PM Harris extolls educators of St Kitts and Nevis

Two excellent retired teachers in St. Kitts and Nevis were among seven distinguished nationals who received the Companion Star of Merit Award

20th of May 2021

St Kitts and Nevis: Two excellent retired teachers in St. Kitts and Nevis were among seven distinguished nationals who received the Companion Star of Merit Award on Wednesday (May 19, 2021) during the investment function at Government House.

Viola Jacobs and Shirley Gloria Estelle Browne were the two teachers who accepted the prestigious prize in the field of education.

Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris congratulated the retired educators while commenting, “Where would our country be, if there were no educators like Mrs Browne and Mrs Jacobs and all the others who do it with a passion, with the understanding that educators make a lasting impression in people’s lives.”

PM Harris said, “The teacher in the classroom has the ability to make or break a student, to fail, to fall by their words and actions not to come to class again.”

The Prime Minister reflects on his time at school and notes the love and care he saw through Mrs Browne and other teachers who have exceeded their duties to influence their students positively.

Prime Minister Harris continued that Mrs Jacobs and Mrs Browne’s tales can inspire and the other award-winning boys and girls of the Two Island Federation. The other persons recognized during the service and their related fields were Dr Burnell Sylvester Nisbett for medicine and Reverend James Rudolph Smithen for religion. Dr Hazel Oreta Laws, CBE, Dr Cameron Wilkinson and Abdias Samuel collected individual awards for national duty in a crisis.

“Your example will be especially important for our younger generation,” said Dr. Harris stated. “We are a young nation with a young people. With this comes excitement and enthusiasm about the future. But what that future seems like there and the role that our young people can play in it must be shaped, and for that we want to depend on you. ”

He concluded by reiterating the country’s thanks to the awards.

‘Thank you for what you have done and are doing to build our Federation. Thank you for sharing your talents and skills with your community. Thank you for providing us role models for young population and future generations. “Your life will be an inspiration to all who are involved in national buildings,” he said.