Happy Birthday to Our Beautiful Guyana!

Kenise Etwaru was born in Guyana and emigrated with her parents at age nine along with her sister who was then six in order that they would have greater education opportunities.  They wanted to ensure them having the best possible opportunities in life.  They left a very comfortable life at the church her father Pastor Lionel Etwaru and his wife Margaret had started for a completely new life in a new country.  Seeing them persevere…

Earlier this month I had the pleasure of watching the young women of St. Albans Episcopal Church perform the Maypole dance at the annual Guyana Folk Festival held in Brooklyn, NY.   I remember doing this as a little girl growing up in Guyana dressed up in frilly dresses and socks with colorful hair bows, as we danced and weaved the ribbons to the sound of music. Watching this recreated many, many years later brought back sweet memories. A maypole is a tall…

Karen Godette, MD, is a board certified radiation oncologist in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, GA. Dr. Godette practices general radiation oncology and specializes in breast and gynecological malignancies, prostate cancer and soft tissue sarcoma. Within these areas, her expertise is brachytherapy. Dr. Godette treats patients at Winship at Emory University Hospital Midtown where she has served as medical director since 2001. Winship Cancer Institute is Georgia’s…

“A dream is a wish that your heart makes” and 9 year old Sapphire Autumn Rose is following her dream and sharing her heart with the world!   The pint-size entrepreneur recently launched her “Heart Full of Dreams” collection via her online retail store dobviousrose.com. The pink and rose color infused collection includes beautiful fashion necklaces, bracelets, scarfs, dream pillows, T-shirts, blankets, and charms for young girls. The daughter of Guyanese designers, Michelle Cole and the late…

Letting go helps us to to live in a more peaceful state of mind and helps restore our balance. It allows others to be responsible for themselves and for us to take our hands off situations that do not belong to us. This frees us from unnecessary stress. Melody Beattie

Sachia Vickery was born to Guyanese Parents and lives and train in Florida. She also  trained with USTA and Mouratoglou Academy in France. Sashia comes from a family full of athletes.Her father was professional soccer player and her mother, Paula Liverpool, ran track in high school.  Her brother plays football at South Carolina State (defensive back). Sachia Vickery qualifies for Wimbledon Singles main draw Sachia long-term goal is to win a Grand Slam and be the best…

Born on October 31, 1993 in Georgetown, Guyana, Letitia Michelle Wright is an UK-based actress, known for her roles in Glasgow Girls, My Brother the Devil and Urban Hymn. Migrating to London with her mother at the age of six, Letitia first fell in love with acting at her Finsbury Park primary school when she got the opportunity to play a young Rosa Parks onstage. “I felt so comfortable,” she recalls. “I even did the…

You cannot always count on everyone to support your dreams, but having people in your circle who are constantly exuding negative energy can be quite exhausting and discouraging. We all need friends in our corner, even a few cheerleaders, but it should not be at the expense of you following your ambitions. You should walk away from the ones who don’t motivate, inspire or uplift you.

Berbice-based Entrepreneur, Ishabeth Sinclair, has accomplished more in just 22 years than most entrepreneurs aspire to in a lifetime.  Her award winning natural foods manufacturing company provides employment for primarily youths and single parents from her community.  In 2016, at the age of 19, Ishabeth cofounded M & I Business Enterprise with her now husband, Michael Sinclair.  The company creates high quality organic, natural and specialty food products from raw materials that are prevalent in Guyana,…

This past weekend the people of Guyana felt a sense of pride as Rafieya Aasieya Husain became the first Guyanese in over 40 years to place at the Miss World Pageant. The 22-year-old beauty queen, who is a native of Essequibo County, was one of the top 10 Finalists named at the Miss World competition finale held on Sunday at the Excel London ICC Auditorium. Rafieya also won the ‘Beauty With a Purpose Title’, which…

Future Olympian, Andrea Fosters, recently added another award to her outstanding resume when she was named “Woman of the Year” by the New Jersey Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women!  The middle distance runner is the first Guyanese student to receive this distinguished honor. This annual recognition is awarded during the month of February in honor of the 32nd anniversary of National Girls & Women in Sports Day; a national observance celebrating the extraordinary achievements of women and girls…

  Keisha Edwards has been designing from a very young age. As a child growing up in Guyana, she would sketch outfits and ask her mother to make them for her. Born on September 8th, 1986, Keisha grew up in North Ruimveldt and then moved to East Ruimveldt at the age of 7. One of 8 kids, Keisha treasures her friendship with her siblings, and still reminisces on her childhood and the good times they…

She’s Mad Real: Popular Culture and West Indian Girls in Brooklyn In She’s Mad Real, Oneka LaBennett draws on over a decade of researching teenage West Indian girls in the Flatbush and Crown Heights sections of Brooklyn to argue that Black youth are in fact strategic consumers of popular culture and through this consumption they assert far more agency in defining race, ethnicity, and gender than academic and popular discourses tend to acknowledge. Importantly, LaBennett…

A stellar achiever at a very young age and one of Guyana’s youngest dental surgeons, Dr. Sulan Fung aims to empower young women and spread awareness on her interest – maintaining a healthy mouth. Twenty-four-year-old Sulan began her scholastic career at Stella Maris Nursery at three years old. She later earned a place at Bishops’ High School where she received awards for best debater and best actress, along with elocution prizes. “I got prizes mostly…

Caribbean Squash Queen Nicolette Fernandes was born  in Toronto, Canada on June 19, 1983.  She moved back to Guyana with her parents at an early age began playing squash competitively at the age of 8.   Representing Guyana, she dominated the junior category both domestically and regionally before she became famous for her outstanding performance at various Caribbean Championships.  Nicolette made a significant leap when she was just 19-years-old and emerged as Champion at her first Pan American Games. Nicolette has…