Photos & Video: Open Your Heart Celebration

March 30, 2024 | 0 Comments

Overcast skies and intermittent rain showers failed to dampen the radiant atmosphere of the Open Your Heart Foundation’s Good Friday celebration at Warren Simmons Field, where fun, camaraderie and a spirit of love were the order of the day.

With vendors providing free offerings of food, drink, fun castles, face painting and more the 13th edition of the event once again was brought to the west end revellers from far and wide, with not too few overseas visitors mixed in, enjoying the occasion.

“There’s a lot of love out here today,” said a spokesman for Open Your Heart Foundation. “If you look at the weather, it’s not really the best day and you still see the amount of people that have come out here to support , so it’s nothing but love.

“We’ve been doing it for 13 years. It feels good just to give back to people, especially in these times when a lot of people are going through their own financial situation.

“So we just try to play our part as a community. And not just a community in Somerset, but a community island-wide that comes together to help this platform perform.

“It takes a lot of love to put this on. A lot of different communities helping us to do this. It’s not just a Somerset thing, but a lot of restaurants and businesses and sponsors are involved in this movement.”

Bostonian Ellen Lincoln, a multiple attendee at the event, told how she looked forward to the celebration every year.

“I look forward to this every year, mostly because of the fishcakes, because I love them, they’re so good,” said Ellen, there with her husband Rob and son Hugh. “It’s just a great atmosphere, with nice things for the families.

“You can tell just by watching people who have probably not seen each other since they were here a year before. It’s just so great.”