THE WORK OF THE MISSIONS ABROAD

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Michael Fountain, Bahamas Honorary Consul for The Bahamas in Chicago, raises the flag and speaks of Bahamaland in Chicago 8 July:
 

Chicago 

Michael Fountain, the Honorary Consul for The Bahamas in Chicago cuts the birthday cake for The Bahamas at the celebrations to mark the 43^rd Anniversary of the nation’s independence in Richton Park near Chicago on 10 July. 

New York 

NEW YORK — A signing ceremony on the occasion of the establishment of formal diplomatic relations between the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and Mongolia was held on Friday, July 8, 2016, at the Permanent Mission of Mongolia to the United Nations. The Joint Communique on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between the two countries was signed on behalf of the Government of The Bahamas by His Excellency Dr. Elliston Rahming (left), Ambassador and Permanent Representative of The Bahamas to the United Nations and the Organization of American States (OAS), and His Excellency Ambassador Sukhbold Sukhee, Permanent Representative of Mongolia to the United Nations, on behalf of the Government of Mongolia. 

Washington DC 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Shaback, the renowned Bahamian gospel ensemble, performed several gospel songs at the start of Bahamian High Tea and Concert at the Hyatt in Bethesda on Sunday, July 10, 2016, one of the events held over the weekend celebrating the 43rd anniversary of The Bahamas’ attainment of independence from Great Britain. They came back on stage later to close out the concert with a medley of traditional Bahamian songs that ended with a dance fest involving virtually every member of the audience before the concert came to a close with everyone singing The Bahamas National Anthem. Pictured from left dancing to the music of Shaback are: Ms. Cleola Hamilton, MP for South Beach and Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Miss Stephanie Rahming, Accounts Officer at the Bahamas Embassy Consular Annex; and Ms. Paulette Zonicle, Bahamas Consul General to Washington, D.C. 

Washington D C 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In addition to an amazing performance by Shaback at the Bahamian High Tea and Concert at the Hyatt in Bethesda on Sunday, July 10, 2016, celebrating the 43rd anniversary of The Bahamas’ attainment of independence from Great Britain, guests were treated to exceptional performances by Opera Singer Bridgette Cooper, who has Bahamian roots in Eleuthera, and the gifted and talented Bahamian concert pianist Dion Cunningham, a graduate of the prestigious Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University with a Master of Music in Piano and a doctorate from the University of Maryland. Mr. Cunningham accompanied Ms. Cooper and also performed solo. They are pictured performing above. 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The 43^rd anniversary of The Bahamas’ attainment of independence from Great Britain was celebrated in the Washington, D.C. area in grand style over the weekend with a series of events highlighted by a Bahamian High Tea and Concert at the Hyatt in Bethesda on Independence Day, Sunday, July 10, that featured a sensational performance by the Bahamian gospel ensemble Shaback.

Bahamians in the diaspora were joined by a well-represented cross-section of diplomats and members of the Washington, D.C.-area business community as His Excellency Dr. Eugene Newry, Bahamas Ambassador to the United States, and Ms. Paulette Zonicle, Bahamas Consul General to Washington, D.C., welcomed guests to a reception held in the ballroom of the Hyatt on Friday night, the first of four events. 

Representing the Government of The Bahamas at the celebrations was Ms. Cleola Hamilton, MP for South Beach and Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who also delivered welcoming remarks.

The evening included an art exhibition featuring the works of Mr. Patrick Delaney, a Bahamian who lives in Maryland; a delectable buffet of mainly Bahamian food; entertainment by Dillion McKenzie (D-MAC) and a performance by Shaback, capped by a Junkanoo rush-out by the Junkanoo Gawds group.

On Saturday afternoon scores of Bahamians and friends of The Bahamas continued the country’s independence celebrations at a picnic organized by the Bahamian American Association in the D.C. area and held on the grounds of the U.S. Coast Guard Base in Alexandria, Virginia, where Junkanoo Gawds again performed.

On Sunday morning the annual commemorative church service was held at the Greater Mount Calvary Holy Church in Northeast Washington, D.C.

Unquestionably, however, the highlight of the weekend celebrations was the High Tea and Concert, featuring a menu of Bahamian teas and confections. 

Before the entertainment got underway, Mrs. Beth Stewart, proprietor of Beth’s Kitchen in Nassau, gave a brief talk on the various bush teas she produces, including stories about the purported benefits of Strongback, a bush tea which she claimed was used my parents in her native Exuma “to strengthen the backs of young boys who continued to wet their beds after a certain age.”

Mrs. Stewart had a collection of her various professionally packaged bush teas for sale at the event, as did Mrs. Bolera Glinton, whose BGG Creative Essentials business produces hand-made designer handbags. 

In addition to the amazing performances by Shaback, who first performed several gospel songs and came back on stage later to close out the concert with a medley of traditional Bahamian songs, guests at the concert were also treated to exceptional performances by Opera Singer Bridgette Cooper, who has Bahamian roots in Eleuthera, and the gifted and talented Bahamian concert pianist Dion Cunningham, a graduate from the prestigious Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University with a Master of Music in Piano and a doctorate from the University of Maryland.

Shaback provided the music for what turned out to be dance fest with virtually every member of the audience participating before the concert came to a close with everyone singing The Bahamas National Anthem.

CAPTION ONE
His Excellency Dr. Eugene Newry, Bahamas Ambassador to the United States, welcoming guests to the 43nd anniversary celebrations of The Bahamas’ attainment of independence reception in the ballroom of the Hyatt in Bethesda, Maryland, on Friday evening, July 8, 2016.
CAPTION TWO
Mrs. Paulette Zonicle, Bahamas Consul General to Washington, D.C., speaking at the 43nd anniversary celebrations of The Bahamas’ attainment of independence reception in the ballroom of the Hyatt in Bethesda, Maryland, on Friday evening, July 8, 2016.

CAPTION THREE
Clint Watson and Shaback performing at the Bahamian High Tea and Concert at the Hyatt in Bethesda on Independence Day, Sunday, July 10, 2016.

CAPTION FOUR
His Excellency Dr. Eugene Newry, Bahamas Ambassador to the United States, speaking at the picnic held on the grounds of the U.S.Coast Guard Base in Alexandria, Virginia. At right is Ms. Paulette Zonicle, Bahamas Consul General to Washington, D.C., and second from left is Ms. Cleola Hamilton, MP for South Beach and Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

CAPTION FIVE
Ms. Paulette Zonicle, Bahamas Consul General to Washington, D.C., and Ms. Cleola Hamilton, MP for South Beach and Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, joined in the Junkanoo rush out by Junkanoo Gawds by at the picnic held on the grounds of the U.S. Coast Guard Base in Alexandria, Virginia. 

Washington D C 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Among the Bahamians in the Diaspora who enjoyed the picnic organized by The Bahamas Embassy Consular Annex and the Bahamian American Association in the D.C. area on Saturday, July 9, 2016 as one of the activities celebrating the 43^rd anniversary of The Bahamas attainment of independence from Great Britain was Ensign Nakera Rahming-Saldana, a Bahamian who joined the U.S. Coast Guard in 2010.

Mrs. Rahming Saldana, who is stationed at the U.S. Coast Guard Base in Alexandria, Virginia, where the picnic was held, graduated from Freeport Anglican High in 2003 and attended the University of West Florida, from where she graduated with a Bachelor’s in Software Engineering.

“I joined the Coast Guard in 2010 and was previously stationed in San Francisco, California, for the past six years,” Ensign Rahming-Saldana said in a brief interview at the picnic. “I was commissioned as an officer last year and was then transferred to the US Coast Guard Base TISCOM, here in Alexandria, as a Project Manager to manage internet connectivity on all of the Coast Guard Cutters/Boats, especially the ones that work alongside the Bahamas Defence force.”

Asked how often she visits The Bahamas, she said: “I visit home at least once a year. As the saying goes, ‘Born, bred, gon dead Bahamian.’ My entire family still resides in The Bahamas, mostly in Freeport. My father is Herbert Rahming, who hails from Fox Hill and works for the Bahamas Customs, and my mother is Mary Rahming (nee Hield) from High Rock, who is an art teacher at Jack Hayward High in Freeport.”

Ensign Rahming Saldana is married to Carlos Saldana, who is from the Virgin Islands, and they have a two-year-old daughter.
CAPTION ONE
Ensign Nakera Saldana-Rahming, a Bahamian in the U.S. Coast Guard, is flanked by Nicanor E. Davidson (right), a Bahamian who is a former U.S. Army Aviator, and Bernard Colebrook, a Bahamian who is a retired U.S. Marine Corps veteran, at the Bahamas independence celebration picnic held at U.S. Coast Guard Base in Alexandria, Virginia, on Saturday. Davidson and Colebrook are two of the principal organizers of the picnic.
CAPTION TWO
Ensign Nakera Saldana-Rahming (centre) is pictured at the Bahamas independence celebration picnic held at U.S. Coast Guard Base in Alexandria, Virginia, on Saturday, with from left to right: His Excellency Dr. Eugene Newry, Bahamas Ambassador to the United States; Ms. Cleola Hamilton, MP for South Beach and Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Ms. Paulette Zonicle, Bahamas Consul General to D.C.; and Mr. Bernard Colebrook, a Bahamian who is a retired U.S. Marine Corps veteran. 

Washington DC 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In his capacity as The Bahamas’ Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Organization of American States (OAS), His Excellency Dr. Elliston Rahming presided over his first regular meeting as Chair of the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) on Wednesday, July 13, 2016, in Simón Bolívar Hall at the OAS headquarters, 17th Street & Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC.

Dr. Rahming, who is also The Bahamas’ Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, officially assumed the chairmanship of the OAS Permanent Council on July 1 and will serve in that capacity for the next three months.

In his introductory remarks, after asking his colleagues to join him in “a moment of silence as we pay tribute to the life and service of the Honourable Patrick Manning, former Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago,” Dr. Rahming said that it “goes without saying that it is a great honour for The Bahamas, once again, to assume the Presidency of the Permanent Council of this ancient and august body.”

“We assume the mantle of leadership at a critical moment in the history of the Organization,” Dr. Rahming noted. “In a real sense, the OAS is at the crossroads, juxtaposed between a glorious past and an imposing future; nestled between reinventing its relevancy and clout, while supplanting its sustainability.”

Continuing, he added: “As Chair of the Council, it is my intention to focus on examining challenges associated with sustainable development in The Americas. It is a theme that we are all familiar with, in the wake of the Paris Agreement, the 2030 Agenda, and the recent OAS General Assembly in the Dominican Republic. 

“It is my hope that my Chairmanship will effectively steer the organization closer towards becoming the institution that we all want. While the challenges to development in the Americas are manifold, I believe that the OAS has an indispensable role to play in assisting Member States to meet their evolving national and international obligations. 

“In addition, I intend to use the Regional Coordinators Mechanism to continue towards efficient and effective dialogue among Member States.”

Declaring that during his chairmanship it is anticipated that a Budgetary Resolution will come before The Permanent Council, Dr. Rahming added, “I would also like to make mention of other outstanding resolutions, including the declaration entitled Finance and Banking Services: Challenges to Development in The Americas, which was previously presented by the delegation of Antigua and Barbuda and co-sponsored by the delegations of The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

“Over the next three months, more specifically, in addition to our regular PC meetings and meetings called to address urgent, unforeseen matters, I propose that in August we convene two special meetings to deal with “Reconceptualising indicators of Development and Development needs within International Financial Institutions” as well as a session on “Examining the Challenges of Brain Drain within the Caribbean Region and the wider Americas”.

Additionally, he said, he proposes to convene “a Roundtable to dialogue on Access to aid and finance, a mandate emanating from the General Assembly Declaration.”

In September, it is proposed that time be set aside time to examine: The Paris accord on Climate Change and its implications for Latin America and the Caribbean, and “we want to assess contributions of the OAS toward the fulfilment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s).”

“Also in September, it is my intention to organize a retreat to analyse practical approaches to institutional strengthening viz a viz of enhancement of the Permanent Council,” Dr. Rahming said. “The retreat should also provide an opportunity for candid discussions on the way forward amongst Council Members, away from the confines of these halls. At the end of the day, we should emerge with a written, working document to magnify and illuminate the way ahead.”

Dr. Rahming said it is also his intention to invite Member States to participate in a domino tournament and “taste of The Americas” fete “as a means of promoting greater dialogue, espirit de corps and fraternalism among representatives of Member States.”

Continuing, Dr. Rahming said, “Colleagues, we all know the procedural rules that govern us. Without being oppressive or mean-spirited, I intend to scrupulously follow the rules. This means that:

“We will generally meet on the first and third Wednesdays of each month.

“We will begin the meetings at 9:59am.

“Speakers who go beyond the ten-minute limit will be called on to wrap up.

“As Chair, my leadership style will be characterized by the four F’s: I will be Frank, Firm, Fair, yet Friendly.”

CAPTION
His Excellency Dr. Elliston Rahming delivering his opening remarks at his first regular meeting as Chair of the Permanent Council of the OAS on Wednesday, July 13, 2016, in Simón Bolívar Hall at the OAS headquarters. At left is Nestor Mendez, OAS Assistant Secretary General, and at right is Gonzalo Koncke, Chief of Staff of OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro Lemes.

CAPTION
Prior to going to the Simon Bolivar Hall to chair his first regular meeting of the Permanent Council of the OAS, His Excellency Dr. Elliston Rahming (left) and Mr. Chet Neymour, Deputy Chief of Mission at The Bahamas Embassy, look over a copy of his opening remarks in his office at the OAS. 

Atlanta 

ATLANTA, Georgia — Hon. Randy Rolle, Bahamas Consul General to Atlanta, was among those honoured by the Atlanta Business League (ABL) at their 10th Annual Men of Influence Reception and Induction Ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta on Tuesday, July 12, 2016.

Others honoured included Mr. Lee Baker, Apex Financial Services; Mr. Sterling Coleman, SJAC Food Groups, LLC; Mr. Tim Jefferson, Grady Health System; Mr. Brian Pauling, 100 Black Men of America, Inc.; Mr. Byron E. Small, Atlanta Business Chronicle; Mr. Courtney Smith, PNC Bank; Mr. Dallas Smith, T. Dallas Smith & Company; Dr. Lonnie Johnson, Excellatron, 2016 Inductee to Legends Hall of Fame; and the late Hon. Judge Horace T. Ward, Business Icon and Civil Rights Leader, 2016 Legacy Honoree.

For the past 10 years the ABL has recognized business owners, professionals, community and civic leaders in metropolitan Atlanta, and annually publishes its list of Atlanta’s Influential Black Men during an evening reception and induction ceremony.

“The list reflects the names of black men in metro Atlanta communities who have reached senior level positions within their profession, are leading entrepreneurs in their industry, have proven history-making feats or have attained the ability to influence large public bodies politically and in government,” according to ABL’s website. “In addition to professional accomplishments, the Men of Influence have demonstrated their commitment to the citizens of Metro Atlanta by maintaining significant involvement and participation in community and civic activities.”

Each “Man of Influence” received a pin commemorating his selection.

CAPTION
Hon. Randy Rolle, Bahamas Consul General to Atlanta, speaking at the Atlanta Business League’s annual Men of Influence Reception and Induction Ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta on Tuesday, July 12.