TCI News
EDITORIAL – Saving the Judah Gails; are we doing enough?
#Turks and Caicos Islands – Saturday August 4, 2018 – Was enough done to rescue murdered man, Judah Gail? I admit to not knowing all of the intimate details of the life of the man gunned down in the parking lot of a popular Providenciales lounge early on Friday morning, but I do have an understanding of this type of story and it is continues to be, to me, deeply distressing.
If you have been following the reports, you would have read or heard that Judah Gail seems to have been a menace to society, who was cold and heartless, with no respect for the rule of law and, by his own words in a video posted two weeks ago, willing to kill anyone who got in his way.
It is a sad eulogy and those who knew him best are not surprised at his demise.
I did not know Judah Gail. I do know that his name means Praise and that his life appeared to be exactly the opposite of one which would be praised in a civilized society.
I did some asking though. I learned that as a little boy, Judah – who is Turks and Caicos, Jamaican and Haitian – lost his mother. A little boy was suddenly all alone and left to raise himself pretty much by himself. I have been told that his mother’s sister did come over from Haiti eventually to assist in rearing the child, but perhaps it was too little, too late.
Perhaps no one really considered how the loss of his mother affected him emotionally and how, if left unaddressed, his feelings of sadness and hurt, turned inside out could become a monster and maybe it did.
Learning this about Judah Gail’s life caused me to read the words of other people who lost their mother or father or both parents while still young children. These words were particularly striking to me:
The sad fact is… there is pain which there is no cure for. This is such pain.
You can’t do anything to fill that void, nor take away the pain.
Life sucks when you lose a single parent let alone both. You stop being a child. Your loss is presented to you daily (friends with their both parents etc.) which all hurt and you can’t really prevent it. You hear the word ”Dad” out of your friends mouths which hurt too…because you can’t use that word anymore (or the word Mom)
Judah, born in the Turks and Caicos Islands, inherited a string of apartments and rented them in his community of Kew Town in Providenciales.
Despite this blessing, young Mr. Gail, was no stranger to incarceration found himself walking through a revolving door. Judah was in and out of jail since his teenage years.
At around 14, Judah Gail was sent by the Turks and Caicos Islands to a boys’ correctional institution in Jamaica. There, I am told, Judah saw drug peddling, Judah saw violent stabbings, Judah witnessed murder and bloody assaults. Judah was hardened and not helped by this experience and then he returned home.
I am also told that the Jamaica boys’ institution to which teen trouble makers were banished by the Turks and Caicos were all ruined not rehabilitated. These teenage boys were toughened, now as young men, they threaten the peace and serenity of the Turks and Caicos Islands today.
There is an image of Judah Gail flashing a ‘gunk’ of money in his grasp and video of him boldly smoking illegal marijuana as he gives a commentary about street life and rules, using the most profane language.
I asked if the money was authentic and if Judah’s sentiments were his credo. I am told the money was very real and Gail, without getting regular employment, was living the high life. There were brand new cars, ‘money like dirt’, and he was a bossy guy and a bully of a man with a deadly habit.
Judah Gail, loved to credit the stuff he sold. That stuff was said to be illicit drugs. Gail would borrow the drugs – marijuana and cocaine – with the promise to flip it and pay a profit to the lending drug-dealer.
I know. Sounds fantastic right? And not in a good way! It is very concerning. But it is what I am told. 
This is the life young men, too many of our young men are living and loving in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
The Judah Gails are on brilliant display and our young boys are watching the show. They are lapping up this apparently luxurious life which seems so very possible, so very profitable when compared to the stories and sagas of their working fathers and uncles.
Gail and his cohorts are earning thousands of dollars per week without a traditional job. They seem to have all they want and more than they need. And while the risk is high and the life is illegal, the rewards may seem to be worth the while. After all, the hard working, honest fathers and uncles are struggling to make ends meet and to buy even a little Japanese car to get around.
Honesty is devalued. Hard work on a job site is scorned. The criminal life can become a glamorous alternative to a silly kid bombarded with silly notions about what really matters in life. Our problem, as those who chose the honest path, is not in the not knowing. Our problem, as leaders and movers and shakers, is in the not doing enough. Turks and Caicos must recognize, that despite headlines of falling crime rates and modernisations in policing; we have a problem where a life of crime is dangerously camouflaging itself as good and this is a gross misrepresentation.
The spiritual enemy, which so many of us believe exists due to our predominantly Christian faith, is working creatively and assiduously to delude and deceive our young men and the Satan we know will kill them, steal them, destroy them. 
In keeping score or a tally by strictly looking at the national murder rate, we may be distracted and duped into believing we are way ahead of that enemy’s game.
But a murder rate is not a true indicator of what is really happening among our youth and young men in a broader sense. In one day, two are killed and what a tragic loss this is… but in the one day, we also see how many more young men are rejoicing in the killings, endorsing the murders and prepared to keep on taking lives and creating havoc.
Crime and criminality is not a Turks and Caicos problem. But the ongoing spree of violence – which we have seen is unafraid of threatening preachers, teachers, executives, government ministers, law enforcers, grand-mothers, little children or tourists and guests – begs the question, are we doing enough? Are we finding creative and effective ways to represent a life of rightness and discourage a life of wrongness. Are we there for each other at those critical, pivotal, life-shaping times. Is there enough energy toward empathy? Are we investing the time, creating an equitable environment and are we willing to invest the sweat today to shape the Turks and Caicos we want for tomorrow?
I do not believe we are there. I want to be wrong. I need to be wrong.
News
Sandals Foundation and Partners Install and Commission 750 Gallon Ultra-filtration Water Tank at Enid Capron Primary School
MEDIA RELEASE
PROVIDENCIALES, Turks & Caicos Islands, April 17, 2024 – “Thousands have lived without love, but no one has ever lived without water,” according to poet, W. H. Auden. More than 500 students and teachers at the Enid Capron Primary School in Providenciales stand to benefit from a 750 gallons filtration water tank system valued at almost US$15,000 courtesy of the Sandals Foundation, Beaches Turks and Caicos and SIP Water, distributers of ICON LifeSaver®. The system that was recently installed will be able to use
harvested rain water along with its ultra-filtered system to provide potable water.
This project had SIP Water, which is the Caribbean Distributors for ICON LifeSaver®, install and commission the system which was handed over to the administrators of the Sandals Foundation adopted school. ICON LifeSaver® is a British company providing some of the safest, potable water purification solutions in the world through supporting organisations.
Paul Girling, Director of SIP Water says, “This system is able to change untreated, contaminated water into ultra-pure, micro-biologically clean drinking water. Its multi-filtration system removes all micro plastics, bacteria, protozoan cysts and viruses to a minimum level of 99.99% without the need for any electricity or chemicals”.
Minister of Education, Youth, Sports and Social Services and Member of Parliament for the Five Cays area, Hon. Rachel Taylor was present as the system was commissioned. “This is a landmark achievement for the school and the community of Five Cays. This location is an emergency shelter and with the Atlantic Hurricane season not far away, having this in place will serve our students well and by extension, the community. We are grateful for the continued partnership with Sandals Foundation and Beaches Turks and Caicos in giving back to the Turks and Caicos Islands,” Taylor shared.
Beaches Turks and Caicos Managing Director, James McAnally shared, “this project is a giant step towards ensuring the basic necessities in our community are safe and sustainable. We continue to grow and look at new ways to serve in the areas of education, the community and the environment. This tank will go a long way in helping to improve the quality of life of the children and faculty in
the Five Cays community especially during times of disaster.”
Principal at Enid Capron Primary School, Sophia Garland elatedly shared, “our students’ health will be improved as they consume more water daily. This system will provide for us a level of sustainability throughout the school and the community. As an educational institution, we continue to celebrate partnerships with corporate entities that seek to support key infrastructural needs of the students, staff and wider community.”
The ICON LifeSaver® product is environmentally friendly. As a leader in sustainability, this will help in the reduction of plastic bottles. The filters are reusable and typically have a 1-2 year span. This is a patented ultra-filtration technology which is independently tested to the highest portable water standards.
Captions:
Header: Paul Girling (left), director of SIP Water, Sophia Garland (2nd left), principal of the Enid Capron Primary school, Hon. Rachel Taylor, Minister of Education, Youth, Sports and Social Services, and Joe Lovegrove, Operations and Technical Director of LifeSaver gave thumbs up sign to the completion of the project.
1st insert: Joe Lovegrove, Operations and Technical Director for LifeSaver takes his time to insert one of the six filters that the filtration system that was recently installed and commissioned at the Enid Capron Primary School.
2nd insert: Enid Capron Primary School teachers share a moment with the ICON team following the successful completion of the installation of the water filtration system with Paul Girling (left) director of SIP Water and Joe Lovegrove Operations and Technical Director for LifeSaver.
Experience Turks and Caicos is fostering an environment where young talent can thrive and excel, and the recent additions to the organisation serve as a testament to that commitment.
Experience Turks and Caicos is pleased to welcome Miss Rothesia Williams and Miss Kristan Lightbourne to the Finance Department as well as Miss Oshin Whyte, who has been assigned a temporary role as Tourism Statistics Officer.
Miss Williams joined the team as an Accounts Clerk effective April 2nd, 2024 while Miss Lightbourne will take up the position of Finance Accountant effective April 15th, 2024.
In her role, Miss Williams will support the Finance Accountant in updating financial records, generating financial reports, reconciling bank statements and processing financial transactions. Miss Williams is a graduate of the Turks and Caicos Islands Community College with an Associate’s Degree in Business Administration and previously worked at the Waterloo Hotel Management Ltd, where she held the roles of Accounting Clerk and Senior Accounts Payable Clerk.
As Financial Accountant, Miss Lightbourne will prepare statements and reports and advise on financial strategy.
Miss Lightbourne previously worked as an accountant at The Shore Club where she oversaw and provided strategic guidance to various sectors within the finance department, including Cost Control, Audit, Accounts Payable, Cash Management, and Payroll and implemented and reviewed internal financial policies and controls to ensure compliance and efficiency among other duties. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance and Management from the Turks and Caicos Community College and is currently pursuing her Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) certification in the United Kingdom.
Miss Whyte will be working temporarily with the team as Tourism Statistics Specialist effective April 3rd, 2024.She will be responsible for collecting and analysing data relevant to the tourism industry that would enable Experience Turks and Caicos to develop informed strategies to enhance the tourism sector.
Miss Whyte previously held the position of Interim Environmental Policy Coordinator with the Ministry of Tourism where she collaborated with the Department of Fisheries and Marine Resources to ensure the timely delivery of the key objectives of the Sustainable Livelihood Program. She is a graduate of Oxford Brookes University with a BSc (Hons) in Environmental Sciences and the University of Kent with a Masters by Research (Hons) in Human Geography
In welcoming the young women to Experience Turks and Caicos, Co-Chair of Experience Turks and Caicos Mr. Alvin Hegner said the future of the tourism industry centres around the youth.
“As we forge ahead in fortifying and expanding our organisation, the stewardship of adept individuals becomes paramount. Given the Turks and Caicos Islands’ singular reliance on tourism, we must foster sustainability by nurturing our youth, empowering them to evolve into the torchbearers of tomorrow who will carry forward the legacy of our current endeavours. I am genuinely enthused to extend a warm welcome to these young women as they join our ranks, eagerly anticipating the remarkable contributions they will undoubtedly make,” he said.
Miss. Williams and Miss Lightbourne will report to the Chief Financial and Operations Officer, Ms. Rufina Augustin while Miss Whyte will report to the Chief Marketing Officer, Ms. Trina Adams.
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