Happy New Year GGR Family!

Farah Delicia Hussain was born in Guyana and moved to New York City when she was four years old. She’s a certified Kripalu Yoga Teacher and Thai Massage Therapist.  Her family’s cultural and religious history, coupled with the trials of being an immigrant and a first-generation American, instilled a desire for self-exploration and healing.  Her philosophy of yoga honors self-study balanced with a deep responsibility to enhance community and environmental health. While Farah was introduced to…

Sunday’s Child by Anne Lyken-Garner is the remarkably inspirational true story of a little girl struggling to rise above poverty, appalling living conditions, food lines, violence, abuse, mental anguish and political hardships. It shows how she picks out little glimmers of hope and love and uses them as positive anchors in her life. She draws on everything she has – just to survive. Readers, all of the events I’ve recorded in this book have happened…

The year was nineteen seventy-five. Barren couple, Pearl and Edward Riley stumbled upon a newborn baby girl. Her cries could only be heard by a true mother, which Pearl immediately became. Bundled up with their new child, they discovered a parcel of artifacts and a scribbled note that read: Sakkara. Pregnant seamstress, Petrina Dugal, became a runaway at the age of twenty-six. She ran away from a brutish husband, Roger, and a well-loved South American…

On April 10th, the first Guyanese Girls Rock Scholarship award was presented to Kelly Hyles at the “Bridging the Gap” Millennial Conference in Brooklyn, New York. Kelly, a high school senior, was accepted to the top 8 Ivy League schools in the United States and was honored for academic excellence. She was presented with the Guyanese Girls Rock Certificate of Scholarship and a new Apple MacBook laptop computer by GGR’s Founder, Cloyette Harris-Stoute. Kelly was…

Guyana’s first female pilot, 72-year-old Lucille Dawsey was honored by the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) on Thursday, November 13, 2014 at the Silhoutte Restaurant in Georgetown. Ms. Dawsey was recognized for the major contributions she made in the aviation arena, and for the many examples she set for the other female plying the trade. The Guyanese born retiree received her pilot’s license in 1961 and was attached to TransGuyana Airways Limited at the now…

The extraordinary life of Baroness Valerie Amos has taken her from the small island of Wakenaam at the mouth of the Essequibo River in Guyana to the House of Lords. It is a journey that includes time spent at the United Nations headquarters in New York and the British High Commission in Australia. She has now returned to London where she has become the first black director of a British University at the School of…

Too often people mistake Guyana for Ghana.  During  a recent trip to Florida, I was having a conversation with a colleague about the Mashramani celebrations in Guyana and she said to me “that’s in Africa right?”  I’ve also been asked quite a few times “what other language do you speak in Guyana?  That’s why I decided to put together this synopsis  to enlighten some folks on the difference between “Guyana” in South America and the African nation…

Luana Pierre is the owner of Pawsome Pets Guyana, a new pet grooming business located in Georgetown. Pawsome Pets Guyana is the only professional pet grooming service in the country. Mrs. Pierre has more than 25 years of experience in animal health and 10 years of pet grooming experience. Luana has been one of my best friends for more than thirty-five years. She was the friend who made me laugh with her dry humor, but…

“Become the leader of your life. Lead yourself to where you want to be. Breathe life back into your ambitions, your desires, your goals, your relationships.”― Steve Maraboli, Unapologetically You: Reflections on Life and the Human Experience

Pop music singing sensation Zandra Brown, was born in Guyana, South America. She grew up listening to a diverse array of artists that inspired her, including Tina Turner, The Beatles and Bob Marley. Before moving to America at the age of 18 with her family, she was always in the spotlight, representing her school in dancing performances and fashion shows. Zandra joined her church choir in 2008 and shortly thereafter began writing songs as an outlet to…

Four diamonds—the Stone of Fire, the Stone of Water, the Stone of Air, and the Stone of Earth—have all been stolen. Their absence could lead to the mass destruction of Iliana’s dimension and the mortal world. Can Iliana alter the dangerous path of the world’s most certain future? Fifteen-year-old Iliana’s to-do list did not include being sucked into another dimension called Airafia with a guy named Stephon. When she’s asked to go on a mission…

Canadian actress & international fashion model, Simone Small aka “Small & Mighty” was born to a Guyanese mother and Barbadian father. She attended Humber College and Etobicoke School of the Arts in Toronto, Ontario. The only child for her parents, Simone recalled having a great childhood. She spent her school years in Toronto but every summer went to Barbados or Guyana, sometimes both, to spend time with her cousins, aunts and uncles. Simone’s mother is from…

On Saturday, July 4, Guyana’s first female World Champion Gwendolyn ‘Stealth Bomber’ O’Neil defeated Sonya Lamonakis and captured the heavyweight title in Philipsburg, St Maarten. O’Neil who is now a five-time boxing world champion while at the same time a mother of five children, thanked the fans, her management team and God for the heart-stirring win which put her back on top of the world heavyweight boxing scene. A huge crowd favourite, O’Neil fought to…

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…

Tarana Dance Centre was a vision brought to life by Artistic Director, Deviekha Chetram.  Born and raised in Alexander Village, Guyana, Deviekha has always demonstrated a keen interest in Indian dance since childhood and developed her own free style as she performed and choreographed dances for local events in Guyana. This enthusiasm led her to seek formal training in Kathak at the Indian Cultural Centre, Georgetown, Guyana. She considers herself lucky to have received her…