Fall 2010

Another season is here. We opened as scheduled on November 1st after a busy summer. Skies are clear, the weather warm and the water turquoise, calm and inviting. We look forward to seeing all of our loyal repeat guests this season and introducing new ones to our unique private island resort.

The Meridian Club is proud to offer the solitude, security and serenity that was once the Caribbean in general. Some islands have gradually succumbed to multi-story hotels and condos lined up along the beachfront, horns, crowded beaches, parasails and jet skis. Some enjoy that scene and there are plenty of resorts to accommodate them. However, there are precious few resorts located on private islands with no motor vehicles, often deserted beaches, personalized service, superb cuisine, and a pristine natural environment. The Meridian Club fits the bill and is reachable by convenient direct flights from major U.S. and Canadian cities.

For those who want activities there is plenty to do as you can see from our website. For those who just want to unwind and get away from it all, our world class beach, friendly and respectful staff and gentle tropical breezes await you.

Some highlights from recent months follow.

Warm regards,
Bev and Wally Plachta

Hurricane Tomas

Summer 2011

Our Culinary Team

Tweaks

Safety

Familiar Faces

Theme Weddings

Getting Even Greener

Fishing Update

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We are happy to report that this storm left us unscathed on Pine Cay. Despite predictions of hurricane force winds, heavy rains and a dangerous storm surge, which required us to pull all boats from the water, send most of the staff home and secure all buildings, Tomas ultimately passed through the TCI with minimal effect. Whew! All resort operations are now in full swing.

This season, we will close June 30th for a pool and pool deck renovation project. Therefore, we urge anyone who has been planning a visit during our June/July Family Months, to book in June if at all possible. Next season, we will resume our usual summer schedule.

Those of you who visited late last season met Shane Coffey, who was filling in then as a visiting chef. Shane, who hails from Aspen, Colorado, is now our full-time Executive Chef. He was a classmate of our superb Pastry Chef, Amy Caffarel, at the New England Culinary Institute. Shane and Amy will head our veteran kitchen team this season. We know diners will be pleased.

Our credo has always been "don't change a good thing". That isn't to say, however, that we can't make small improvements that enhance the ambience all of our return guests so enjoy. Readers who have visited us over the past three seasons know we have upgraded our hotel rooms and upstairs lounge, added a small spa and gift shop, purchased a new fleet of boats and made some improvements at the Marina. This past summer we replaced the tile in the Clubhouse and refinished the dining room furniture for a brighter look, constructed a small bathhouse behind the barbecue area and made additional improvements at the Marina. In addition, our resident spa technician, Yani, attended an advanced training course in Florida and has added facials to her already impressive schedule of services.

Pine Cay has always been a very safe destination and we intend to keep it that way despite the criminal activity that has been taking place on Provo in the last couple of years. Our location is a big asset in this regard, because access is exclusively by boat and navigation past coral heads and sandbars can be difficult, especially at night. However, in an excess of caution, we now have a highly trained K9 security team on island at all times. Their mission is to be as unobtrusive as possible to guests, but be available on short notice any time they are needed. They conduct night patrols of island access points with dogs securely crated while on golf carts and leashed when on foot. They also greet any unannounced visitors to the island. The dogs are superbly trained and obedient. Word has gotten around that we have this security capability and that alone serves as a huge deterrent. Some full-time residents on Provo have been coming to The Meridian Club for weekends and holidays because of the safety factor.

One of the greatest things about The Meridian Club is our veteran staff. We are very proud of the fact that we've retained the same core employees for many years. Duke Delancy, our Assistant Island Manager and head of the Maintenance, started work on Pine Cay at age 14 and has now been with us for 35 years, Eight other employees have over 25 years of service and many others have between 15 and 25. Henry "Brother Mac" McIntosh is 81 years old and still outworks some of his younger fellow workers in the maintenance department.

It is this veteran presence and loyalty that makes our resort unique in the Turks and Caicos and creates the "family" atmosphere which prompts guests to return year after year. Second-time guests will be amazed that the staff remember their names, their room, food and drink preferences and even some of the things that happened on their prior visit. The best thing about this is that it is completely genuine. No plastic smiles or insincere platitudes here.

Our staff members with more than 25 years service. Left to right: Ubelise ("Ubie") Delancy (29 yrs); Floyd Forbes (31 yrs); Wesley Handfield (29 yrs); JR Delancy (28 yrs); Duke Delancy (35 yrs); Ruth Wright (37 yrs); Corina Handfield (31 yrs); Esther Delancy (___yrs) and Raymond Campbell (33 yrs)

We enjoy hosting small "theme" weddings and organized one of the more unusual ones this past summer, when a couple of our repeat guests from England decided to tie the knot on Pine Cay using a "Peter the Duck" theme. Instead of a wedding cake, Chef Amy fashioned individual duck cupcakes and the groom received a surprise greeting from "Wally the Duck".

As part of our continuing effort to conserve energy and waste, we have embarked upon a couple of new initiatives this season. First, is the purchase of a new water dispensing machine, placed outside the commissary, where staff, guests and homeowners can refill water jugs, thus largely eliminating sale of plastic water bottles and saving fuel previously used on freight trips to Provo for heavy 5 gallon glass water containers. Secondly, we have purchased a solar rooftop charger for one of the Club's buggies. This is a trial to determine if its charging capability will eliminate the need for electrical chargers. If so, we hope to eventually install solar chargers on all of our new buggies.

Thus far this season fishing has been terrific and this translates into super-fresh seafood meals in our restaurant. Chef Shane has come up with some absolutely spectacular wahoo recipes with delicate sauces and grilled fruit. Sailfish have also been caught - and released.

Recent Newsletters: Summer 2010 | Spring 2010 | Fall 2009 | Spring 2009 | Fall 2008