St. Maarten Academy’s 5th form student, Jenice Forbes, emerged as Soualigan Fyah Youth Poetry’s Supreme Poet for the second consecutive year on Friday, February 28, 2014.
Forbes competed against Traci Jones, who took second place, and Julie Alcin, who took third place. Other competing poets included Andrew Peterson, who won best poet during the "My Black History" round, Deshawn Dupree, who also won best poem for the finals, Janice Forbes and Jolisa Jackman. Forbes also won best poem for the "Mother Language/Tongue" round.
The winner received a cash prize of $100 and the first and second prize winners received cash prizes in the amount of $75 and $50 respectively.
Soualigan Fyah, an annual poetry and spoken word competition for teenagers, was organized by Foundation 5 Square Miles St. Martin, in collaboration with the Philipsburg Jubilee Library. Collaboration for the International Mother Language Day was undertaken with UNESCO Commission of Sint Maarten. A number of private citizens also contributed to the final and best poem financial prizes. House of Nehesi Publishers, a consistent contributor to the event, also donated 3 book bundles for the "Mother Language/Tongue" day.
The event ran for three consecutive Fridays between February 14 and February 28, and ended with the final competition between four youngsters.
Each week, poets were encouraged to write 2 poems on various topics including: "Love", "My Black History", "Mother Language", and a topic of their choice during the finals.