Hampshire …a lively community in need of some attention

Jul 10, 2022 News

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Village Focus

By Malisa Playter-Harry

Kaieteur News – Home to hundreds of people, the busy community of Hampshire, Corentyne, East Berbice is bordered by the villages of Williamsburg to the east and Belvedere to the west. There are several thriving businesses that provide residents with all of their basic and varied needs.

If you visit at the right time, and enter from the west, you are likely to spot a water coconut vendor who offers refreshing coconut water from the nut itself or bottled in various sizes.

He was not out when The Waterfalls visited but that was not surprising since his coconut water is popular with villagers and passers-by, especially on the days when the temperature soars.  His coconut water I assure you is always sweet and most importantly, quenches the thirst quite nicely.

On the opposite end, you can’t miss a massive three-storey concrete structure that is taking shape. It is said that the building will house a new business which will offer employment to many. It has been under construction for quite some time and is expected to be completed in the near future. Just next door to that building are two fruit and greens (vegetable) vendors. One of the vendors was seen transacting business with a customer, all the while with a pleasant smile.

I caught up with 25-year-old Shivani Sukhai who was helping her mother, the greens vendor, with the business. Sukhai, who works at the canteen at a nearby school, said that with school closed, she is assisting her mother. Her mother, she said, sold greens and fruits at the Port Mourant and Rose Hall Town markets since 2007, but subsequently started operating the roadside stall.

“When you go to the market you have to spend more time, you have to go early in the morning but here is closer to home and she gets more time,” Sukhai said as she revealed that permission was granted for her mother to do this.  For this, she said, they are extremely grateful since because of the location many people passing in their vehicles can easily stop and purchase from them.

Sukhai said she enjoys helping out her mother and is happy that people choose to buy from them since many of the vegetables such as bora, tomatoes and fruits like banana are grown right in their backyard.

“We have like bora, pumpkin, balanjay (boulanger) and some we does grow in our yard,” she shared.

The village has two mandirs, a church, a sawmill, a pawnshop, a Superbet outlet, two Chinese restaurants (Double Wing and Kwai) and a Chinese supermarket too. There is also the Art and Gift Shop which makes and sells ornaments, along with plant pots, concrete spindles, garden gnomes, concrete tubing and yard ornaments. The owners were unfortunately out during my visit but, according to residents, their prices are very affordable. The village is also home to the Anamayah Law Office, the First Impression Hotel/Guesthouse/Restaurant and Bar, the Carpen General Store, Sham Halaal Food and Clothing Store, Sase Narine Son and Daughter Electronic Centre/General Store and A. Hamid and Sons General Store.

Most notably, you can find one of Berbice’s most popular personality, Shakir Bacchus, a Commissioner of Oaths and Justice of the Peace (JP) who was last year featured in the pages of the Kaieteur News as a ‘Special Person’. He is now 74 years old and is still going strong with dozens of customers accessing his service.

Located opposite Bacchus’ business is the Lions Club building which is used as a day-care/play school centre and just next door to that is a wooden abandoned building with the banner ‘Federal United Party’. That building was reportedly utilised by that political party which was formed by a group of attorneys in Berbice who contested the last General and Regional Elections.

Sixty-three-year-old Mohanie Ramnarine, called ‘Aunty Paro’, has been living in Hampshire since 1992. I caught up with her as she was making her way home on her bicycle. She had just purchased a new mop from a nearby shop. For her, living in Hampshire has not been all good but “the village is not a bad village because people from all over come and live,” she said.

Ramnarine said where she lives, the younger generation is not as kind as they were many years ago. She lives alone since both her son and husband have passed away. Because she lives alone, she feels that she is targeted for torment whenever she is vocal about wrongdoings in her community. According to her, repeated reports to the police station are ignored and she is of the opinion that despite her issue is small, the police force should take all matters seriously.

“Dem does throw garbage around the area and when I talk, they curse me…my neighbour has a workshop and when they vehicles park, they take out their pants and urinate all over the place and when I talk, they curse me. The other day they took a wood and put it in front of my yard and they took it and throw it in the trench, I went to the station and nobody is looking after me…” said a frustrated Ramnarine.

The woman said that she is also looking for a job since the “times are hard” and “everything at the shop raise”. But because she is 63 years old, she said that persons are reluctant to hire her. The woman is of the firm belief that there should be job opportunities for the elderly and able-bodied persons like herself.

“Anything I get I could manage because right now you see me here with my bicycle, is a mop stick I get here, I went and clean up a place and I went and weed out a piece yard for somebody. They say that when you over 60 in this country you not getting a job so when you reach 60 you either got to kill yourself or you got to beg or something on the street…” Ramnarine said.

However, despite her many issues, Ramnarine said she still finds time to enjoy the good things in life. Among the fun things for her is joining the May 5 Indian Arrival Day celebrations at Highbury, East Bank Berbice, which she does with her grandson.

In the village too is a barber shop operated by Kumar Jankreran who has been living in Hampshire Village all his life. He described the village as peaceful with kind and loving people. He noted that people do all kinds of things for a living but personally, he has been doing barbering for the past 10 years. He said that it has been a rewarding job for him so far.

“Depending on how you work, if you work six days a week and so, you will be able to take care of your family and so,” he said. He noted that many persons are also employed at the estate or are in construction. But according to him, while there has been some development within the community, the roads need attention and there should be programmes for youths within the community, particularly during the August vacation.

During my visit, a regular customer at Kumar’s barbershop, cricketer and businessman Shawn Perreira from Williamsburg Village, was being groomed. He said that even if there was a barbershop in his village, he would still choose Kumar’s “because this is the best barber around.”

The village of Hampshire is an ideal place to visit, especially if you want to spend a few nights in Berbice. With the hotel/guesthouse situated in the heart of the village, one is sure to fully take in its ambience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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