WINTER 2024/2025 | ISSUE 8 HOT LIFESTYLE | ENTERTAINMENT | ADVENTURE WHAT'S FASHIONABLE FUNDRAISING GIVING BACK GRAM BELLA’S ISLAND EVENT SPACE THE LIGHT ROOM HOLISTIC HEALTH SANCTUARY KJ TAKES TO THE AIR NEXT GEN DJ COVERWhen is the last time you adjusted the value of your home insurance? islandheritageinsurance.com/underinsurance Underinsurance–it’s just not worth it. If the answer is not recently or never —you are likely underinsured. In 2013: CI $472,500 In 2018: CI $492,500 In 2023: CI $635,000 Example: Total rebuild cost* of a 2,500 sq ft home Over the last 10 years, the rebuild cost* of your home has increased by: 43% IFC2 Compass Centre, 319 Shedden Road, George Town, PO Box 1365, Grand Cayman, KY1-1108, Cayman Islands. What’s Hot Editor Laura Munyard Durston Contributing Writers Laura Munyard Durston Jenny Gabruch Catherine MacGillivray Graphic Design (editorial) Beth Ormerod – outside contractor Graphic Design (advertisements) Alex Angel Taneos Ramsay Head of Sales Cheryl Birch-Gillies Sales Representatives Kate Knox Lindsay Le Blanc Brenda Rubes Eric Vincent Cover image: Kelvin ‘KJ’ Blanchard of Island FM. Photo: Mark Westin. See full story on page 3. 3 KJ BIGS UP CAYMAN’S YOUTH New DJ hits the Island FM airwaves. 8 FASHIONABLE FUNDRAISING Catwalk for Cancer supports the Cayman Islands Cancer Society. 10 GRAM BELLA’S North Side community arts project space. 12 CAYMAN COOKOUT Highly anticipated event returns for its 16th year. 14 LET THERE BE LIGHT Avril Ward’s new venture offers healing therapy. 17 WHAT’S NEW IN THE 345 New businesses, restaurants and products to check out in Cayman. 21 WHA HAPPENIN’ Winter events to add to your social calendar. Contents3 BIGS UP KJ CAYMAN'S YOUTH By Catherine MacGillivray Kelvin ‘KJ’ Blanchard in the radio studio. Photo: Mark Westin4 As a young Caymanian, being given the chance to have his own radio show is a dream come true for Kelvin Blanchard. With his on-air name of YourstrulyKJ, which stems from his social media handle, he burst onto the airwaves in October with a Saturday show on Island FM. The Riddim Wave Morning Show plays a mixture of soca, dancehall, reggae and Afrobeats. KJ, as he is known to most people, aims for his show to entertain and inform listeners on what is going on in Cayman, as well as dispelling any stereotyped negative images of the islands’ youth. PLATFORM FOR POSITIVITY “ I am using my platform for positive actions and essentially contradicting the agenda that young Caymanians are lazy and unambitious,” he says. Although he just turned 19 in December, KJ is already proving that he is hard-working and ambitious, juggling his radio show commitments with studying full- time at the University College of the Cayman Islands. “ I’m a young Caymanian using my voice to speak for the people of my generation as well as brighten someone’s day.” KELVIN 'KJ' BLANCHARD Kelvin ‘KJ’ Blanchard in the radio studio. Photo: Mark Westin Kelvin ‘KJ’ Blanchard. Photo: Mark Westin5 KJ’s Riddim Wave show is on Island 98.9 FM from 9am-12pm on Saturdays. He is in his second year of an associate of applied science degree in business administration. COMPASS INTERNSHIP During the summer, through an opportunity facilitated by Rotary Cayman Islands Sunset, KJ secured an internship with Compass Media, the company which runs Island FM. “I did it because as a child, even though my mom always tried to get me to read books, I preferred to read the newspaper due to it being more entertaining,” he says. “Compass is an organisation that is done for the people, by the people, and it’s the perfect organisation that I would ideally be a part of.” As part of the internship, KJ worked at reception, taking bookings for advertisements and answering calls. He also was given the opportunity of work experience with the Compass radio stations. HIS OWN SHOW With a natural voice for radio, and his keen work ethic, KJ was invited back to host the Saturday morning show on Island FM, and occasionally stands in for other radio show hosts if they are unavailable. “(I am) extremely grateful to be a part of a team and proud to say I'm a young Caymanian using my voice to speak for the people of my generation as well as brighten someone’s day, even if it’s with a joke or an encouraging message,” he says. KJ relishes the chance to use his voice, often being told in school that he talked too much. “Being able to come in and fi nd a career that doesn’t make me feel bad for talking a lot, on top of getting to be my natural self and just entertain people at the same time, and have a platform, is probably my favourite aspect,” he says. It hasn't been an easy road for KJ to reach this far in life, overcoming a number of adversities, including the heartbreak of losing a brother in 2023. However, he gives gratitude to his parents for all the sacrifi ces they have made for him, and to his siblings for the encouragement and strength they give him. LOOKING FORWARD “Looking forward, I hope to build my platform and increase Island FM’s listener-base with people my age, and bring radio back for the youth in Cayman,” he says. KJ also aims to use his voice for good and encourage other young Caymanians to be great in whatever they do. “It feels unreal to say I've been given the opportunity to have my own show, not just because I'm so young but I just didn't expect to have my own show,” he says. “I just wanted to be brought back by Compass to play any role that they would've had me play, but it just shows that as a young Caymanian all I needed was a chance to be myself and thrive in a new environment.” KJ and his mother Shorlene Blanchard. Photo: Submitted From left, brothers Nevada Blanchard, Maurice Jr. Blanchard and Kelvin ‘KJ’ Blanchard. Photo: SubmittedEvery winter, during the full moon, something extraordinary happens beneath the waves in the Cayman Islands. Grouping together by the thousands at specifi c locations, the iconic Nassau grouper (Epinephelus striatus), gather to reproduce. What makes this spectacle so remarkable is that Nassau groupers are normally a solitary, territorial, top reef predator spending the majority of the year alone on their patch of the reef. However, during the fi rst full moons of each year, they make an incredible journey to known aggregation sites to ‘group’ together with their fellow partners to spawn future generations. DEPLETED STOCKS Historically, around 50 spawning aggregation sites have been documented throughout the Caribbean, but tragically, once discovered, the sites would become subjected to intense fi shing pressure. It is estimated that one third to half of the known Nassau grouper aggregation sites in the Caribbean are now no longer viable, with too few fi sh as a result of overfi shing. The Cayman Islands was once home to fi ve commonly known Nassau grouper spawning sites but, like other aggregations across the region, fi shing pressure eventually rendered them severely depleted or completely dormant. In the late 1980s, Cayman fi sherfolk, noticing the dwindling catch and smaller fi sh, approached the Department of Environment (DoE) to voice their concerns. DoE scientists immediately began collecting data to better understand the issue, looking closely at catch per unit effort and the size of the fi sh being extracted. There was clear evidence the fi shery was being exploited at unsustainable harvest rates. Management recommendations were proffered, but went largely unheeded. Then in 2001, a truly active aggregation site of around 6,000 Nassau grouper individuals was GROUPER MOON RISING The extraordinary mating phenomenon of Nassau grouper. Each winter, thousands of Nassau grouper gather in Little Cayman to spawn during the full moon. Photos: Stacey Henderson Jonathan Ebanks records the aggregation for Grouper Moon Project research. SPONSORED CONTENT rediscovered in the deep waters off the west end of Little Cayman. Word quickly spread and fi shers fl ocked to the site and, fi shing intensively, removed around 4,000 fi sh in two years, diminishing two thirds of the original estimated numbers. Not only had the aggregation site been severely depleted, but many of the harvested fi sh were wasted as a result of the fl ooded market. TEMPORARY BAN In response, the then Marine Conservation Board immediately established a temporary eight- year ban on fi shing known grouper aggregation sites, as eight years is the average length of time for Nassau grouper to reach reproductive maturity and join the aggregation. It was hoped the 2003 ban would relieve the fi shing pressure and give the population a chance to replenish while scientifi c teams ramped up research to understand how the species was being impacted and what management interventions were needed. To assist with the increased monitoring and research requirements of what had been determined as the last substantially active Nassau grouper spawning aggregation in the Caribbean, DoE partnered with the Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF). The foundation’s network of volunteers and scientists from Scripps and Oregon State University mobilised to form the Grouper Moon Project in 2002. Their focus was to more accurately determine how many grouper were attending the aggregation, and assess if and how restricting the fi shery would benefi t the population over time. Since then, both scientists and grouper, alike, travel to the west end of Little Cayman every winter to experience and document the last great reproductive population of this critical keystone species. TUNED TO THE MOON Grouper spawning is highly tuned to the celestial moon cues, and takes place on just a few nights during the week following one of the full moons in January, February or sometimes March. Like most fi sh aggregation hotspots, the Little Cayman spawning site is about 100 feet deep in tumultuous waters exposed to strong offshore currents. It is still unknown how the fi sh know when to gather, or even when to spawn, but studies suggest there is a strong connection to the strength and directions that currents are fl owing. Spawning frequently occurs on nights when currents are creating gyres of circulating water, which vastly improves fertilization, as eggs and sperm are literally mixed together before being carried to the relative safety offshore. NATURAL TREASURES Recognising and understanding the signifi cance of these natural treasures, regulations offi cially closing all spawning aggregation sites to fi shing were passed into law in 2012 and carried into the National Conservation Act when it was enacted in 2013. Although we are unlikely to ever see historic aggregation sizes again, it is encouraging to see the persistence and dedication to research and management by both the DoE and REEF marine science teams continue to fl ourish in this rare example of a successful species recovery. Learn more at doe.ky and reef.orgEvery winter, during the full moon, something extraordinary happens beneath the waves in the Cayman Islands. Grouping together by the thousands at specifi c locations, the iconic Nassau grouper (Epinephelus striatus), gather to reproduce. What makes this spectacle so remarkable is that Nassau groupers are normally a solitary, territorial, top reef predator spending the majority of the year alone on their patch of the reef. However, during the fi rst full moons of each year, they make an incredible journey to known aggregation sites to ‘group’ together with their fellow partners to spawn future generations. DEPLETED STOCKS Historically, around 50 spawning aggregation sites have been documented throughout the Caribbean, but tragically, once discovered, the sites would become subjected to intense fi shing pressure. It is estimated that one third to half of the known Nassau grouper aggregation sites in the Caribbean are now no longer viable, with too few fi sh as a result of overfi shing. The Cayman Islands was once home to fi ve commonly known Nassau grouper spawning sites but, like other aggregations across the region, fi shing pressure eventually rendered them severely depleted or completely dormant. In the late 1980s, Cayman fi sherfolk, noticing the dwindling catch and smaller fi sh, approached the Department of Environment (DoE) to voice their concerns. DoE scientists immediately began collecting data to better understand the issue, looking closely at catch per unit effort and the size of the fi sh being extracted. There was clear evidence the fi shery was being exploited at unsustainable harvest rates. Management recommendations were proffered, but went largely unheeded. Then in 2001, a truly active aggregation site of around 6,000 Nassau grouper individuals was GROUPER MOON RISING The extraordinary mating phenomenon of Nassau grouper. Each winter, thousands of Nassau grouper gather in Little Cayman to spawn during the full moon. Photos: Stacey Henderson Jonathan Ebanks records the aggregation for Grouper Moon Project research. SPONSORED CONTENT rediscovered in the deep waters off the west end of Little Cayman. Word quickly spread and fi shers fl ocked to the site and, fi shing intensively, removed around 4,000 fi sh in two years, diminishing two thirds of the original estimated numbers. Not only had the aggregation site been severely depleted, but many of the harvested fi sh were wasted as a result of the fl ooded market. TEMPORARY BAN In response, the then Marine Conservation Board immediately established a temporary eight- year ban on fi shing known grouper aggregation sites, as eight years is the average length of time for Nassau grouper to reach reproductive maturity and join the aggregation. It was hoped the 2003 ban would relieve the fi shing pressure and give the population a chance to replenish while scientifi c teams ramped up research to understand how the species was being impacted and what management interventions were needed. To assist with the increased monitoring and research requirements of what had been determined as the last substantially active Nassau grouper spawning aggregation in the Caribbean, DoE partnered with the Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF). The foundation’s network of volunteers and scientists from Scripps and Oregon State University mobilised to form the Grouper Moon Project in 2002. Their focus was to more accurately determine how many grouper were attending the aggregation, and assess if and how restricting the fi shery would benefi t the population over time. Since then, both scientists and grouper, alike, travel to the west end of Little Cayman every winter to experience and document the last great reproductive population of this critical keystone species. TUNED TO THE MOON Grouper spawning is highly tuned to the celestial moon cues, and takes place on just a few nights during the week following one of the full moons in January, February or sometimes March. Like most fi sh aggregation hotspots, the Little Cayman spawning site is about 100 feet deep in tumultuous waters exposed to strong offshore currents. It is still unknown how the fi sh know when to gather, or even when to spawn, but studies suggest there is a strong connection to the strength and directions that currents are fl owing. Spawning frequently occurs on nights when currents are creating gyres of circulating water, which vastly improves fertilization, as eggs and sperm are literally mixed together before being carried to the relative safety offshore. NATURAL TREASURES Recognising and understanding the signifi cance of these natural treasures, regulations offi cially closing all spawning aggregation sites to fi shing were passed into law in 2012 and carried into the National Conservation Act when it was enacted in 2013. Although we are unlikely to ever see historic aggregation sizes again, it is encouraging to see the persistence and dedication to research and management by both the DoE and REEF marine science teams continue to fl ourish in this rare example of a successful species recovery. Learn more at doe.ky and reef.orgNext >