Dear friends and family,

As signaled this morning in my post, I have decided to tenure my resignation as Chairman of the Free National Movement and as an Opposition Senator effective immediately.

The FNM and the PLP are different in how we approach governance and crisis. The central issue here is to rescue our country from a PLP Party that is not suited to govern in a time when our people need a competent, honest and compassionate government. Today, I make the decision to work more directly in our communities addressing our peoples' need for economic opportunities, basic necessities and a sense of who we are as a people.

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Captain Stephen Russell, Director of the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, currently leads a team of disaster managers at the 2016 National Hurricane Conference, the United States' Forum for Education and Professional Training in Hurricane and Disaster Preparedness.

The primary goals of the forum are: "to improve hurricane preparedness, response, recovery and mitigation in order to save lives and property in the United States and the tropical islands of the Caribbean and Pacific.

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The Bahamas Minister of Tourism, The Honourable Obie Wilchcombe, led a delegation of Senior Bahamas Tourism executives attending the 2016 Conference of Seatrade Cruise Global, that took place at the Broward Convention Center, Fort Lauderdale, FL, March 14th-17th. Other members of the senior delegation included, The Director General, Joy Jibrilu; Permanent Secretary, Harrison Thompson; Deputy Director General, Ellison Thompson and Sr. Director Cruise and Maritime Development, Erica Ingraham.

Significant to The Bahamas' Seatrade presence was a hosted Cocktail reception and the Florida Caribbean Cruise Association's gala dinner on Wednesday, March 17th at the Hilton Marina. The Ministry of Tourism and the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival Commission hosted the reception.

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Over the first quarter of this year, the Bahamas Waste team has worked hard to live up the motto on their latest truck 'Service Above Self' which honours Rotary in The Bahamas. With that in mind they have helped facilitate a clean dumping area for the Bahamas AIDS Foundation, provided porta-potties for the Potcakeman Triathlon Super Sprint series and are now back working with the Lewis Street Community Centre project, which is spearheaded by the Lend a Hand Bahamas Foundation.

"Giving back is important to us at Bahamas Waste," said Francisco de Cardenas, Managing Director, Bahamas Waste. "As a Rotarian myself I believe in 'Service Above Self' and we want to support our community by helping non-profit organisations where we can. We all prosper when our island looks clean and pristine."

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A holistic approach was taken at The Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institution's health and wellness fair March 17, as scores of people flocked to the campus to gain information in their journey to good health.

Eager vendors were armed with material and samples, in addition to being ready to demonstrate their skills and products. This year, energy and the environment were added to the regular information including - but not limited to - nutrition, physical fitness, naturopathic medicine, health screenings and financial planning.

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In celebration of International Women's Day, CIBC FirstCaribbean once again participated in S.T.R.A.W. Inc.'s Annual Girls Leadership ConferenceŠ, held at the SuperClubs Breezes Resort, March 11th. The event attracted over 400 girls from public and private high schools throughout New Providence and the Family Islands.

Beulah Arthur, Country Treasurer for the bank, hosted a session on the importance of starting early in fiscal responsibility for the attending teen girls. Mrs. Arthur spoke to the girls on the importance of setting life goals and developing a plan to achieve them. She stressed prioritizing goals by short, middle, and long term timelines to achieve financially stability.

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First, I'd like to thank Joan Albury and the Counsellors for another year's dedication and hard work on this invaluable forum to discuss the Business Outlook for Grand Bahama with the community.

I'd like to acknowledge our Grand Bahama Port Authority team. Ian Rolle President, Deann Seymour CFO, Karla McIntosh General Counsel, Derek Newbold Head of New Business Development, Troy McIntosh City Manager, LaShawn Dames of InvestGrandBahama, Telina Smith Head of Community Relations, Christine van der Linde Head of Customer Services, Nakira Wilchcombe Head of the Environmental Dept, Kimberley Miller Head of Group Corporate Affairs, and Aldora Toote my right hand.

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The Museum of Grand Bahama was pleased to meet with Dr. Jacqueline Y. Miller from the Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville Florida. Dr. Miller who received her Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of Florida, has been associated with the Florida Museum of Natural History since 1981.

Her presentation gave great insight to the Working Committee members of the Museum and invited guests. Dr. Miller is prepared to assist in the training of Bahamian students who would then become involved in the creation of a live Butterfly Exhibit at the Museum of Grand Bahama. Mr. Zeko McKenzie of the College of the Bahamas would be an integral part of this Exhibit.

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After 14 successful and nurturing years with H.G. Christie, my partner and daughter, Kiara C. Jones and I are proud to announce the launch of our new full service real estate brokerage, Keys Bahamas Realty Ltd.

More than a decade ago, armed with a university degree, professional work experience, a deeply rooted love for my beautiful island of birth, Grand Bahama, and a determined spirit to explore and excel, I found a career. Better still, a real estate career found me.

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My Life as a Rescue Dog (by Charlie Scheel, late 2003 (Abaco) to Jan 29, 2015 (Oakville, Ontario))

I was one of 4 pups born in late 2003 at a garbage dump on Great Abaco Island, The Bahamas. Were it not for a caring local resident, Molly Roberts, I may not have survived a week. I don't remember very much of my brief stay with Molly living on a beach south of Marsh Harbour. Molly found homes for a lot of us using personal contacts and the internet, whatever that is.

A Canadian family had a small vacation condo in Abaco for twenty years. Alana, the youngest, thought of it as her place. She loved the wild beach dogs and always saved some food for them. The condo was sold when Alana was 22; she wanted a memory of The Bahamas and organized getting me.

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Transforming Spaces, an annual art tour that takes place in Nassau, completed its twelfth successful year on March 13. The tour, which features a curated selection of the best in contemporary art from The Bahamas, is a highly anticipated event which has provided more than 4,000 locals and visitors with the opportunity to view, engage with and purchase artwork from both emerging and established artists.

The 2016 Transforming Spaces theme SWELL: COMMUNITY + COLLABORATION allowed artists to explore ideas centered around the groundswell of positive growth of the artistic and creative community in The Bahamas. This year, curators collaborated with more than 60 visual artists as well as performers from the Genesis junkanoo group, theatrical performers, artisans and musicians to create unique experiences and attract an even more diverse audience.

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The E. Clement Bethel National Arts Festival is currently underway at the National Centre for the Performing Arts, March 14 thru 22 and April 5-8. The festival has completed two weeks in Grand Bahama. After the current performances in New Providence, it will move to the Family Islands and finish on June 1, 2016. Photos capture some of the Gospel Singing by Primary Schools during the past week.

Faithway Christian Academy School students sing a gospel song encouraging everybody to clap their hands. The New Providence adjudications are continuing this week and are free and open to the public.

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Cable Bahamas (CBL) has announced that beginning this month, all Pay-Per-View (PPV) movies will only be available on its REV On Demand VOD platform, channel 500. The transition of pay-per-view movies to the REV On Demand catalogue gives customers the ability to browse and enjoy over 4,000 hours of video content, including Hollywood's latest hits, classic films, concert specials, documentaries and critically-acclaimed series on their own schedule, with the ability to pause, fast forward, rewind, and view later for up to 48 hours depending on the title.

CBL Vice President of Marketing David Burrows said the move is an exciting transition for REV On Demand, noting that CBL is always striving to deliver the best entertainment experience to subscribers.

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One of the taglines for this film: Monsters Come In Many Forms. After a car accident, a woman wakes up in a locked cellar. She soon discovers that it belongs to a doomsday prepper who insists he saved her life because the outside world has been affected by a widespread chemical attack. Uncertain of what to believe, she decides on a plan of escape no matter what she may find beyond the fallout shelter.

Michelle is a woman trapped in a bomb shelter after a car accident who must figure out the intentions of her so called savior in the wake of an apocalyptic catastrophe that she was unconscious during. Emmett is a local man who helped the owner of the property build the shelter and got hurt while convincing the owner to let him in after witnessing the cataclysmic event. Howard Stambler is the owner of the shelter who has chosen to include the two other people in it until the biological agent in the air outside of the shelter has dissipated, but he may have ulterior motives for those now under his protection.

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Beach Soccer fever hit Harbour Island when the BFA, along with national players from Tahiti, Switzerland and The Bahamas, visited Harbour Island to train with local school kids.

"It was a great trip," said Jason McDowell, BFA Vice President. "Four Swiss National players and Heimanu Taiarui, the current FIFA Beach Soccer Player of the Year and FIFA Golden Ball winner, were in The Bahamas, preparing for the 2017 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup to be held in Nassau. Most of their training was with the national team, but we couldn't miss the opportunity to get the players out to Harbour Island, to show off our stunning pink sand beaches, and to introduce beach soccer to the kids there."

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In an address on the eve of their Bahamasair charter flight to Martinique for the CARIFTA Swimming Championships, major sponsor and 'send-off event' host Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) CEO urged the youngsters to 'make us proud.'

"Make us proud of you," Leon Williams told the anticipatory young competitors at the POOP Deck Restaurant West, "make this a three-peat as CARIFTA champions and wear your national colours of gold, black and aqua, with pride."

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Hundreds attended a Requiem Eucharist for the life of the late Edwin Luther Kevin Johnson, regarded as one of the fastest Bahamian sprinters ever, March 19, 2016. Born September 4, 1952, "Kevin" as he was affectionately called passed away on March 8th. A semi-military funeral was held in his honour this past Saturday at the Pro-Cathedral of Christ the King Anglican Church.

Among those paying tribute to the former sprint king was Minister of National Security the Hon. Dr. Bernard Nottage; Tall Pines Member of Parliament Leslie Miller; Minister for Grand Bahama the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville; and Freeport News General Manager/Managing Editor Fredrick R. Sturrup, a longtime friend.

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The government of The Bahamas is increasingly dysfunctional and perverse. They continue to wilfully ignore, downplay and reframe the very serious matters and concerns that have been raised by Save The Bays (STB) and others: oil pollution at Clifton, the Rubis fuel spill, the burning dump, and unregulated and unlawful development, for starters. And even after a Supreme Court judgement, Prime Minister Perry Christie and the Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources Alfred Gray have failed to close the illegal facility Blackbeard's Cay notwithstanding the Supreme Court's order requiring them to do so.

Most recently, we witness the Minister of Education Jerome Fitzgerald reading private emails of STB directors - illegally obtained - under the protection of the House of Assembly. How does this look to the world of investors and bankers? - knowing that when the government wants to, it will spy on them? What an obscene violation of privacy!

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I am loathed to have to defend my character or name in public; for ever since a little boy growing up on Long Island, my countenance spoke clearly for itself. At this moment however, I do find it necessary to draft this declaration. It was actually motivated by a post by one of my long time associates, Mr. Peter Carey, who wrote:

"I know Joseph Darville; met him many times especially when he served as the Principal of the Grand Bahama Catholic High School, Freeport Grand Bahama. As a fellow Catholic I say without a shadow of a doubt that Bahamian Catholics in the majority who have heard the offensive descriptions that were (announced, but not tabled) in The Honorable House of Assembly yesterday (Thursday) to our Brother Joe Darville are deeply troubled. The good work of Joe Darville will speak for him and we put our brother Joe to the Prayers, love and support of all of the faithful. I am personally confident that when the facts are known the Bahamian people would stand tall with Joe Darville."

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GRAND BAHAMA EVENTS
 

 

Get your Family Island event listed in the Bahama Islands Info Calendar for free! Just write to info@bahamaislandsinfo.com with all the relevant information.

NOTE: All dates, times, locations and other details are subject to change.   

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