Hello VI forum

Did you happen to see the HGTV show today about St Croix? It featured a young couple with three kids who moved from St Louis. It reminded me of you. They went for a vacation and decided to stay and love it.

II hope you do go to visit and go from one end of the island to the other. I will recommend that you go to CHANT tours in Frederiksted (in the courtyard behind Polly's at the Pier) and take one of their walking tours or hike in Caledonia Gut as you'll get a taste for so many things. Try to find local authors' books. Go to some events or the Farmer's Market-that is where you will meet everyone.

I will say that I am always struck though by the fact that those of us who sing her praises and those who issue warnings share one thing: we would not choose somewhere else. hmmm.

ank you juliekay

no one is saying that children can not or should not be raised on stx, just that the schooling situation has not been the best. i remember reading the headline in the paper when some on the schools became accredited. how did they loose their accreditation? how poor must their scores have been for that to happen

I'm posting some old articles, just in case anyone might think that the schools lost accreditation due to bad student scores. I do not recall that being the case. The schools lost accreditation due to a need for improvement in student and teacher attendance, a viable substitute teacher system, deteriorating facilities, and school-based budget control.

http://stjohnsource.com/content/news/local-news/2001/11/20/public-high-schools-lose-accreditation

http://virginislandsdailynews.com/news/six-v-i-public-schools-working-on-accreditation-1.1208915

This is my first post to the forum. My wife and I are looking at a move in the next 3-4 years. This post has to be the most heartfelt and sincerely balanced one I have read over the past three weeks of looking at posts for newcomers.

thank you EDC1951 for taking the time.

Welcome to VI Now, Tim!! 😀

welcome, you can never start your research too early

Here's my opinion, for what it's worth. I came on this site back in August asking similar questions. I have a 6 year old & 9 year old daughters. I got a lot of negative feedback as well. Luckily, a poster private messaged me because They saw I was getting bashed about putting my girls in to the public schools. I too can not afford tuition for 2 children, nor do I want to. This poster told me that they had the same thing happen to them on this board. The majority of the people on the board tried to scare him/her away from moving to STX telling all about the horrible crime statistics and terrible schools. But one nice person decided to send a private message to the person messaged me. That person told them STX had dome not so great schools, in the projects, but also some great schools as well. They also told them that crime can happen anywhere mostly in the trouble areas. Just like anywhere else in the world. You just have to keep vigilant. My friend chose yo move anyway but did put their kids in a private school. They told me if they could do it all over again, they would have listened to the person who reached out yo them and put their kids in the public schools. And in the time that they have lived there, have never been affected by any of the crime.

So, I'm glad that they reached out to me and have now submitted my application packet to become a public school teacher on STX. I am not letting any of the naysayers hold me back. We are moving forward with our move. And if all goes well I will be on island in less than a month for a teaching interview, and be on island permanently in less than 3 months with my 2 daughters and our dog, with husband following shortly afterwards after he gets the house sold AND my insurance kicks in.

I guess what I'm trying to say is follow your dream. If it's meant to be it will all work itself out.

you were not being bashed, just warned that these things happen. people come here with false expectations and then when things turn out different, wonder why no one warned them that these things could happen

people think that because they move to the islands that it is all sunshine and roses, but it is not. it is real life just like where you came from.. it is a shame you took that as bashing. most of the people on here speak from experience. and sometimes that can come across as bashing or negative when in fact it is just the truth. crime happens, lots of people do not like the public schools, cost of living is high, gas and electricity are high food is high, fresh food does not last long. things are not said to scare you from moving to the islands. things are said to inform you. there is a difference

allysage,

Good luck with your decision and I hope that you and your family visit the island for yourself. There are A LOT of glass half empty posters on the board and some glass half full posters. Just like in most situations, the people with negative things to say often are louder than the ones with the positive things to say. You can see that one person felt she was being bashed while others look at it as just "saying the truth". Well the truth of the matter is that everyone's "truth" here is different.

I perused this board a lot before my wife and I moved here and I must say it came close to persuading me to second guess our decision to move. Ultimately, My wife and I couldn't be happier that we moved here. I got a job transfer with my company down here and my wife was able to get a job within the first week of being on island after making some contacts through email before we moved.

Good luck again. I hope things work out for you and your family whatever your decision may be.

everyones truth is different because they have had different experiences. thats not bad and thats not good. it just is.

and as tommy said, please visit for yourself for a couple of weeks if you can swing it. just to see what its like. there have been a few posters who have come and gone within a year, there have been some that never visited first and are still here after years, there are some who thought they would never leave and are loving living on the mainland, there are some who thought this would be a bit of a detour and are still here years later

Speedy, the fact of the matter is that I was bashed for the choices I was making. What I never brought up before was all of the Negative private messages I received because I want to put my kids in the public schools and b/c of my opinion on how crime is everywhere. I never brought it up before b/c I decided to let it go. So even though I'm not going to name names I am now calling out all of the naysayers . If you can't be nice and helpful keep your opinions to yourself! This poor person who asked a question about STX almost cut her dream short without fully researching what STX is really like all b/c a couple of negative bellies scared her off. How sad is that?

All I can say I am SO grateful to the person who reached out to me. Now we are becoming good friends and I can't wait to finally meet them in person. And you know what else, it is so sad that this helpful person felt the need to private message me b/c they didn't want to deal with the naysayers negative comments on the board. All of those posters should be ashamed of themselves!

wow, i am so sorry you had to deal with that. i understand your comments much better. i am also sorry to your pm friend.
i appreciate you saying so. i hope you and the other poster enjoy life here. it does have wonderful things to offer.

And you know what else, it is so sad that this helpful person felt the need to private message me b/c they didn't want to deal with the naysayers negative comments on the board. !

So true. Many of us who have positives to share are immediately subject to instant backlash from the naysayers who can't wait to throw out "rose-colored glasses" insults and then, when a prospective newbie really needs a dose of reality and we kindly offer it, the other side sparks up and accuses us of being naysayers. Damed if you and damned if you don't! 😀

30 years on and I've continued to live here because it's my home and I love it in spite of its faults and its ups and downs. I've no clue why the small group of perpetual moaners continue to live here, nor why they feel so obligated to spout their dislike and disdain for everything.

Good morning Speeedy! Thank you for your comment. I truly appreciate it. And Old Tart, I agree w/ everything you said. And I also wonder why the most negative commenters stay in the USVI if they are do miserable.

I hope to get the chance to meet both of you, and many others, some day soon!!

thank you and we are up for new friends any time.

Why isn't't there a like button on here? LOL

😎 oh! Look I found the happy faces at least.

lol stay positive

Hi, I am also considering a move to VI myself. Being originally from an island I'd like to think of it as "going home". I currently live in NY and I have become gradually disillusioned with my life here. I'm a single parent of two great kids, one is 13 and the other 6. My situation however is a bit unorthodox. My 13 year old has profound disabilities so finding the right environment for her is of the utmost importance. I was fortunate enough to meet a young woman while we were on vacation in Puerto Rico who assured me that I would find a suitable site for my daughter. Again, I am a single parent of two and I need to work so having the right sort of placements for my children is high on my list of priorities. Any information that anyone is willing to share will be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much. Hopefully I can count myself and my family as Crucian soon!

Trinidiva

that is not something everyone can comment too. i hope you find some good answers

... My 13 year old has profound disabilities so finding the right environment for her is of the utmost importance.

I think you'll find this thread from two years ago illuminating:

https://www.vimovingcenter.com/talk/read.php?4,182588,page=1

From and outsiders point of view, the forums often have a very negative slant. I've have lived in several countries and get that just because it looks like paradise doesn't mean every thing is perfect all the time. Most people come here hoping to chase a dream not have it crushed. Just because I move there and decide it's not for me doesn't mean I shouldn't have moved there at all. I do appreciate all the honest information given and the fact that so many of you take the time to answer our questions. I'll be moving to STX in 10 days and expect there will be some major adjustments but expect the rewards to out weight the negatives. Just remember there is a person on the other end of these post and that the truth can be delivered without a crushing blow.

trinidiva: You might want to start a separate thread for your question. 🙂 And welcome to the forum.

Thank you for the welcome.

welcome, and read what you can here. most is still relevant.