Local News

The following reflections on Revelations 21: 1-7 were written by Mr. Gomez Hodge, brother of the late Johnson C. Hodge and reader of that passage of Scripture during the thanksgiving/funeral service:

President of Caribbean Juris Chambers, Mr. John Benjamin, may have been an Anglican Priest today alongside his first cousin, Bishop Errol Brooks, but fate decided otherwise. Instead, he is one of the leading lawyers in the Caribbean with 25 years of practice, 23 of which he has spent in Anguilla.

A one-week Health Seminar, providing useful insights into a number of diseases and other conditions affecting the body, is in progress in Anguilla and is being well-followed by a number of interested persons.

The brothers and sister of the late Johnson C. Hodge of Stoney Ground and other relatives have expressed their thanks and appreciation to everyone for the support and comfort they have given all members of the family in their bereavement.

With construction work around the main jetty at Road Bay, Sandy Ground, now well in hand, the Anguilla Port Development Project has moved to Blowing Point where an all inclusive passenger terminal is to be built.

For a little over two years the Financial Services Commission has been very active in taking steps to help Montserrat meet international standards for financial regulation. This has been the period for the first full time Commissioner whose extended contract comes to an end on October 6.

Anguilla is the third of a number of regional islands included in a Macro Economic Damages Assessment Training Workshop aimed at preparing key persons to effectively handle any given situation in the aftermath of a hurricane. A chilling thought is that, according to Acting Governor Stanley Reid, given the tremendous level of infrastructural development taking place on the island, it is unlikely that the responses to hurricanes Luis and Lenny in 1995 and 1999 will be adequate in Anguilla today.

Participants and presenters of a two-day workshop, a Response to the feminine dimensions of HIV/AIDS, held in Anguilla on Monday and Tuesday this week, have took a long, hard look at the ravages of the disease and its impact on society and family-life.

Andy Otto, who escaped from Her Majesty’s Prison in Anguilla in 2004, has been extradited from Guadeloupe and returned to jail here.

Anguilla’s Minister of Social Development, Evans Rogers, is the new Chairman of the Policy Board of the OECS/Pharmaceutical Procurement Service (OECS/PPS). He was installed in the position at the 20th meeting of the board and a special Health Ministers’ conference held at Paradise Cove Resort in Anguilla on September 8. Mr. Rogers succeeds the St. Kitts-Nevis Minister of Health, Rupert Herbert.

The Royal Anguilla Police Force has taken a step aimed at making its members more effective public speakers and has involved the participation of other department representatives to improve their communication skills as well.

The 3rd Regional Law Fair, Bi-annual General Meeting and associated social functions of the OECS Bar Association will be held in Anguilla over this weekend, culminating in the opening of Law Year on Monday, September 18, by the Chief Justice of the Court of Appeal.

Andrew Cambran, one of three prisoners who escaped from Her Majesty’s Prison in Anguilla on Thursday, August 3, 2006, has been brought back to the island and returned to jail.

One year and nine months after the completion of Wallblake Airport Expansion Project, the Financing Agreement, which paves the way for European Union assistance to Anguilla’s Medium Term Air Transport Sector Plan, covering the period 2004 to 2008, was officially signed by the Territorial Authorizing Officer for Anguilla and Permanent Secretary, FEDICT Dr Aidan Harrigan.

The Road Primary School has been given a facelift with private sector assistance. The work substantially involved painting of the school and cleaning of the playground.

Cap Juluca’s 2005/2006 staff appreciation closeout activities peaked on Thursday, August 31st with a grand End of Season Gala and the staging of the Ms. Juluca Pageant. At the end of a packed programme in which seven contestants representing different departments vied for the coveted title, Cleone Romney, Miss Guest Services took home the crown of Ms. Juluca 2006. Shelder Lewis (PIMMS Service) was adjudged First Runner Up, and Jennifer Edwards from Kemia Kitchen was voted Second Runner Up.

Malliouhana Hotel and Spa closed on August 31, following the end of a successful and busy 2005/2006 tourism season.

The Fifth AGM of the Anguilla Animal Rescue Foundation was held on Wednesday August 30th at Roy’s Bayside.

The Health Authority of Anguilla (HAA) has undertaken to put measures in place to control risks in all areas of the health services to ensure the safety of patients and workers. A day and a half training workshop was held towards that end, at the Soroptimist Day Care Centre on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, for senior managers and other staff in the various health care departments.

One of Anguilla’s most outspoken and passionate Clerics, the Reverend Dr. H. Clifton Niles, has set out four of the principles which have guided his ministry over the years and which he intends to carry forward in his homeland.