Oct. 7, 2007 — The Virgin Islands honored the contributions of several long-standing Puerto Rican families to St. Croix society Sunday evening in the ballroom of Christiansted’s Government House.
These “familias pioneras,” or pioneer families, were among the early families to come to St. Croix from the island of Vieques in the 1920s, raising children, opening stores and businesses and becoming an inextricable part of St. Croix society. Vera M. Falu, president of the Virgin Islands-Puerto Rico Friendship committee, acted as mistress of ceremonies, singling out people in the gathered crowd for a word or two of thanks and praise and introducing the speakers.
“Stand up, Nina Maria Guandolo,” Falu said. “There were 72 entries in the poster contest this year, and hers won. It’s on the booklet you have, on T-shirts, on everything this year.”
Guandolo won a $1,000 prize for her work, and the Puerto Rico central post office has selected the poster to become a stamp, Falu said. Guandolo is a tenth grader at St. Croix Country Day School.
The territory’s top dignitaries were there for the event. Delegate Donna M. Christensen, Gov. John deJongh Jr., Lt. Gov. Gregory Francis and Senate President Usie R. Richards spoke of the good relations and special bond between the people of the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, especially Vieques and St. Croix.
Christensen gave her remarks entirely in Spanish and then again in English. Three quarters of the way through, stumbling on a word, she stopped, went back and said the word correctly, to spontaneous applause. “Tonight we celebrate several special members of our family,” she said. “I join you in thanking these families for their accomplishments and contributions to the Virgin Islands: Bermudez, Encarnacion, Marrero, Nieves, Torres and Saldana, Congratulations!”
Christensen also said a few words about Stanley Jacobs, founder of St. Croix’s well-loved band Stanley and the Ten Sleepless Knights. Along with the pioneer families, Jacobs was honored individually for his lifetime achievements.
By an act of the Legislature, Falu said, every year the territory is supposed to honor Puerto Ricans who contributed to the development of the Virgin Islands.
“We have done this for over 43 years now,” she said. “But this year we decided to honor families. We convened a meeting at Paquito’s restaurant, if you know where that is, and people showed us a wealth of information. Some even knew the name of the boat their family came over on.”
Stories were shared of happy childhood memories.
“I can remember, back when teetee bread was two cents, dating myself a bit,” Richards said. “In those days, you could go to Chico’s, where Villa Morales is now, and get a mash and go. That’s just a St. Croix thing, the mash and go: You’d get a big plate of rice, beans and a Brow soda for one dollar.”
Richards said all his life Puerto Ricans had been an important part of the community, “whether Crucio-Rican or Puerto-Crucian.”
All the families being honored had come over from Vieques, Falu said, epitomizing a special historical bond between Vieques and St. Croix.
“I come from Santos, myself, not Vieques, but we are all Puerto Rican and we are all Crucian,” she said. “The community opened up and accepted these immigrants, which is what we were. The people of the Virgin Islands have been so kind to us.”
Each of the families came up in turn, with an elder member saying a few words and receiving a mahogany plaque, cut and stained in the design of one of the island’s many stone windmills.
When the Encarnacion family came up, Cristobal Encarnacion told a little Puerto Rican-St. Croix pioneer history.
“Manuel Roman LaFontaine was the real pioneer,” Encarnacion said. “He came here to St. Croix in 1917 and loved it. He went back to Vieques and came here in 1922, and brought his family with him to stay.”
Last up to receive a plaque was Jacobs.
“You have been the greatest proponent of our quelbe and quadrille music,” Falu said. “You have really showcased our two cultures in one person.”
Jacobs was at turns joking and serious in his comments.
“The Knights are not all here tonight,” he said. ”And I mean that literally and figuratively.”
In Spanish, Jacobs said he could not express in words how profound this recognition and honor was to him. St. Croix Administrator Pedro “Pete” Encarnacion helpfully translated.
Once the presentations and speeches were done for the evening, a band struck up, a line formed at the substantial Crucian and Puerto Rican buffet spread and the invited guests mingled, chatting with friends, family and government officials.

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