People with various disabilities are expected to hit Mero beach in large numbers this Sunday, dancing to reggae music and featuring in a movie, thanks to the beginning of a five year partnership between the Dominica Association of Persons with Disabilities (DAPD), Romance Café and Frenchman, Marc Helie.
The partnership was announced on Thursday 2nd April 2015, at a press briefing at the office of the DAPD but will become official during the association’s 31st Annual General Meeting (AGM) on April 13, 2015 which is scheduled to be held at the Dominica Public Service Union (DPSU) auditorium on Valley road.
The event dubbed, “Reggae on the Beach” is free to the public and will feature acts such as Nellie Star, Harry Mo, Felix Trevy, Attunya, Fya Brite and Cornell Phillip. DAPD members including Dione Green, Ezekiel Mills, Kerwin Casimir, Loik Charles and Mathias Bruno will also perform.
It is expected to be an annual event.
Frederique Huard is from Paris and is the owner of Romance Café located at Mero. He said all of the profit from the event as well as proceeds from a raffle, will go to the Association.
“So this year I decided that Romance Café will go into partnership for five years at least because I am not a short term person, I love to make things happen,” Huard said. “I wanted Mero to become the maker of reggae in Dominica.”
The partnership came about when Marc Helie who is an amputee was a guest at Huard’s establishment.
According to her, she was sensitized and they began brain storming on how they can assist people with disabilities.
Helie who produced a movie 12 years ago along with another male amputee who is also paralyzed on one side, came to the island 12 years ago on a sail boat to film a movie in the Caribbean islands called ‘Une Vie En Plus’.
12 years later, he is back with another movie which features his life as an amputee including the Reggae On The Beach event.
He now lives in Mero where he bought “a piece of Dominica.”
According to him, when he came to the island two years ago, he realized how lucky he was to have two legs, thanks to an aesthetic leg after he lost one of his legs in a vehicular accident over 20 years ago.
“I see so many people without a leg in Dominica, so I was really surprised,” he said.
“It was sad for me to know that,” Helie said, adding that whenever his aesthetic leg is replaced, it is thrown away and seeing the need on the island, he approached the aesthetic company to send him some used aesthetic arms and legs to which they agreed.
Meanwhile President of the DAPD, Nathalie Murphy, said the beach event is the first of a number of activities, projects and programs in which Huard and Helie have asked the Association to do with them.
“We are going to be in a partnership which we hope will last for at least five years in the first instance,” she said.
I like what’s happening at mero’s beach
That is really cool and deserves it be applauded and patronized. Hats off yo all these guys
Are you also aware, the people of the Rosalie Constituency will also be having their big bash on the Rosalie Beach under the guidance of Hon Thompson Fontaine , on the Easter week end, where is the coverage on it, DNO.
I’m glad. This story is very touching.