutch Kingdom and St. Maarten. The goal of the initiative is to ensure that locally existing organizations successfully execute a project, one they have not yet been able to, which benefits themselves and in turn, the community. The participating organizations were diverse and their projects varied to an even greater extent, emphasizing the various ways a person can give back to society.
This led to having projects geared to everyone's liking and capabilities, thereby attracting persons from all walks of life, all ages, nationalities, skills and interests.
Individuals, but also businesses, schools, social organizations, sporting and church groups, friends and families, all joined in to help build community vegetable gardens, fix gazebos, build school benches and stages, build animal feeding stations, paint fences, buildings and murals, entertain persons with special needs, collecting and providing food and clothing items for the less fortunate, planting and trimming trees, doing clean ups, refurbishing playgrounds and sporting facilities, helping with health fair activities, spa days, day trips out for entertainment or sports and the list goes on and on.
Government officials including Sarah Wescott-Williams, Cornelius de Weever, Shermina Powell Richardson on behalf of Silveria Jacobs and Tamara E. Leonard were also out and about lending a hand for the project, setting a good example for all to follow. Many persons and groups even participated for both days and for multiple projects. Not only residents, but also frequent visitors to the island participated in the project as well.
This year, a few media-teams also volunteered for Sxm Doet; Social-media whizzes, professional photographers and talented filmmakers made sure to visit various Sxm Doet projects to document all the efforts and progress made during the two days. The team has been and will keep posting all pictures on their Facebook page www.facebook.com/SXMDOET for everyone to enjoy and requests persons to post their pictures to the site as well and by hash tagging them with #SxmDoet. The official www.sxmdoet.com website is also updating its photos on a regular basis.
When including the volunteers from the participating organizations, plus the registered volunteers that signed up via the website, along with persons who decided to join in on the initiative last minute, there is an estimate of about 1,000 total volunteers having participated during the two days according to the organization.
The coordinating team and members of the Be The Change Foundation were very excited about the turnout and accomplishments of the project.
The team thanked RMG Designs, Heavenly Water, Kooyman, Divico, Cake House, Green Fingers, Easy Print, Divi Little Bay Beach Resort, Buccaneer Beach Bar, Metiss Pastry, Viva Signs, Antillean Liquors, Island 92, the Philipsburg Broadcasting Company (specifically: Laser 101), Caribbean Legacy, as well as those companies who supported organizations on their own accord, Samenwerkende Fondsen and last but definitely not least, the Oranje Fonds to whom the initiation of Sxm Doet and its funding deserves all credit.
“We are so proud of all the hard work by the organizations, businesses and volunteers that supported and participated. It is great to see so many persons coming out to help St. Maarten become a better place, one small step at a time; as the Doet slogan states: Together We Achieve More. A heartfelt thank you therefore goes out to all the participating organizations and selfless volunteers who donated their time, energy, heart and dedication this past weekend. Without them this initiative would not have been nearly as successful as it was,” stated a press release from the organization on Sunday.
The team is now already looking forward to Sxm Doet 2017, as they are expecting the initiative to grow bigger and better every year. They hope that the initiative has also opened the eyes of many persons, as to how many great organizations and community projects there are locally.
Stimulating volunteerism, empathy and altruism as a whole, as well as creating unity amongst the different interest groups on the island, has therefore highlighted the many remarkable, selfless persons our Friendly Island have, concluded the statement.
Mercedes van der Waals-Wyatt and the HOPE team were happy to partake in the volunteer program. “Helping is part of what our association is about and giving back to the community also helps our citizens. The Hope team members registered to volunteer for two projects: repainting of the Sundial Gym on Friday and also assisted in the Kite Flying workshop organized by Beyond Kultura Events Foundation by Loekie Morales. Painting the gym and seeing so many people work together for a goal was very enlightening and it gave us a sense of team spirit and accomplishment of pride once the entire gym was finished.
“To see the students working side by side with teachers and volunteers gave us a great feeling and we are glad that we have contributed to an educational facility where students can work out and feel happy in an educational environment,” said Wyatt in a statement on Sunday. On Saturday HOPE assisted children with Kite Flying and took the time to speak to children and other volunteers.
