Columns

Rotary International has been a strong and powerful force in the Caribbean since the late 1950s. The first club chartered in the district was The Rotary Club of St Thomas in 1957, followed by The Rotary Club of St Croix in 1958, and by The Rotary Club of Kingston, Jamaica, in 1959. Rotary International continued to charter non-district clubs; until 1973, there were some 41 clubs with charters.

After nearly ninety-five years and four attempts (legitimate) the Anguillians decided that they had had enough of external rule and it was time for them to act. As a consequence the Anguilla Revolution was born on the 30th of May, 1967 when the Police Constabulary was sent to St. Kitts some by plane and the remainder by boat.

This summer, among many other activities, children will also be able to experience first class golf. The Temenos Club course operated by the Troon Golf staff will be bringing, for the second year in a row, an extremely high quality golf camp for Anguillian children during the entire month of July. This year’s program will be directed by Bernie Morgan, assistant golf professional. He will be supported by an impressive staff at the Temenos Golf Club with Dana Schmid (Club Manager/Director of Golf), Hale Kelley (Head Golf Professional), and Josh Shepard (Associate Golf Professional). Moreover, there will be various volunteers from the Anguilla Golf Association (AGA) on hand to assist in the instruction of the junior golfers.

The following keynote address was delivered by Mr. Marcel Fahie at an Anguilla Day programe last week.

The people of Anguilla were highly motivated, inspired and fiercely determined in 1967, when they took firm action and broke the constitutional and political relationship with St. Kitts and Nevis. They grasped political power and let it be known to the whole world that from henceforth they would take direct responsibility for Anguilla’s political, constitutional, economic and social destiny. Their radical and courageous actions, on and before 30th May 1967, brought an end to the presence in Anguilla of the police officers, representing the authority of the Central Government of the Associated State of St.Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla. Thus they gave birth to the Anguilla Revolution on May 30th 1967, the 40th anniversary of which we are celebrating in 2007.

Rotary District 7020, which comprises Anguilla, includes a total of 64 Rotary Clubs in 10 different countries or territories.

As I am committed to presenting options for youth this summer, I had the pleasure of speaking with Pastor Phillip Gumbs about the vacation bible school at the Church of God “Holiness.” This of course will not be the only VBS provided for the youth this summer and I will try to highlight other programs as well. Yet, I am confident that this program will stand out. Their program will begin on August 20th and run to the 26th and will be held at the large church building located on Queen Elizabeth Ave. near the Stoney Ground Primary School. This year’s program has a central theme entitled “Friendship with God.” This theme will be highlighted throughout the many activities during the week and one aspect that will be stressed is “prayer.” It is through prayer that one can seek a better and more fulfilled relation/friendship with God.

Since 1927, students and host families all over the world have had their horizons broadened and their lives enriched by the generosity of Rotary’s Youth Exchange program. Administered by Rotary clubs, districts and multidistrict groups, the program today involves more than 82 countries and over 8,000 students each year.

Within the first month of my residency here in Anguilla in June 2005, to understand the island and its history better, I started to read the book Under an English Heaven by Donald E. Westlake. It was loaned to me by the then Deputy Governor of Anguilla The Honourable Mr. Mark Capes, who has recently moved on to be the Deputy Governor of Bermuda. There is such a rich and immense history throughout the Caribbean and, of course, the history of Anguilla is unique in many ways. One of the most salient facts I remember from the book is the notion that Anguilla’s revolution occurred without firing one shot. It was not violent in terms of war, but it was in terms of ideals. I am not going to proceed on giving a history lesson to my readers as we have Mr. Colville Petty who frequently reminds us of this. Yet, I would like to expound on this notion of revolution and how it pertains to the actual times in Anguilla and more specifically to youth.

Alright, I know that the majority of my readers know that I am involved with the Anguilla Tennis Academy. With that in mind, it has been one of my goals to attempt to stay away from writing articles that deal directly with the ATA in order to ensure a certain amount of objectivity. I have, in the past, mentioned things about the ATA because I believe in the work it is doing for the community on an impartial level. On a partial level, I am directly involved with all the decisions made as I am the director and I must say that this year’s summer camp is going to be amazing! So, I have chosen to dedicate a full article to it this week.

Alright, I know that the majority of my readers know that I am involved with the Anguilla Tennis Academy. With that in mind, it has been one of my goals to attempt to stay away from writing articles that deal directly with the ATA in order to ensure a certain amount of objectivity. I have, in the past, mentioned things about the ATA because I believe in the work it is doing for the community on an impartial level. On a partial level, I am directly involved with all the decisions made as I am the director and I must say that this year’s summer camp is going to be amazing! So, I have chosen to dedicate a full article to it this week.

‘Life begins at forty!’ they say. Since turning forty I have tried several new things… like scuba diving.

As the month of April is dwindling down, it is important to realize that summertime in nearly upon us. Around this time last year I did a series of articles about summer options for the youth. In these articles it was also mentioned that summertime is of great value as it is a time in which youth can really grow and learn more self realization.

After completing one year of dedicated service to Anguillian children, Ian Brunswick has left Anguilla to pursue other endeavours. Although his shoes will be difficult to fill, I am sure the new director, Ryan Kuja, will do his very best. Although the Anguilla Youth Sailing Club is relatively new, it has had much success. Ryan plans to maintain this high standard as he is very devoted.

‘Anguillian Scouts off to the 21st World Scout Jamboree!’ My ears pricked up at the announcement over the radio. At a time when there is so much bad press about Anguillian Youth, it is good to hear such positive news.

Jesus willingly condescended to walk with folk of low degree. He was willing to be a friend to the poor and needy. Later, He would select unto Himself twelve common men whom He would befriend and teach, and disciple and love, even more than He loved Himself. In fact, He later took the initiative, by divine order, to establish His church and regarded its members as being synonymous with His own body – the body of Christ. By His example, He encouraged His followers to love and respect others: not focusing on their failures but, like friends, looking beyond their faults and endeavoring to meet their needs.

This past weekend was very busy for all involved in the tourism industry with the influx of visitors for the Jimmy Buffett concert. One of the events I had to attend as a representative for the ATA was the charity auction held at Zurra, one of Anguilla’s newest and finest restaurants owned and operated by Melinda and Bob Blanchard. It was during this charity event that the auctioneer, Mr. Art Egel, principal of the Alwyn Allison School in West End, offered up for auction a cricket bat and jersey signed by Omari Banks.

I was five years old and I needed a bagpipe player desperately!

I wanted to dance the Highland Fling. I had seen it on the television and it looked easy. I was up on my tiptoes with my arms above my head before you could say ‘Robbie Burns’! The fact that I was a chubby little child with no poise or grace certainly did not stop me either.

Not long ago, we commemorated how Jesus was born in an austere stable under the stars in Bethlehem. His coming meant that there would be a conspicuous change to the spiritual condition of His people. By His power, He would deliver them from the hands of their oppressive enemy – not just their political or military enemies now, but more so, the enemy of their souls. Now we are on the verge of celebrating how He arose in triumph over the grasp of death from a gloomy, cold tomb early one Sunday morning, over 2000 years ago.

Although I am a columnist for The Anguillian, I am not privy to the actual make-up of the paper each week. I am sure that only the permanent staff of the nation’s newspaper is aware of the paper’s full contents. It is for this reason that I was pleasantly surprised and delighted to read last week’s paper as it carried at least ten articles specifically dealing with youth related issues in Anguilla. Recently, I received a letter which highlighted the fact that I have been living in Anguilla for a short period of time.

In a previous edition of The Anguillian, there was a press release that specifically highlighted a philanthropic effort by a man named Paul Lowerre. Mr. Lowerre is a frequent visitor to Anguilla and has developed a love and admiration for the island and, most importantly, its people. Of course, Mr. Lowerre is a tennis fanatic and therefore, when considering how to contribute, he decided to help the Anguilla Tennis Academy. He consequently set up a Youth Scholarship Endowment Fund through UBS Financial Services, a company of which he is a vice-president. This endowment fund began with his initial contribution of USD $30,000 from which the interest could fund, each year, two to three children in the After School Program run by the ATA.