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dateline: UVI The monthly newsletter of The University of the Virgin Islands December 15, 2003 vol ix, number 12 The third time was really a charm for the University of the Virgin Islands, which played host to record crowds November 21-29 at the third annual UVI Paradise Jam basketball tour- nament. Held each year in UVI’s Sports and Fitness Center, the UVI Paradise Jam tourna- ment draws more people to the Virgin Islands than any other event except Carnival and brings much-needed dollars to the territory’s businesses just before the tourist season gears up. Six men’s teams and eight women’s teams participated in the 2003 tournament, with Boston College and Wichita State battling neck and neck for the men’s championship title. In the final seconds of the game Bos- ton College edged out Wichita State 84-81. The women’s teams competed in two separate tournaments, a certified three-game event called the “St. John Division” and the other a two-game non certified event called the “St. Thomas Divi- sion.” Perhaps the most well at- tended game of the tournament was the women’s St. Thomas division title match between Vir- ginia Tech University and Mis- sissippi State University. The lead switched back and forth between the two teams until the final 32 sec- onds of the Record-Setting Crowds Attend UVI Paradise Jam game, when Virginia Tech scored and took con- trol until the final buzzer. Virginia Tech defeated Mississippi State 63-56. In the women’s St. John Division, South- west Missouri State prevailed over Georgia Tech, West Virginia and James Madison Uni- versity in round robin play. The winner was de- termined by a combination of net score and com- petition. UVI’s Associate Athletic Director Curtis Gilpin Sr. and V.I.Commissioner of Tourism Pamela Richards were in- ducted into the UVI Athletic Hall of Fame during the tournament. Both were champion volleyball players dur- ing their high school and college years. Gilpin has played for various volleyball leagues in the territory, winning MVP titles in each decade that he has played. He has also coached and served in ex- ecutive capacities for numer- ous volleyball organizations in the territory. Gilpin is the coach of UVI’s volleyball teams. In June of 2003, a five- year contract extension was inked between Basketball Travelers, Inc., which orga- nizes Paradise Jam and other collegiate tournaments, and the University of the Virgin Is- lands, ensuring that UVI will continue to host the Paradise Jam tournament through 2008. Events Calendar Dec. 24 - Jan. 4 UVI Closed for Holidays Jan. 5 UVI Reopens Jan. 6 Three Kings Day, UVI Closed Jan. 7-8 New Student Orientation STT, STX Jan. 10 Classes Begin STT, STX Jan. 19 Martin Luther King Jr. Day, UVI Closed Top: UVI Associate Athletic Director Curtis Gilpin Sr., gives remarks after being inducted into the UVI Athletic Hall of Fame. Gilpin and V.I. Tourism Commissioner Pamela Richards were inducted during the tournament. Middle: During the men’s tournment a Boston University player drives the ball through with a Monmouth University player in hot purstit. In the women’s tournament, players from Virginia Tech and Mississippi State University battle at the tip-off. dateline:UVI 2 John Brewer’s Bay St. Thomas, VI 00802 GET CONNECTED TO UVI news, activities and accomplishments at . . . www.uvi.edu dateline:UVI is a production of the UVI Public Relations Office. Contact us by telephone at (340) 693-1056 FAX: (340) 693-1055 GET CONNECTED TO UVI news, activities and accomplishments at . . . www.uvi.edu What’s it like flying for just over two hours in a small aircraft with 12 sheep and goats? Just ask Dr. Bob Godfrey of the UVI Agricultural Experiment Station’s Animal Science Program. Godfrey and Dr. Bethany Bradford, a veterinarian with the V.I. Department of Agriculture on St. Thomas, kept close tabs on their charges aboard a Coastal Air Transport 402 Cessna for the 500- mile flight. The livestock and Drs. Godfrey and Bradford made their way from the Virgin Islands to Haiti, where the animals were donated to the non- governmental organization Heifer Project International. The animals will be given to farmer as- sociations that are part of two projects in Haiti. “We are physically located in the Caribbean and it’s just good for us to work with our neighbors,” Dr. Godfrey said of In an effort to foster stronger ties between alumni and the University, UVI President LaVerne Ragster hosted an evening cocktail recep- tion for members of the UVI St. Thomas/St. John Alumni Association chap- ter on November 29, at the Reichhold Center for the Arts. A similar recep- UVI’s involvement. Godfrey, a research associate professor of animal science on UVI’s St. Croix campus, said it’s the AES’s responsibility to promote an is- land agriculture system. Heifer Project International partici- pants receive training in animal hus- bandry, are required to build adequate housing, plant improved forages and keep records on the animals. HPI has technicians that visit the associations monthly to monitor their progress. In addition to two hair sheep from the UVI flock, Dr. Bradford and St. Thomas livestock farmers Arthur Harthman, Buddy Henneman, Eugene Peters and Sinclair Hamm each donated animals to the HPI project. Additonal farmers have shown an interest in donating animals in the future. UVI and V.I. Dept. of Agriculture Send Livestock to Haiti Jacquelyn Adams, a UVI alum and director of the Queen Louise Home for the Aged, accepts a donation from Deanna Rogers, president of the UVI St. Thomas/St. John Alumni Associaton Chapter. tion was held in October in Washington D.C. and others are planned for areas where there are UVI Alumni Association chapters. There are 11 chapters throughout the Caribbean and the United States. The St. Thomas/St. John Alumni Association chapter is very active, recently making a donation to the Queen Louise Home for the Aged. UVI Alumni Bond, Local Chapter Makes Donation Top, left to right: Dept. of Agriculture veteri- nary assistant Sylvester Prentice and butcher Patrick Olive load an animal into a kennel while veternarian Dr. Bethany Bradford looks on.