Happy Holidays GGR Family!

Alyssa Raghu shed tears of joy Sunday night when she was advanced to Hollywood for the next round of American Idol.  The 15 year old songbird auditioned on the premiere episode on season 16 of the ABC’s singing competition before judges Katy Perry, Lionel Ritchie and Luke Bryan. Born to Guyanese parents, Alyssa is a student at Lake Nona High School in Orlando Florida and also plays the guitar. According to www.wftv.com, Alyssa’s ‘American Idol’ journey…

During the colonial period in Guyana, the country’s coastal lands were worked by enslaved Africans and indentured Indians. In Creole Indigeneity, Shona N. Jackson investigates how their descendants, collectively called Creoles, have remade themselves as Guyana’s new natives, displacing indigenous peoples in the Caribbean through an extension of colonial attitudes and policies. Looking particularly at the nation’s politically fraught decades from the 1950s to the present, Jackson explores aboriginal and Creole identities in Guyanese society….

High school student Kelly Hyles has made her entire family and the Guyanese community very proud after being accepted to all 8 Ivy League Colleges.  Born in Guyana, Kelly now resides in Brooklyn, New York and received a total of 21 acceptance letters, but the best arrived from America’s Top 8 Colleges. Kelly migrated to the US from Guyana with her family when she was 11 years old.  She is a former student of Vryheid’s Lust…

Guyanese-born legislator, Roxanne Jacqueline Persaud, was elected to the New York Senate on November 3, 2015 after defeating her two challengers in the elections for the 19thSenatorial District.  Back in November 2014, she became the  first female, first black, first Guyanese to hold the position of Assembly member for the 59th Assembly District in Brooklyn, New York . Persaud, 49, polled 6,980 votes, or 88 per cent of the votes cast, while Jeffrey Ferretti, the Republic Party challenger, received…

Mashramani is carnival like in nature. This year’s theme is “Showcasing our Culture, Sustaining Our Heritage.” Customarily, this is a colourful festival and is a combination of costume competitions, float parades, masquerade bands and much dancing and merriment in the streets to the sweet sounds of steel pan along with calypso and soca music. The Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport continues annually to create and manage the Mashramani celebrations as the largest national event.

Flora Zeta Zhang Elizabeth Tian Ai Cheong-Leen was born in Hong Kong in 1959.  Her father Hilton Cheong-Leen was born in Georgetown, British Guyana but is of Chinese descent and her mother Pauline Chow is from Beijing. Flora graduated from The Royal Ballet in the UK and at the Paris Opera in France. She starred as the lead actress in movies such as: “Life After Life”, “Duel to the Death”, “Chasing Girl” and “Return of…

This book is about Mohan and the many challenges he faces at home, as well as, school. Mohan discovers that having family and friends that believe in him and making the effort to do his best, can result in accomplishing the unexpected. Author Anaya Lee Willabus is an eight year old visionary who loves to read and play sports. At the age of two, Anaya Lee was taught to read by her father. She was…

via www.illinoistimes.com June Wood Agamah moved to Springfield in 1995 with her husband, Dr. Edem Agamah, and their three young daughters. It’s a long way from her Guyana homeland – where she was called Caryl.  Edem was born in Ghana. Frequently Americans assume they are from the same country. They were born nearly 4,000 miles and an ocean apart. Guyana is on the northern coast of South America and Ghana on the western coast of…

Two female pioneer aviators were recently presented with their own commemorative stamps, which were launched by the Guyana Post Office. Cheryl Moore was the country’s first female military pilot in 1977 and Beverley Drake, the first female commercial pilot in the same year.

Congratulations to Dr. Paloma Mohamed, poet, playwright & educator on being named one of four honorees for the Anthony N. Sabga Caribbean Awards for Excellence (Arts & Letters).  Dr. Mohamed  is currently the Director of the Centre for Communication Studies at the University of Guyana. The Anthony N Sabga Caribbean Awards is the only programme in the Caribbean which seeks out and rewards outstanding nominees in Arts & Letters, Public & Civic Contributions, and Science…

Janice Elizabeth MacGregor is a second generation Canadian born to parents who emigrated from Guyana and became Canadian citizens. Her father, Frank Moorgen (RIP 2010), was born in Hampshire Village, Berbice and her mother, Mary Moorgen (née Deonarine) was born in Corentyne, Berbice. ‎ Janice, her brother, and her sister were born in Edmonton, Alberta (Canada). She attended Millwoods Christian School where her strong commitment to academics and faith were formed. She fondly recalls visiting…

Nirmala Narine is a World Traveler, Author, Executive Producer, Television Host, and Founder of Nirmala’s Kitchen, the go-to company for spices, grains, sauces and much more.   She was born in Guyana and at the age of six Nirmala began to cook in a tiny kitchen with no running water or electricity.  It was Nirmala’s grandfather, an Arya Samaj Hindu Pandit, who schooled her in the ancient Indian arts of holistic cooking and Ayurvedic living.  When…

The three students are 19-year-old Kessia Garnett who graduated Valedictorian followed by 17-year-old Anika Lewis and 19-year-old Nashavia Cummings who shared the Salutatorian position. These young women are all in the Honour Society and plan on entering college next semester. Guyanese girls graduate with top honours at US high school

The Slipper is a classic tale of love and loss portrayed in the most unconventional style. Included are lovable, colorful characters such as Meetu, Vishnu, maa and baap who’s humor infuses a serious subject matter in a very unique, warm and touching manner. What happens when a headstrong teen falls for an unsuitable suitor? What becomes of her future when her strict parents desire another path? And what ensues years later when Meetu’s past catches…

When you think of a well rounded student, Ayisha Jackson comes to mind.  This weekend the senior at Brown University will be among the Class of 2018 and will graduate with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Materials Engineering.  Ayisha’s academic achievement is not the only impressive thing about this very bright young woman.  She has interned at NASA and Vanderbilt Institute for Nanoscale Science and Engineering, studied in Hong Kong,  traveled throughout the continent of Asia…