Rotary in The Bahamas marks their 50th year anniversary on January 19, 2012 when the Nassau Club was formed and since then, New Providence, Abaco and Eleuthera have seen other clubs formed and a month of various events have been planned.

Kick off celebrations start on Friday, January 6, 2012 with an Anniversary Ball that will be held at Atlantis where Rotary International President Kalnan Banerjee is the keynote speaker and guest. This is a significant moment for Rotary in The Bahamas to have an international president attend a key event. The next morning he will fly to Haiti to help Rotarians there celebrate their 50th anniversary as well. Mrs. Banerjee will be joining her husband on this trip.

The CEO of The Bahamas Telecommunications Company Ltd. (BTC), Geoff Houston presented the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) with a cheque for $250,000 to go toward the Hurricane Irene relief programme. The presentation was made at NEMA in the Churchill Building, Tuesday, January 3, 2012.

Consulate General of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas in New York, Dr Rhonda Chipman-Johnson also presented a $4,135 cheque to the relief programme. Dr. Chipman-Johnson explained that the money was collected from the Bahamians living abroad in New York.

A State Funeral will be held for the late Sir Clifford Darling this morning, Thursday, January 5, 2012 at 11:00 a.m. at Zion Baptist Church, East and Shirley Streets. Interment follows in the Western Cemetery.

The United States Embassy notes with sadness the passing of Sir Clifford Darling, the fourth Bahamian-born Governor General of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and expresses its sincerest condolences to Sir Clifford's family and to the Bahamian people.

Ambassador Sidney Williams, who served as the United States Ambassador to the Commonwealth of The Bahamas during Sir Clifford's tenure as Governor General, has authorized the Embassy to release the following statement:

Wanted: Perfect beachfront home or condo for young professional couple recently relocated to Nassau, Bahamas.

To the rescue: HGTV House Hunters International with ERA Dupuch agent Kyla Ralston leading the way.

"This couple had just moved from Dubai and were excited about having jobs that landed them in Nassau, but were apprehensive about what properties they could find to match their high standards and expectations in a rental property," said Ralston, proud to be hand-selected by the casting producer in the UK to work with the popular TV show that attracts some 20 million viewers in the U.S. weekly.

Hundreds of children in the Bain & Grants Town communities were smiling from ear-to-ear on Christmas morning as Kiwanians along with several volunteers distributed toys, candies and food items collected through the Toys for Tots drive hosted by Bank of The Bahamas and the Kiwanis Club of Nassau AM.

"We were very pleased with the response from the public as many of the boxes placed in each of our New Providence branches were filled to overflowing with brand new, age appropriate toys," shared Michael Basden, Marketing Manager BOB. "Even in these challenging economic times, BOB customers and staff gave generously, wanting to bring cheer to the children of Bain & Grant's Town on Christmas morning."

The Sandals Foundation donated toys to St George's Anglican Church's Young Adult Group's efforts to bring Christmas cheer to the children of the Culmer's Ville Community.

Over the Christmas Holiday the Sandals Foundation donated more than 200 toys to a number of charities through the island among them: The Nazareth Center, The Bilney Lane Children's Home, and the Princess Margaret Children's Ward.

Nearly nine years after the events of 9/11 and the subsequent downturn in the local economy forced the closure of the visionary Western Medical Plaza, Doctors Hospital's Board has decided to re-open the facility. Operating under a new name, the full service hospital will provide an emergency care unit to service the expanded population that now lives and works in the west as well as provide elective ambulatory surgery services for international patients seeking treatment in The Bahamas.

"The timing is right. We are at a point where we are ready for the international market and the western end of the island is ready for our facility to re-open," said Doctors Hospital President Barry Rassin.

So you want to sell? A little listing advice.

Someone once gave me a card picturing two stick people. One stick-man says to the other, "Do you want to buy my house?" The other replies "Yes." The caption reads: "Life before Realtors." Cute, it has a point but oh if only it were that easy. The difference between selling your home on your own or listing with a licensed professional Realtor are immense and your options should be thoroughly investigated.

For a homeowner selling their home without professional real estate assistance the main desire to do so is to avoid having to pay a real estate commission. Seems easy enough, there is plenty of information and websites available to help you along the way. But what FSBO's, the acronym for For Sale By Owner, should be aware of prior to diving in is buying and selling is a complicated process wrought with unforeseen circumstances and issues particular to your sale. Solutions will not always be available online or in a book.

Hutchison Port Holdings is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Godfrey Smith as the new Chief Executive Officer of the Freeport Container Port (FCP), the Grand Bahama Airport Company (GBAC) and the Freeport Harbour Company (FHC) effective 1st January 2012.

Mr. Smith has served as the Container Port Director of FCP for the last eight years and before then served in various capacities throughout the container port. He brings to his new position, a wealth of experience in managing a multidisciplinary workforce and has played a pivotal role in the expansion of the Container Port into one of the most significant trans-shipment hubs in the region.

Last week The Bahamas was the recipient of a sizeable donation of TVs, beds, blankets and patio furniture courtesy of the Celebrity Infinity cruise ship. The Infinity had recently been dry docked at the Grand Bahama Shipyard where it underwent substantial renovations as well as being completely redecorated, allowing the Celebrity Company to donate 1,350 mattresses, 500 outdoor chairs, 100 outdoor tables, 1,800 blankets and 500 televisions.

Helping organise the contribution, Sarah Kirkby, President of Barefoot Marketing, explained how the donation came about. "While on board the Infinity for my client, the Grand Bahama Shipyard, we happened to meet Roswita Arnet, Director of Hotel Operation Development for Celebrity Cruises. She showed us all the items that were going to be replaced and was hopeful we knew a charity that would be interested in these items."

The Government of the Bahamas has been apprised of the seventy-one employees who were recently terminated from Hutchinson Ports Bahamas in Freeport, Grand Bahama.

To assist these individuals, various government agencies, inclusive of the Department of Labour, the Department of Social Services and the National Insurance Board will offer similar services as has been done in the past with other displaced workers. These services will include social assistance, registration for the Unemployment Benefit and the Employment Skills Data Bank. Counselling services, both financial and spiritual, will also be provided by other social partners.

Happy New Year to all! To start 2012 with a bang, the Humane Society of Grand Bahama is offering several specials which are not to be missed.

INVENTORY CLEARANCE: Many items in our shop have been marked down to just ONE DOLLAR! All other shop items 15% off. Stock up on great pet toys and gift items.

ADOPTION SPECIALS: (all normal adoption requirements apply) While supplies last, all cat/kitten adoptions also include a free collar!

New Year's Eve - The tagline for this movie: The One Night Anything Is Possible.

A romantic comedy set in New York city about intertwining families, couples and singles as they roam amidst the pulse and promise that accompanies the most dazzling night of the year. A time where potential is at its highest and anticipation is palatable.

Claire Morgan is the vice president of the Times Square Alliance and, with the help of her friend Brandon, is putting the finishing touches for the ball drop. Newly unemployed Ingrid offers bike messenger Paul tickets to her former employer's masquerade ball if he helps her complete a series of New Year's resolutions by midnight. Kim is having trouble with her teenage daughter Hailey who wants to spend the night with her friends and potential boyfriend Seth in Times Square. Randy is a holiday hater after being dumped and is stuck in an elevator with aspiring singer Elise. Stan Harris is a man in the final stages of cancer who just wants to see the ball drop and is kept company by Nurse Aimee and Nurse Mindy.

This is an extract from the introduction to the third chapter of the historical novel 'Bahama Saga' by Peter Barratt published by Authorhouse in 2002.

Chapter 3 - The Lucayans (600 - 1513 AD)

I..think their life most happye of all men, if they might therewith enjoie their anciente libertie. A fewe things content them, having no delite in such superfluities, for which in other places men take infinite paynes and commit many unlawful acts. - Peter Martyr.

The original inhabitants of the Antilles enjoyed nearly four thousand years of undisturbed tranquility. Then, just before the dawning of the Christian era, Arawak tribes living in the northern part of the Amazon rain forest started to migrate downstream from the mid-reaches of the Orinoco River into what is today the country of Venezuela. When they reached the open sea they turned north. Soon their migration would touch the lives of almost all the Stone Age people living in the necklace of islands that stretch between South and North America on the eastern rim of the Caribbean Basin.

The United States Embassy in Nassau is pleased to announce the 6th annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Civil Rights Essay Contest. The purpose of the contest is to encourage students throughout The Bahamas to explore the life of Dr. King and reflect on how civil rights and diversity affect their lives today. All high school students in The Bahamas in grades 10 through 12 are invited to participate in the contest.

Two winners will receive the grand prize - a new Apple iPad 2 - and their winning essays will be featured in newspapers nationally. Each participating school will also receive a copy of the History Channel's film "KING", which takes viewers through the extraordinary life and times of America's civil rights visionary.

This year's essay theme will focus on the contributions made by American civil rights leaders who were influenced Dr. King.

The Grand Bahama Performing Arts Society (GBPAS) will open the new year with a Chamber Music Concert featuring four artists on Saturday, January 21st, at 8pm at the Grand Bahama Yacht Club on Midshipman Drive. In addition to this concert, the quartet will be visiting three schools to perform for the students and talk about the music and instruments (other schools will be bussed to those locations as well).

Three of the artists performed in Grand Bahama in January 2010 for the "Winter Music Festival with Trio Collage." Pianist Tannis Gibson, violinist Janna Lower and cellist Mark Tanner return and will be joined by flautist Judith Pierce. The Trio Collage was extremely well received as accolades poured in after last year's show. "A wonderful week-end of enthralling music," said GBPAS supporter, Barbara Chester. "Passionate," commented Bahamian author, Marina Sarles. Grand Bahama resident Caroline Sayers said, "Truly Fantastic!"

The U.S. Embassy Nassau is pleased to announce the launch of the 2012 World Wetlands Photo Contest in commemoration of the Convention of The Wetlands held in February 2, 1971. To highlight the theme of the 2012 World Wetlands Day - "Wetlands Tourism: A Great Experience"- U.S. Embassies around the world are inviting local conservation activists and photographers to submit photos for this global contest.

Photos in four wetland categories - wildlife, plants, landscapes and tourism - can be uploaded to the World Wetlands Day 2012 Photo Celebration Flickr website between January 3rd and January 22nd. Winners from around the world will be announced on February 2nd 2012 and a "Fan Favorite" will be selected for The Bahamas by our international conservation partners.

Boxing Day afternoon, a time to relax and truly appreciate the blessings of Christmas and enjoy the new gifts. We certainly enjoyed a very new and wonderful gift - an amazing musical recital given by Elizabeth Reian Bennett at the Labyrinth and in the Chapel of Garden of the Groves.

Elizabeth is a Grand Master of the Shakuhachi; a Japanese Bamboo Flute. An instrument created with care and precision, carrying an energetic alignment with the chakras of the human body. Played, as it was by a master, this unusual instrument 'sang' pulsating music with a vibrating 'voice' blending with all creation. The perfect instrument to create and enhance a sense of peace and relaxation. This instrument came from China to Japan in the eighth century; the Buddhist Monks have used it from that time as they walk their Labyrinths in meditation.

Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture the Hon. Charles Maynard said that, after viewing the short films produced by seven young Bahamians for the recent Eighth Bahamas Film Festival (BFF), he became a fan of their work.

"You will be amazed by the quality of work they produced and the significant themes used in their films," Minister Maynard said during a recent courtesy call at his ministry. "The overall package of films was wonderful. I was very excited about seeing what their ideas were and how their ideas came together."

Minister Maynard said he also appreciated that the seven young filmmakers - between the ages of 10 and 17, were allowed to introduce their films before they were shown on the screen.

By LAMECH JOHNSON / The Tribune

Defending champions The Valley Boys have been declared the unofficial winners of the New Year's Day Junkanoo parade for a second straight year, redeeming themselves from a fourth place Boxing Day finish.

With more than a half a century under its belt, the historic group edged out One Family and the Shell Saxons Superstars, who ranked second and third respectively. The Roots, Music Makers, and the Prodigal Sons ranked fourth, fifth and sixth place.

Marathon Bahamas is just over a week away! With the Susan G. Komen Bahamas Race for the Cure 5K on Saturday, January 14th, and the full marathon, half marathon, and 4-person relay taking place on Sunday, January 15th, athletes of all ages are now putting the final touches on their preparations.

Online registration will close on January 10 at midnight. On-site registration will be available at race morning (Susan G. Komen Bahamas Race for the Cure 5K) on Saturday, January 14 from 6:00 -6:45 am.

Over 20 sports, fun, sounds, sights and tastes of The Bahamas will take place during the Bahamas V.I.P. Law Enforcement Sports Challenge 2012, happening Wednesday, January 18, 2012 - Monday, January 23, 2012 at the Grand Lucayan Beach and Golf Resort.

Register to compete, partner with international law enforcement and security athletes in The Bahamas!

The canal systems in Freeport were created by the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) and is considered a private waterway governed by them. In order to preserve and manage these systems, the GBPA established a set of by-laws that are still in effect today. Unfortunately, over the years, these laws have been ignored causing the steady decay of the existing seawalls placing the burden of repair of these walls on the property owners.

The blame for this decay must be placed on both private and commercial operators. The private boaters are either unaware of the damage they are doing or more likely they just don't care as long as they can get away with it. The commercial operators are simply ignoring the laws looking more at profits than preserving the canal front properties.