Friends Of Barbados: Candice Coppola

The sun had already begun to rise when Candice realized she was separated from her friends. She remembered that the leaflet for her Foreday Morning band ‘Mixed Nuts’ instructed any lost persons to seek assistance from someone in an orange shirt. Luckily, a somewhat familiar face wearing the prescribed colour came to her aid.

I had simply asked Candice where she met her husband when details of this serendipitous story tumbled out. She calls to Jason in the next room to ask for the specific location on the road that fateful morning of 2013. I can hear him relay a typically Bajan winding set of descriptive landmarks and coordinates. Part way through his navigational diatribe she lovingly interrupts him and asks “Jason, but what was the name of the roundabout?”.

Candice and Jason had casually met at a party months before during one of her previous trips to the island and followed each other on Instagram. They reconnected that morning at the Princess Alice Roundabout. She laughs as she recounts the tale being fairly certain that by that point in her journey she would have looked nothing like her Insta-worthy photos. By this time, Candice had already wintered in Barbados for two years and had come back for Crop Over. She had fallen in love with the island for its friendly people and true sense of community, which she felt was lacking at home. That August, she and Jason would start a short-lived long distance relationship before she quickly relocated to Barbados permanently.

Initially, Candice found it frustrating to accept the new prescription of island life. From traffic to shopping, the day-to-day seemed to be in slow motion compared to life in the United States. But her inner island girl started to appreciate that she could “think more, and not be so impulsive”. When she reflects on her old way of living, Candice confesses “I didn’t love the pace. It’s go, go, go. And achieve, achieve, achieve. I was on a much different life track.”

Even after her first few visits Candice realized that Barbados was more in line with her ideal lifestyle. Now, for example, she and her husband Jason make a point of having breakfast together every morning and sharing plans for the day. Living in Barbados has offered an opportunity for Candice to intentionally redesign her life and fulfill a greater purpose. She sold her successful event planning company in Connecticut and has transitioned to coaching and empowering other female entrepreneurs on how to start and build profitable businesses. She admits that she can, and sometimes does, record her podcast The Power in Purpose in the comfort of her pajamas but more importantly Candice reflects “I feel more at home here. I can be much more myself. I have grown here.”

She proclaims she is not a fan of conkies, but enjoys almost every other Bajan food including souse. Candice has become accustomed to the majority of her plate being taken up with various starches and her absolute favourite is breadfruit. She seems to unreservedly take great joy in leading a much simpler life in Barbados. When I asked about her favourite spot on the island, the answer came without a moments pause. “I love the East Coast. I like going to the rum shops and sometimes we treat ourselves to renting a beach house for the weekend,” she says excitedly.

After seven years living in Barbados and six years of marriage, Candice is now being granted Barbados citizenship. The emotion around the event seems to have taken Candice somewhat by surprise. “I’m a proud American. I would never have imagined living in another country let alone taking citizenship.” As we finish sharing our favourite Bajanisms and other island delights, Candice’s bubbly energy and tone quiets slightly and she confides in me “I am humbled and honoured to become a Bajan citizen, I’ve even shed a few tears over it.”