By STAFF WRITER,
Guardian News Desk
Image source
Eric Wilmott, a former editor at The Nassau Guardian, who recently served as the newspaper's sub-editor, is being honored by the Fox Hill Festival Committe, and as such, the annual Fox Hill Day Festival and Emancipation Day Celebrations - Friday, Aug. 1 through Tuesday Aug. 12 - has been named in his honor.
This year the Fox Hill Village and the rest of The Bahamas will be celebrating 174 years since the Emancipation of the African slaves in The Bahamas and the then British Empire.
With a full list of events for the observances, they decided to name this year's festivities in honor of Wilmott who will retire from active work with the festival.
Wilmott, a Fox Hill man, was born there 74 years ago on Apr. 6 and helped to manage the festival for at least 20 years. He is known as the historian of Fox Hill.
The journalist by profession was honoured by Her Majesty the Queen with the British Empire Medal in 2007, and this year's celebrations will be an opportunity to celebrate his accomplishments for and on behalf of the people of Fox Hill.
Emancipation is not just the celebration of freedom for people of African descent in The Bahamas. It is a celebration of the freedom of all people of The Bahamas. According to the organizers of the festival, as long as one man is slave then none of us is free, and they invite everyone to come and join them in celebration during the week-and-a-half of activities.
The festival will begin with official opening ceremonies, and close with a Junkanoo rush-out and fireworks display. They have also scheduled the National Emancipation Day celebration, on Monday, Aug. 4. It will start at 1:00 a.m. with the Emancipation Day Rush-out, headlining all of the major Junkanoo Groups. This will be followed later that day with the Ecumenical Emancipation Day Service, which Governor General Arthur D. Hanna is expected to attend along with other government officials and community leaders. The service will be followed by the annual senior citizens luncheon organized by Olive Mackey and the Committee.
On Thursday, Aug. 7, a special Emancipation Day and Fox Hill Day Town meeting will be held, where participants will talk about "Guarding our Heritage". This will be headed by a panel of guest speakers on the importance of the Emancipation Day celebrations and how it affects us culturally, environmentally and socially.
This will be followed by the Member of Parliament's annual reception, sponsored by Fred Mitchell, M.P. for Fox Hill.
Culminating the list of events, will be the Fox Hill Day celebrations on Aug. 12, which the public is invited to attend and then worship at St. Paul's, Macedonia, Mt. Carey and St. Marks Baptist churches along with the other customary Fox Hill Day festivities such as climbing the greasy pole; the plaiting of the May Pole as well as being entertained with performances by Visage.
During the week, Fox Hillians are expecting performances and drills by the Royal Bahamas Police Force Band, Her Majesty's Prison Band and the Royal Bahamas Defence Force Band.
