By Admin. Updated 1:22 p.m., Monday, August 3, 2026, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).
A Vincentian author is turning her passion for the Garifuna language into a practical effort to help preserve one of the nation’s most important cultural legacies.
Mrs June-Ann Derrick-Richards of Sandy Bay has published two educational books—The Garifuna Alphabet and Book of Numbers in the Garifuna Language—to make the Indigenous language more accessible to learners of all ages.
The books, which are available at Gaymes Book Centre in Kingstown, are intended to provide a simple introduction to the language while encouraging greater appreciation of the Garifuna heritage among Vincentians.
Mrs. Derrick-Richards said the inspiration for the publications can be traced back nearly four decades.
In 1987, Garifuna cultural advocates Roy and Phyllis Cayetano of Belize visited her family home in Sandy Bay and spoke about their efforts to revive the Garifuna language and compile a Garifuna dictionary. She recalled being deeply influenced by her mother, Alida Derrick-Cordice, who was an active member of the Council for the Development Carib Community and often spoke proudly about hearing fluent Garifuna speakers during an Indigenous peoples’ conference in Dominica.
Those early experiences planted the seed of a lifelong ambition to learn the language of her ancestors.
That ambition gained fresh momentum during the eruption of La Soufrière Volcano in 2021 when Roy Cayetano contacted the family to enquire about their wellbeing. During the conversation, Richards shared her desire to learn Garifuna.
“Follow your heart,” Cayetano encouraged her.
The following day, he reinforced that encouragement by sending her a digital copy of The People’s Dictionary in the Garifuna Language.
Later that year, Derrick-Richards enrolled in the Garifuna for Non-Speakers programme. Although she successfully completed the first level, she deliberately repeated the course to strengthen her foundation before progressing further.
“I wanted to ensure the fulfilment of my passion to learn the Garifuna language,” she said.
Richards explained that her books are intended for all Vincentians but have particular significance for Indigenous communities.
“My primary audience is all the people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, especially the Indigenous people, particularly my brothers and sisters north of the Yurumein (Rabacca) Bridge,” she said.
Reflecting that commitment, she has donated copies of The Garifuna Alphabet, together with another of her publications, Splish Splash in Owia Salt Pond, to the top CPEA-performing students at the primary schools in Fancy, Owia, Sandy Bay and Tourama.
Unlike many first-time authors, Richards said producing the books presented few major obstacles.
She described the publications as a natural extension of what she learned through her language studies. After preparing the manuscripts and designing the covers herself, she received guidance from her tutor, Arufudahatu Erei, and Roy Cayetano throughout the process.
Her work to promote the language is continuing.
Richards revealed that she is preparing to publish a third book, Adimurehatina Garifuna (“I Speak Garifuna”), a conversational guide for children featuring Garifuna phrases alongside their English translations.
She said her long-term goal is to contribute meaningfully to the revival of the Garifuna language in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
That commitment extends beyond writing.
Earlier this year, she organised an online recital titled Yurumein Ísieni (“St. Vincent and the Grenadines Love”), bringing together relatives and friends to learn Garifuna songs before presenting them to her tutor. She has also assisted students of the Sandy Bay Government School in learning songs in the language and regularly teaches Garifuna online to her nephews, Joash and Jadon.
Derrick-Richards believes that preserving the Garifuna language requires active participation from communities as well as accessible learning resources. Through her books and ongoing community initiatives, she hopes to inspire more Vincentians to reconnect with an important part of the country’s Indigenous identity and ensure that the language is passed on to future generations.
END