LOLITA Williams, 58, is one of the many indigenous women at the Amerindian Village, Sophia Exhibition Site in celebration of Indigenous Heritage Month.She is from the Patamona tribe, and specialises in Amerindian cuisine such as wild cow, deer and labba curries, and tuma pot, which is made from smoked haimara fish.

Williams is originally from Waipa, in the Pakaraimas, Region 8 (Potaro-Siparuni), but she has since relocated to Kabauri, a quaint little village of about 300 residents in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), some 72 miles from Bartica.

Williams told this publication that their main sources of income in the village are farming, hunting, and small-scale mining and logging.

She said that though Kabauri boasts a nursery and primary school, the nearest secondary school is at Bartica.

Most residents use solar power, but some have small generators. There are two playfields, but there is need for a pavilion and sports gear for the youths. Cricket, football and volleyball were recently introduced to the community.

Williams, the mother of one, said that generally, Amerindian men and women work equally long hours. She added that they are a quiet and resourceful people.

JANE CAMPBELL, 50, a mother of six, was another indigenous woman at the Amerindian Village at Sophia who was selling Amerindian cuisine.

She was alongside her friend and villager, Lolita Williams, and together they prepared sumptuous pots of curried wild meat, farine, and cassava bread.

She told this newspaper that life in her village is very simple; she sells cassava and cassava by-products in the backdam, while her husband fishes and hunts.

And SUNSHINE WILLIAMS, 49, who hails from Paramakatoi, is a fun loving singer of all genres of music, particularly the calypso, and was one of the many performers in the cultural show held at the Amerindian Village last week at Sophia.

The father of four said that since he was a child, he liked singing, and still does, even to this day.

He is from the Macushi tribe, and his advice to Indigenous youths is: “Remember your roots; don’t forget your culture. And try to do something to enhance your life and desist from smoking cannabis sativa, and pilfering, and instead use your hands to earn.”

Williams belted out many songs, which were well received by the audience. One of the crowd favourites was, “Don’t call me a Buckman”.

Back home, Williams is a security guard. The village in which he lives has about 1,000 residents, whose way of life is almost incident-free. Everybody, he declared, is in the same line of business.

He said his village is very remote, and the only way to get there is by plane. But it is a very costly trip. However, he says that he always enjoys his time in the city.