HolidaysAndEvents
The season culminates with the Eleuthera Junior Junkanoo competition, held during the final Saturday in January, where Primary and High Schools compete for bragging rights. Eleuthera schools also currently stand as the proud champions of the national Junior Junkanoo competition, in both the primary and high school divisions, which is held annually in New Providence during the second week in December.
The process The final Junkanoo parade product is the result of many weeks of preparation, creation, and practice. One arts teacher commented on the creative process and the community it encourages, saying, “It’s amazing! As a teacher, you are always looking for that thing that will pull people together, and get parents behind you, and what will get the businesses within a community involved and working with young people, and the glue here in the community in Eleuthera right now seems to be Junkanoo. “What happens in a Junkanoo shack is - you have different types of people, from all walks of life - it’s a classic story; they would never be in contact together, but you have a shared goal and a shared project. That feeling of togetherness, I think is what keeps bringing people on Eleuthera back to Junkanoo in their communities.” Although, the Christmas and New Year’s holidays have been the traditional season for Junkanoo, demand has grown for the spectacle, so many events throughout the year showcase different aspects of Junkanoo.
124 | The Eleutheran Magazine