Woman gets new lease on life on Pedro Cays

Not only is Pedro Cays a commercial fishing ground for the approximately 400 people staying there for months at a time, it is also the place that has given Anethia Vidal a second chance at life.

As a teen, she was a high school dropout and teenage mother, challenges that shaped her path.

"My father never believed in second chances, because mi drop outta school inna third form and him never send me back. Him never try back with me," she said. Now a mother to four children, with her eldest nearing 17 and her youngest just an infant, Vidal is proud of how far she has come. Her 13-year-old daughter, in particular, fills her with pride.

"She is in school and she is focused. She able to go further than me," Vidal shared, her eyes lighting up as she showed the news team a picture of her daughter in uniform. Despite the struggles of her past, Vidal maintains a strong relationship with her father, regularly sending him fish and conch.

"We hustle a lot over here. We sell everything, from a pin to an anchor. My shop, mi sell like lotion, clothes, perfume, and them things deh," she explained.

Vidal's journey to Pedro Cays began when she was just 18, a young mother with no education or stable job. Struggling to provide for her family, she was encouraged by her aunt, a higgler at Pedro Cays, to join her in the trade. "Mi aunt tell mi fi come, and mi start carry items fi sell each time mi visit, until mi start go out with the fishermen and get mi own catch," Vidal recounted. The harsh conditions on the cays, however, are not beyond her.

"[Mi] cyaa prefer here. Right now, mi get up from morning, a water mi want fi go bathe, but mi haffi buy a handle bottle of water for $700," she said, illustrating the daily challenges.

"When mi deh home, mi nuh miss over here. Mi miss the money! But otherwise, most a we just bend we mind fi make the money. Nah eat right, nah bathe good, nah get enough rest," she added.

Vidal also touched on the physical and emotional toll of life on the Pedro Cays.

"Mi nuh know if a the sea or just the thought that this is not home, but sometimes we get sick of the food here. Remember say a one place we deh and a eat the one set of food every day," she said.

When homesickness strikes, she finds solace by standing on the seashore.

Despite the challenges, including the lack of privacy and basic amenities, Vidal expressed gratitude for the opportunities Pedro Cays has provided.

"Money mi a hunt now fi back to school, because the three-year-old just a go start. That's why I am here. It is a way to take care of myself and my children," she said.