Members of the St. Maarten Guyanese Association along with pastors who were present at the installation ceremony.
POND ISLAND--The new board of the St. Maarten Guyanese Association was installed during a meet-and-greet at the University of St. Martin (USM) on Saturday evening.
During the event, newly elected President Dionne Kirton called on Guyanese in St. Maarten to unite, contribute ideas and become more involved in the association and wider community.
The newly installed board consists of President Dionne Kirton, Secretary Tenesha Sullivan, Treasurer Malcolm Mickle, Public Relations Officer (PRO) Sharon Layne Lam and board members Dexter Fraser, Mary Shivrattan, Abiola Nicholas, Donna Williams, Seon Bourne and Tessa Lambert.
Kirton, along with some members of the board, were elected president in late August. The board was later expanded to include more members. In her address, Kirton said the association should be built around service, inclusion and unity and invited Guyanese in St. Maarten to become actively involved.
“Your voice matters. Your ideas matter. Your suggestions matter,” she said. She said the association should be a place where Guyanese can find support, guidance, opportunities, cultural connection and fellowship, while promoting the legal, moral, cultural, social and economic well-being of its members. “Being President is not about having a title. It is about having a responsibility to serve, and our simple but important purpose is to do good for our people.”
Kirton said the board could not build the association alone and called on the wider Guyanese community to participate. “We need all of you.”
She said the association should welcome young and old, new arrivals and people who have lived in St. Maarten for many years, as well as professionals, workers, business owners, students, families and individuals. “There must be a place for everyone.”
Kirton also encouraged members to offer criticism when it is given with good intentions. “Even your criticism, when given with good intentions, can help us become better.”
She said an association becomes strong when its people feel they belong to it. “Because an association becomes strong when its people feel that they belong to it – not when they simply belong under it.”
Kirton invited Guyanese in St. Maarten to bring their ideas, talents, concerns and hopes to the association and called for unity despite differences within the community. “We may come from different parts of Guyana. We may have different opinions.... but at the end of the day, we are all Guyanese.”
She said Guyanese should support one another and avoid allowing differences to become divisions. “Let us not allow differences to become divisions. Let us disagree respectfully, forgive quickly, and remember that the person beside us is not our opponent – they are our brother, our sister, our neighbour, our fellow Guyanese.”
Kirton also expressed gratitude to the government and people of St. Maarten, describing the island as the host country and saying it has given many Guyanese a place to work, raise families, build dreams and contribute to society. “For many of us, St. Maarten is no longer simply where we live. It is home.”
Because St. Maarten is home, Kirton said Guyanese has a responsibility to contribute to the
community and island. She called on the community to look out for one another, support people who are struggling, encourage young people, respect elders and celebrate each other’s successes.
Kirton said she wants every Guyanese person to be able to say: “This is my Association. My voice matters here. I belong here.”
