BEING among the first settlers of #8 Village, West Coast Berbice, Errol Pluck speaks with a lot of pride and certainty as he recalled the early days when he moved deeper into the village following marriage, establishing his own home.

He told the Pepperpot Magazine, during an impromptu visit to the village, that #8 Village is a common name and it comes under the Woodlands/Bel Air Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC), which has an office building as soon as you enter the community.

Pluck disclosed that in the early days of the 1960s there were only three houses in #8 Village and himself and two neighbours were the only inhabitants of the village.

He reported that the village wasn’t developed back then and it had a small mud dam leading in and out the village, which was overrun by black sage bushes, and the land had to be cleared before he built his house.

In front of Pluck’s house, he planted a fiddlewood tree (a medicinal tree) used for herbal healing due to its properties. It is standing quite tall, having been planted 45 years ago and it serves as a landmark.

Pluck remembered that the village was established during the late Linden Forbes Burnham reign and he was living on the main public road.

The local added that his nearest neighbour was his cousin, Alvin Pluck, and over time more people began settling in the village, and it became populated.

Pluck stated that he came from a home of a large family with 15 siblings and his parents. His father’s name was Phinalbert Pluck and his mother was Priscilla Reynolds; both have passed on but their legacy lives on.

He pointed out that he has nine brothers and four sisters but three of them have since died but he has a lot of relatives residing in the same village.

Pluck reported that #8 Village, West Coast Berbice is a small two-street village with a community centre ground, a Resource building, a primary and a secondary school and three churches.

He stated that #8 Village has a mixture of people except Spanish and Chinese and, despite some bickering, it is indeed a good place to live.

Pluck is a rice farmer and he is the father of four who had returned from the rice fields that day having made a trip to check on the rice.

The 56-year-old told the Pepperpot Magazine that he recently got a grandbaby girl and is very pleased but has two other grandchildren from his eldest.

“Living among relatives in the same village is no straight road because ‘teeth and tongue’ will clash, but we always come to a swift resolution choosing peace over quarrel,” he said.

Pluck is a Councillor and he did his part to contribute to the community via the NDC for upgraded roads in the village and will always lobby for the development of the community.

He said the main economic activities of the locals include farming in cash cops, rice, poultry and cattle.

Pluck added that they have a few teachers, nurses and other private and public sector workers in the village, but they grow their own food and have their own sheep, goats, cows, chickens and ducks.

He noted that #8 Village is the home of celery and tomatoes on a medium scale and the people eat fresh vegetables and fruits and it is one of those villages you can go next door for almost anything, such is the countryside life.

Pluck told the Pepperpot Magazine that the village is populated and there is a need for a health centre and the community centre ground needs upgrading.

He pointed out that drainage and irrigation in the community need a bit of attention and they would like to boost their sporting skills with more games and will accept sport gears for the youths.

Pluck added that the village has a lot of youths with skills; they need an opportunity to grow in terms of having a recreational area to play basketball, football, volleyball, rounders, lawn tennis and cricket.

He reported that most of the elders have died and it is a village of about 300 and next door is the Abandon Life Ministry Church.