Guyanese, Roxanne Caleb, named Nyack College’s 2015 Valedictorian

Via www. guyanachronicle.com OMAIAH Aaliyah Hall is an 18-year-old Communications student at the University of Guyana who was recently crowned the Junior Calypso and Soca Monarch  in Guyana. She’s also an alumni of Bishops and St. Roses High Schools.  In a recent interview with ‘The Buzz’,  Omaiah shared that she has always been passionate about the arts, especially music.  Here’s her story.. “I love how you can relate an entire story through a song and…

Born to Guyanese parents, Bronx native Leah Persaud, is a Ph.D. candidate in biology pursuing cancer research at the CUNY Graduate Center at Lehman College. Since 2015, Persaud has been conducting research in the lab of Moira Sauane, a professor in Lehman’s Department of Biological Sciences, that she hopes will ultimately lead to new cancer therapies and drug treatments. “The Lehman campus was always my first choice,” said Persaud, who expects to earn her Ph.D….

During Emancipation Celebrations in Guyana in August, beautiful head wraps form part of the dress of many; but did you know? African head wraps have served as a head cover since the Early 1700s. It is interesting to note that the African head wrap (also known as Dhuku, Duku or Gele) is deep rooted in tradition and history – Each African nation has its own story to tell. While some of us look at a…

B.G. is British Guiana; Bhagee is a fiery local stew. Philippa was the second daughter in a family of six children growing up in mid-20th century in colonial Guyana. She recounts her Sisyphean trials growing up a Carrington in Lot 10, First Street, Georgetown — from the women’s battles to the neighbours that never wore clothes to the relatives who walked with their shoes in their hands. B.G. Bhagee: Memories of a Colonial Childhood About…

Born on August 9th, 1985 in Unity Village, Guyana, Indomatie Goordial-John is the eldest of three children, and the only member of her family interested in sports. A right-hand bat and off-spin bowler, Indomatie started playing tape-ball and softball cricket at the age of 13 at the Bygeval Secondary School.  She later played for the Eastern Warriors. In 1999, Indomatie joined Unity Sports Club, one of the first women’s cricket teams in Guyana. Two years…

Ira Leona Lewis is known throughout the Caribbean and American community as “Lady Ira”. Born in British Guiana to the late Omar Converty and Elaine Pile, Lady Ira has been an essential figure in spearheading efforts that promote the Cultural awareness and well being of New Jersey’s Guyanese American community for over 20 years. Supporting her vision of a united and informed Guyanese community, Lady Ira is dedicated to the development of organizations and events that benefit Guyanese…

Name: Kiesha Nicole Benn Specialty: Obstetrics & Gynecology Residency: Lehigh Valley Hospital, Allentown, PA Fellowship/Graduate school: Maternal Fetal Medicine, Second year Fellow at The University of Connecticut Health Center Medical School: SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY Undergraduate: City University of New York: Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education, NY, NY.   1) When did you decide you wanted to become a Medical Doctor and what led to this decision? “I knew I wanted to…

“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…

Roxanne Jacqueline Persaud was elected to the  New York State Assembly in November 2014. In January, 2015 she was sworn in as the first female, first black, first Guyanese to hold the position of Assembly member for the 59th Assembly District in Brooklyn, New York . Assemblywoman Persaud is a longtime advocate for her community and an avid volunteer. Her dedication to serving her community has motivated her to serve in various capacities. Assemblywoman Persaud …

Born in Georgetown, Guyana on March 23, 1963, Restaurateur Doris Rodney is a woman living out her dreams.  Not growing up with a silver spoon upbringing, Doris knew from a very young age that she wanted much more than life had to offer her at that time, so she set out to find ways of providing a better future for herself and her family. Doris loves to cook and soon realized that the key to…

Zena Hallam is a Florida-based  certified aromatherapist, reflexologist, and modern day alchemist. She first experienced the power of natural therapies as a girl in Guyana, South America, watching her mother heal the people of her village—including her grandmother, who would have lost her leg and then her life to diabetes, if not for Zena’s mother’s knowledge of herbal medicine. Watching others heal and thrive was a truly transformative experience for Zena. She decided to formally study…

Recent medical school graduate, Topaz Sampson, is very close to accomplishing her dream of practicing Medicine. A New Amsterdam native, Topaz was part of the graduating Class of 2015 at Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine, and is scheduled to begin residency training at Baylor College of Medicine. While in medical school Topaz was appointed 2014 President of the Student National Medical Association (SNMA), the oldest and largest student-run organization focused on the needs and concerns…

With 19 Grade One passes and a Grade Two, Queen’s College student Elisa Hamilton, an aspiring doctor, is the country’s unofficial top performer at this year’s Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations. Speaking to Stabroek News from Texas, in the United States, an excited Hamilton, 16, related that she was over the moon when she received a text message from her mother telling her that she not only topped her school but achieved the highest…

London-based saxophonist and composer, Nubya Garcia, is one of the leading forces behind the resurgence of jazz-influenced sounds in the UK. Raised in a creative environment built by a set of Caribbean parents, her brand of afro-tinged Jazz has made her a key component in a string of new and established groups: from work with MOBO Award-winning drummer, Moses Boyd, legendary Jungle producer and toaster, Congo Natty, through to her own works as part of…

Why wait to be someone else’s queen when you can be your own queen!  The word Queen means woman – any women – a woman with or without riches, fame, position; women from any background, color or creed; women limbless or able-bodied; a Queen of her domain, a Queen to her King; her husband, a Queen is a woman, a woman is a Queen (Wisdom Beyond Being).  So what’s stopping you from being the queen…