Frederick Smith Secondary School receives Broken Trident
Sun, 05/08/2016 - 12:00am
Last Friday, Frederick Smith Secondary became the first school in St. James to host the commemorative Broken Trident.
During a special ceremony, Cadet Melissa Joseph had the honour of receiving the symbolic Broken Trident, which commemorates the 50th anniversary of Barbados’ Independence, while Principal Jefferson Phillips signed the “The Passport” – officially accepting its receipt.
He shared with students and specially invited guests that the arrival of the Broken Trident to Frederick Smith was indeed an historic event.
“Nearly 50 years ago, this small island assumed management of its own affairs when it gained Independence from its colonial masters. As a nation, we have made tremendous strides ever since through the hard work and sacrifices of our forefathers. This nation’s greatest resource is its people and its success depends almost entirely on their actions,” he expressed.
“Students, you are the future of our nation and I encourage every single one of you to contribute towards nation building. It is not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country,” he asserted.
Craig Smith, son of Sir Frederick Smith, further revealed that the occasion was even more special because his father, the school’s namesake, was part of this country’s government on achieving Independence in 1966.
Looking on at the Broken Trident he explained, “The broken half of the Trident represents our symbolic break away from colonialism. The three points of the Trident represent the principles of democracy – government of, for, and by the people.”
Furthermore, “It is based on this strong democracy that Barbados has been able to achieve a lot over the last 50 years. We also have to give credit to the visionaries that led Barbados over the last 50 years; we have to recognise the role that our National Heroes played as well as the many other people that made sig-nificant contributions to allow Barbados to be where it is at today.
“I urge you to read more about these leaders... spend some time to learn about the people that put us where we are today,” he told students.