Posts tagged Barbados

Geoffrey Alleyne, has been in telecommunications for the last 51 years. A career he has found a great amount of satisfaction in. And as a telecommunications teacher at Pearson Electrotechnology Centre at the Lester B. Pearson School Board he has had a front row seat monitoring changes and development in the sector. Through the years he has watched the telecommunication industry morph and grow and as the world moves digital. Alleyne reckons this is a sector that young people need to jump on. The way he sees it the industry cuts across many spheres and industries not just limited to …

Thirty-eight years ago when Archdeacon James W. Bennett introduced himself to Montrealers on the pulpit of St. Paul’s Anglican Church in Cote des Neiges, the Black and Caribbean community buzzed with vibrancy and was upwardly mobile. As he prepares what can be considered his parting sermon to be delivered on June 26, he’s looking at a community that has become debilitated by politics and social deprivation, which consequently drained churches of their most precious resources, congregants. Sadly it means that as he leaves, he’s unable to pronounce on the future of the institution and the congregation that he has shepparded …

Ms. Winnifred Loretta Riley Born October 15 1946- Died on May 12, 2022 Ms Riley was a petite, 4 ft 5inch woman who stood tall in her Black community because of her beautiful smile, hard-working West Indian values of endless kindness and love for others She is survived by her son Richard Williams Riley Her brothers’ Calester Riley , Kenbourne Riley, Reford Riley and David Riley; her sister-in-law, Daisy Riley and her cousins Sonia Lloyd, Marsha Wilson, Doreen Castle, Denham Douglas, Marcia Douglas Visitation of Ms. Riley: Friday, June 10, 2022 ● 2pm-5pm and 5pm -9pm Centre Funéraire Côte-des-Neiges, 4525 …

On the evening of Saturday, April 30, the Blue and Gold bordering Neptune’s broken Trident flew in its glory at Centre Communautaire Sarto Desnoyers in Dorval as hundreds of Bajan joined by friends and supporters from across the city rallying around the flag in a celebration of the new Republic of Barbados at a Gala Cocktail Soiree themed Bim Spring. The event, one of the first in the community following the COVID-19 lockdown, bubbled as the roomful of Montrealers enjoyed wall-to wall music with calypsonian Rupee’s “I’m A Bajan” substituting as the theme song of the evening, with ample servings …

Hugh McDonald (Boo) Lashley Sunrise: March 7, 1948 – Sunset: March 26, 2022 It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of: Hugh McDonald (Boo) Lashley of Montreal, formerly of Curwen Avenue, Bayville, St. Michael, Barbados. He passed away peacefully on March 26, 2022 at the Jewish General Hospital. Hughie had a great smile and easy laugh. He was a charmer who made friends effortlessly. He could often be found reading (Westerns mostly – why, no one knows!?), heard yelling during heated games of dominoes, and dancing while singing along off-key to his favourite music. Son of the …

Two decades after he was appointed to the Quebec Court, Judge Daniel Dortelus is set to resign on July 22. However, he is leaving with a heavy heart, knowing that his departure means that will be no other Black male representative in the Quebec judiciary. He expressed his concerns in a letter to Quebec Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette, lamenting the fact that inspite of repeated calls for increased diversity in the judiciary, he remains the first and only Black man to serve as a judge in the history of the Court of Quebec. The issue of diversity at every level …

Rosie Awori (LJI) Across the community, women leaders come from an array of disciplines from academia to health to administration and are finding themselves at the helm of community organizations. And they are helping to chart a path forward for their respective associations and for the Black and Caribbean community. These intrepid female leaders are also finding ways to mix their personal and family lives together with their commitment to community to help lift lives. JOAN LEE – Committed to the cause When her daughter received a scholarship from WIBCA, Joan Lee’s curiosity peaked into the workings of thew association …

Rosie Awori (LJI) Two well-known community members Cynthia Waithe and Kris Bennett have taken the helm at one city’s longest serving island associations, Barbados House Montreal at its recently held AGM. Waithe is now serving as the organization’s president and Bennett as its vice-presidents representing a significant shift of generational leadership. Past president Nigel Clarke remains on the executive team as treasurer along with other long serving members Veronica Payne (2nd vice president) and Margaret Cadogan, secretary. Other executive members include Sammy Maughn, Maxine Payne, Louise Headley and Pauline Cox. On Saturday March 12, Barbados House Montreal will participate in …

It’s easy to describe Florence Phillips-Westmoreland as a people’s person, after all her readily discernable effervescence combined with her gift of gab make it pleasurable for anyone to engage with her. More than that, at 97 years old, Florence has seen a lot, growing up in a large family in Plateau Montreal and as an avid traveller, which when combined with a laser-sharp memory allows this great conversationalist to recall events of yesteryear as if they were yesterday. And having grown up surrounded by Jewish neighbours, she is fluent in Yiddish. Speaking to The CONTACT on February 23, her birthday, …

Historian Dorothy Williams once described Montreal’s Black community as “a vibrant, multicultural, multilingual consisting of Blacks from Africa, Europe, the Caribbean, Canada and Latin America.” She went on say that the community has deep roots in Montreal going back to coming of the first French explorers and has defied the stereotypes of “being among Canada’s uneducated immigrants, lacking motivation, poverty driven and feeding off the system.” Upon entry, she writes, Blacks have been among Canada’s most educated” but struggled to find an environment that is home, that is safe and enduring.” The challenge for generations of Blacks coming of age …