Members of "The Visionaires" hold plastic bags with turkeys during their giveback event on Saturday, Nov. 20, 2021. Photo Credit: THE VISIONAIRES
ST. THOMAS — A local community group named "The Visionaires" whose members range from 18-29 gave away 60 turkeys on Saturday at the Emile Griffith Ballpark in St. Thomas as part of the group's effort to support those in need during the holiday season.
Nathan Dowell, founder and president of the Visionaires, said he started the organization along with his close friend with the intention of giving back to the Virgin Islands.
Last year, the group gave away five turkeys, however this year they wanted to do more and agreed to give away 50 turkeys to members of the community. Mr. Dowell said group members self-sponsored the items to make the giveaway possible.
"This organization is built up with the youth giving back to the community," Mr. Dowell said. "We are not waiting until we are older. We are literally young individuals that want to give back to the community in any way we can.”
Mr. Dowell said the event went “extremely well” and that it exceeded his expectations as the group gave away the 60 turkeys in thirty minutes.
He said Senator Steven Payne played a role in helping the organization surpass its goal. The senator was a volunteer at the event, however when he realized the group ran out of turkeys, Mr. Payne got 10 more.
Along with the turkeys, the organization provided gift bags that contained red beans, rice, cranberry juices, granola crackers, macaroni and pasta, according to the organizers.
While he was busy managing the event on Saturday, Mr. Dowell said he was unable to capture the impact the effort had on the community. "But when I sat down that night and watched the videos and the pictures, that’s what really put a smile on my face," he said. "We helped families and saw their smiles… that was the goal.”
During the event, the organization provided free haircuts and the Department of Health set up a pop-up vaccination site. Mr. Dowell said a representative from D.O.H. told him that “a good number of people got vaccinated.”
The haircuts were provided by Jahnajade Hodge who can be found on Facebook here.
During a phone interview with the Consortium, Mr. Dowell thanked the people who made donations, the volunteers and employees at the Department of Sports, Parks and Recreation for their support in making the event possible and a success.
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