They love it in Trents

The best Trents is the one in St Lucy – just ask anyone who lives there.
While those living in the other Trents, the St James version, may wish to contest this, there is absolutely no doubt in the mind of Carol Lowe.
“This is the quietest, best Trents,” she told Street Beat.
Lowe was water sanding a car bumper, helping out her mechanic husband.
“We do a bit of auto mechanic and body work,” she said. “People from all over the island come for our service. The most important parts of dealing with business are good service and being friendly and honest and that’s what we offer.”
Lowe said her husband’s business had been in operation for the past seven years in The City but they only started working from home a couple of months ago. As for why she gets involved, she said it was to support her partner.
“He has always wanted to be a mechanic; engine grease is in his blood and I love watching my husband work, so I help him,” she said.
“Kim Jong”, a nickname her husband prefers to use for Street Beat, said he operated Andy’s Bodywork Shop along with a partner. “Kim” handles the mechanic work and his partner deals with the auto body repairs in town. He said he had been doing this type of work for decades.
“I learned it at the Samuel Jackman Prescod Polytechnic but I was doing it even before then and I am 42 now. I love it and if you don’t love what you do, there is no sense doing it,” he said.
The pair was working on a rather beaten up-looking mini moke along with their young son Kristen King but Lowe was confident that it would be like new when they were finished.
“This will look like it came out of Courtesy when we finish with it,” she said. “There is no reason to be doing something without confidence you can do it right.”
Nearby, Sherrie Stevenson was relaxing in her bar, the Secret Inn Sports Bar and Restaurant. There were no customers at the time; something she said was becoming problematic.
“It’s a slow period, not like two years ago when we used to close all five and six in the morning,” she said.
Stevenson said she initially went into hairdressing but the field became too populated and she resorted to building the bar onto her home, following in her mother’s footsteps.
“My mum used to run a shop and I love to host and cater, so in 2002 I did this and I found business was good then,” she said.
Then, almost like magic, customers suddenly appeared. A car drove up with two men; a couple walked in and three of Stevenson’s friends dropped by. The men, Morgan Rock and Austin Clarke, said the Secret Inn was a gem of the north.
“We live in the surrounding area and this is one of our watering holes. It is peaceful, quiet and there are lots of activities and beautiful girls. We’ve been coming here even before the renovations,” said Clarke, adding that the Friday night pork chops were a treat.
The retirees said they were childhood friends and did everything together – well, almost.
“We went school together, we worked together and we retired together, but we won’t die together though,” Rock said.
Continuing the theme of peace in Trents, mother and son Gwendoline and Grantley Marshall were relaxing in their porch. The elder Marshall said she was a Trents resident for almost all her 74 years and loved every moment.
“It is a nice place to live; very quiet and everybody seems to be okay. It’s just cool although the roads need some fixing,” she said.