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Some 19 residents who volunteered their time, talent and expertise to make the visit of the Royal Couple to the island of Saba on November 14th of last year a successful and memorable one were awarded a commemorative medal. The distribution of this commemorative medal took place on July 2nd in a brief ceremony hosted by Island Governor Jonathan Johnson in the Legislative Hall of the Government Administration Building.
(Photo GIS Saba)
The persons were chosen because they went the extra mile to provide technical, logistical and otherwise special assistance that proved invaluable to the visit of the His Majesty King Willem Alexander and his wife Queen Maxima. “Because it was not possible to recognize every single person during the actual visit, the King decided to create a medal to show his appreciation for those who have assisted with the planning and implementation of this first official visit to Saba by the Royal Couple”. The same commemorative medal was awarded to persons on the six islands in the Dutch Caribbean.
Island Governor Jonathan Johnson during the ceremony commended the persons receiving the medal for their overwhelming dedication and for ensuring that his Majesty’s visit was a successful accomplishment for the people of Saba. “The Royal Couple truly enjoyed their visit while residents still talk of this festive celebration. By everyone working together for this Royal Visit was a clear example of the cooperation that still exists on the island. Everything represented a powerful picture of the resilience of Sabans in the past and presently while also depicting the cultural diversity of our island today”.
Persons to be awarded a medal were: committee members and persons who assisted the committee not only in the execution but also in the planning phase. The honorees include; Island Governor Jonathan Johnson, Franklin Wilson, Glenn Holm, La-Toya Charles, Jarmila Wilson-Berkel, Vito Charles, Alida Francis, Pastor Vernon Liburd, Lisa Hassell, Russell Thielman, Tara Every, Derrick Spence, Josephine Spence, Olga Simmons, Ethan Caines, Tim van Oosteren, Sarah Hertsens, Malachy Magee, Ludwina Charles – Lucas and Berta Aguilera
Congratulations for the volunteers. Great to see their efforts respected. But why do we see the names of government officials here? We pay these people to do their work. When the “boss” comes to visit our island, the least that he can expect, is that the officials do their job properly, i.e., pay respect to him, If this takes a few hours extra for preparing the visit, so be it: No way should these people be considered “volunteers”.
Agreed Eddie: government officials are no volunteers.