Zontians believe & deliver

Claudia Pinder believed! She sold her fellow Zonta Club of New Providence (ZCNP) members on that concept and embraced change, which meant that they did not have to cancel their 11th Annual Wine Dinner, even in the midst of a pandemic.

While many others opted to “close shop” on events until 2021 and the world is hopefully given the go-ahead to gather en masse once again, Zontians decided to host their wine dinner on the platform available to them now – virtual, with Pinder leading the charge.

All-in-all, I give kudos to Pinder and the Zontians as they pulled off a coup, in my eyes, albeit with a few hiccups, because in all actuality, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry – so no matter how meticulously you plan, something will go wrong.

But to see people “coming together” from their homes last week Saturday, donned in fabulous attire and in some cases with “beat faces” while others opted for a casual approach – boogeying to Barbados soca queen Alison Hinds and Bahamian Julien Believe, as well as Charles “DJ Pencil” Turnquest on the “turntables” delivering old school party turn-up songs, feasting on Chef Emmanuel “Manny” Gibson’s cuisine from Manuelo’s and sipping on Believe Wines – was a sight to behold and one for the history books.

Over 230 meals were delivered to patrons’ doorsteps by Kraven Food and Beverage Ordering and Delivery.

And then Pinder took over hosting duties during the Zoom event with Sherrelle “Roxie Starr” Duncombe for a yin and yang combination that worked, considering the duo had only met on set for the first time, and had only spoken to each other once prior to the actual event.

Pinder said she pushed for the virtual wine dinner because she believes in Zonta, what it stands for, and is passionate about the growth and advancement of women.

The virtual wine dinner culminated ZCNP’s “Say No” to violence against women and girls with 16 Days of Activism.

The wine dinner is the club’s annual fundraiser that augments ZCNP’s scholarship funds for young women. Part of the proceeds from the live auction and raffle prizes are dedicated to the ZCNP’s Betty Kelly Kenning Endowment Fund at the University of The Bahamas.

“This is our premier fundraiser and what we are known for other than advocacy. And understanding the times, I said this should not stop it [wine dinner]. I said let’s do something this different this year because we have all felt the economic strain,” said Pinder.

She also felt that Zontians should embrace the change and use it to still promote their cause.

Pinder said she felt it important to take to the virtual world, rather than fight against it.

“Everyone is having Zoom meetings, I said let’s use the virtual world to have a virtual wine dinner. I believed this could happen. I saw it. I saw the different partners and said what do I need to do to bring this project together – the important elements and important players?’”

She took the leap of faith with the support of ZCNP’s membership.

“We approached The Movi Group… told them what I thought. They said its pioneering and the way to go. We had meetings and started to collaborate. We talked through what we would need, how we would pull this off and the tools and resources that would be necessary.

“We have the patrons. We need the chef [for] the food. I said rather than persons coming to the restaurant, we would need to get their food to them. We need wine – I believe in entrepreneurship and promoting Bahamian and supporting each other; I saw Julien Believe had launched his wine and thought it would be good to partner with him for the wine dinner.”

Hosting the dinner virtually, Pinder said she also envisioned them going beyond their normal capacity of 150 people and having a more national reach.

It was a project that was two-and-a-half intense weeks in the making.

“It was an active two-and-a-half weeks. There was a passion, a commitment that’s beyond anything I honestly felt. I knew this was something that had to be done because people are so dismal about what’s happening with COVID.”

Pinder was inspired by the belief that Zonta was bringing cheer to people and allowing them the opportunity to dance and interact if only for three hours – and that they can still exist in the pandemic era and not worry so much.

“I ate, slept and drank this,” she said of the planning stage.

For some people the “elephant in the room” was the hiccups encountered with the late delivery of food and some food items not even received, but in totality, the Zonta virtual wine dinner turned out to be an exceptional event.

“I’m very proud of it and I would do it again and again and again,” said Pinder.

“For me, I wouldn’t say it was disappointing. I accepted it as growth and made notes throughout the premiere because people were concerned about delivery of food [it was planned that everyone would have their food by 7:15 p.m.], and it shows that no matter how meticulously you planned, things can go wrong.”

With the curfew moved from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. that meant more cars were on the streets on the evening of the event than they had anticipated, which meant for late deliveries.

“Murphy’s Law says anything that can go wrong, will. Life is a learning experience. I don’t believe we should not take risk. Every accomplishment and venture has risk, and I feel the reward far outweighed our risk and what occurred on the back end. Zonta was able to stay relevant in this time and we didn’t close up shop. I would rather try and fail, than not try at all and not know what could have been.”

Because of their virtual wine dinner which was the talk of the town, Pinder said she believes even more people are aware of what Zonta is. And that she and her fellow Zontians simply had to believe in themselves and accept change, because without change, they won’t have growth.

The post Zontians believe & deliver appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.

source https://thenassauguardian.com/zontians-believe-deliver/