Tells young participants to meet the challenge of maintaining focus on value. The Prime Minister of St. Maarten the Honorable Sarah Wescot-Williams opened the Independent Baptist Youth of the Caribbean Conference on Monday evening at the Brawlia Millard Campus in St. Johns Estate. The Prime Minister, who officially opened the 34th gathering of independent Baptist youth clubs in the Caribbean, was joined by His Excellency Governor Holiday and a representative of the Minister of Education Sylveria Jacobs.
In her opening remarks, the Prime Minister, on behalf of the Government of St. Maarten, welcomed all those who came from abroad; "As I look at your faces as you were getting prepared for this evening's event the thing that most crossed my mind was to tell you to smile! Smile because you are on St. Maarten. Smile that you, as a young person are here at this event making a difference and engaging in something positive. You who have chosen to be part of the Independent Baptist Youth of the Caribbean and to make this event a part of your summer holidays have chosen to follow your values and to direct those values to those whose lives you want to positively impact. Your challenge is to maintain your focus in pursuing those values and about being a leader in knowing where you want to go and where you want to take others towards Christian excellence," commented the Prime Minister.
As part of her remarks opening the Conference, the Prime Minister also commented on how the youth of today should embrace technology in a positive way in impact their own lives and the lives of others; "With new technology being developed at such a staggering speed there are some challenges for young people like yourselves. However, I would also like to encourage you to use that technology to your advantage in spreading your ideals and commitments through social media and other technological means. I myself have the Holy Bible on my BlackBerry for example," added the Prime Minister.
The Independent Baptist Youth of the Caribbean Conference will last until the end of the week and features all of the Caribbean countries and territories with an Independent Baptist Youth Council. The Prime Minister ended by wishing all participants an exciting and fruitful conference.
