17th December, 2014
The Maria Holder Memorial Trust is proud to announce the groundbreaking on Lot #2 Church Hill Road, Gall Hill, Christ Church that is the site of a spanking new state-of-the-art Nursery School.
Christopher Holder, Chairman and Co-Founder of The Maria Holder Memorial Trust, spoke at the ceremony about the Trust’s strategic priority in Education. He stated: “This is part of a wider project to build six Nursery Schools across the island and therefore provide places for all children requiring Nursery Education in Barbados.”
It is however not the first school donated by the Trust as part of its legacy for future generations of Barbadians.
“This journey began in 2011 with our very first Nursery school in Sharon, St. Thomas named after my Mother. The Maria Holder Nursery School was the first Nursery School funded by the Trust in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and now boasts a roll of 113 students and we hope in years to come that the children of this community will be filling this spot where we are now with their growing knowledge and laughter.” said Mr. Holder.
Students from the Maria Holder Nursery School, led by Headmistress Shelley Boyce, delighted the audience with their performance at the groundbreaking ceremony where the Minister of Education, The Hon. Ronald Jones, delivered the Keynote Address.
The symbolic groundbreaking had a unique touch as two children from the surrounding community joined the official party with their mini shovels to represent the children for whom this school is being built. Six-year-old Kiara Sampson and 7-year-old Machio Walcott accompanied a delighted Mary Brewster, a Trustee who spoke on behalf of the Vice Chairman and Founder of The Maria Holder Memorial Trust, Chesterfield Brewster.
This Nursery School at Gall Hill is a collaborative project with the Ministry of Education and is solely funded by The Maria Holder Memorial Trust. The school will have the capacity for 150 children and has been designed to high specifications in order to provide a state-of-the-art environment for Nursery Education. The school will be completed in late 2015 and ready for occupancy in 2016. The Maria Holder Memorial Trust intends to construct other nursery schools in St Michael, Christ Church, St Phillip and St James.