Philipsburg/TORTOLA-St. Maarten based sculptor Michael Meghiro unveiled one his latest work in the British Virgin Islands last weekend-a statue of Noel Lloyd, a prominent hero of the territory. This is the first major monument for the British Virgin Islands and according to Meghiro, there are more to come in the near future. The occasion was the ceremony for the renaming of the park in Palm Grove Park in Road Town, the capital of Tortola to the Noel Lloyd/Positive Action Movement Park.
As the monument was unveiled, the onlookers marveled at the magnificently, glowing bronze statue, that many remarked is resembles the Noel Llyod, the man who was to the BVI like Claude Wathey was to St. Maarten. Clearly, BV Islanders were thrilled to have their first monument and it was even a greater joy for Meghiro who said he was honored to have been afforded the opportunity to construct the monument that is important for Tortola and its citizens. "I feel very great, I feel honored," Meghiro said. He received a picture of Lloyd which he used to determine the likeness of the image before making the mold of the statue. For the past few days leading the unveiling, he has been doing the finishing work on the statue.
Lloyd was born in the British Virgin Islands in 1936 and served in the Royal Air Force in the late 1950s and early 1960s before he traveled to Kenya. He returned to the territory in the mid 1960s and was instrumental in the Positive Action Movement formed in 1968 to oppose the development by "Bates-Hill Company of Britain who bought out the local owner of an island in Road Town harbor called Wickham's Cay the new developers signed a 199 year lease and planned to restrict the entrance of locals onto the property. Llyod and the Sportive Action Movement vehemently opposed the move, staging protest marches that led to their arrests and at times beatings. The movement paid off when in 1971, the British government purchased the land and the lease agreement was nullified buys the Privy Council. Noel Lloyd passed away last year August but was assured before his death that the park would be renamed in his honor.
On hand to witness this historic occasion along with the many BV Islanders were Premier of the BVI Hon. Ralph T O'Neal, Lloyd's daughter Sarah Llyod Gomez, and the members of the positive Action Movement, most of which were part of the group in its initial stages in the 1960s.
HIGH PRAISES
Dignitaries and guests at last Sunday's function praised Meghiro for the excellent job he did on the monument. "Oh my goodness. It's a good likeness of Lloyd. It's a very good replica of him," Patsy Lake, one of the original members of the Positive Action Movement. She believes that people will have a greater appreciation of the fight of the Positive Action Movement during the struggle in the 1960s now that the monument is established in the park. Premier Ralph T O'Neal also agreed that the statue resembles Lloyd, having known him personally for years.
He believes the monument will the children of the territory realize what took place 40 years ago and generations will be reminded of and appreciate the work done back then. He said he was appreciative of the turnout and for those who participated in the event. "One of the shortcomings of the West Indies generally is we don't try to record (the history) so that those who come after us will know what the past generations went through," O'Neal said.
Noel Llyod's daughter Sarah Llyod Gomez took one look at the statue after it was unveiled immediately acknowledges that it resembles her father: the face, the beard and the posture. "I remember him a little taller but remember I'm his little girl, so I always used to look up to him," she said. She said she feels every honored that the BVI recognized her father, especially at a rough time in her family-her sister is battling leukemia and it has been less than a year since her father died. She also did not venture into the debate that apparently has been raging on the island that Lloyd should have been honored by the government a long time ago for his exploits. "The bottom line is that it is behind done now. Better now than never," she said.