June is a busy month in Atlanta. It is Caribbean American Heritage Month and the Georgia Caribbean American Heritage Coalition (GCAHC) plans a month-long series of events to mark the occasion. Valrie Sanders, president of the coalition, is doing a terrific job and growth and improvement over last year are readily apparent.
The Atlanta chapter was busy too. Our annual reunion and awards banquet was held on the 14th. We had the honor and pleasure of welcoming Jamaica's ambassador and KC Old Boy, Anthony Johnson and his wife Pamela to Georgia.
Atlanta held a reception for the ambassador and his wife on the Friday evening before the banquet. It was also the Georgia launch of the ambassador's book on the history of KC. You can read more about this elsewhere in this edition of the newsletter.
The banquet was successful in several areas. The ambassador was a very big hit with the audience. And his speech is still being discussed many days after the event. Jamaica is very fortunate to have a man of his caliber as ambassador. As KC Old boys, we are delighted and proud to claim him as one of our own.
We had much improved attendance and revenue over last year. The key here was the support we received from community organizations such as AJA, Integrity Children's Fund, St. Hugh's Alumnae Association and Calabar High School. We also reduced expenses by not bringing people up from Jamaica to speak.
In addition to being editor of the newsletter, I was president of the Atlanta chapter for the 2007 - 2008 year which ends this month. The challenges were many, but I am gratified by the progress I have seen us make as a chapter.
I feel we are well positioned to make even more progress in the years ahead should we continue on the path we have been pursuing. My approach, while not a flamboyant one, will yield dividends over time and I would encourage future presidents to proceed accordingly.
