St. Martin News Network - St. Maarten

JCI Dutch Caribbean installed its new board for the Year 2022.

dutchjci23102021 WILLEMSTAD:--- JCI Dutch Caribbean chose and installed its new board. This took place during the annual National Convention event. According to the new chairman of JCI Dutch Caribbean, during this coming year, the organization will empower its members to continue to take action and show results in the community more often, which is why the main theme of 2022 is 'Choose Action'.

It is well known that every time a person takes action on a goal or a dream, that person gets closer to his goal or dream. This is no different in JCI and every positive action a member takes has an impact on themselves and the community around them. This ultimately brings us to JCI's main mission is to bring positive change to the community.

Junior Chamber International's philosophy of 'one year to lead' centers on giving young people between the ages of 18 and 40 the opportunity to gain experience in leadership positions. The highest level that a person can take a leadership position in the national organization of JCI Dutch Caribbean is, as a member of the national board. The national board is elected by the local organizations of Curaçao, Aruba, and Sint Maarten during the annual National Convention.

JCI Dutch Caribbean board for the year 2022 consists of the 61st National President Sulin S.F. Passial, supported by Secretary Sugeidy Windster, Treasurer Gina Francisca, Executive Vice-President Shakira Albertoe, Vice-President Vanessa Overman, Vice-President Aldimir Vrutaal, Vice-President Raisha Williams, General Counsel Tiffany Cristina and Immediate Past President Sheryl Renfrum-Sordam.

The coming year will be a very special year for the new board and all members of JCI Dutch Caribbean. This is because the organization has the honor of hosting the 2022 Conference of America. It will take place in Curaçao between May 18 and 21, 2022. During this conference, people from North America, the Caribbean, and around Latin America will visit the island for a week of important meetings, training, cultural exchange, and celebration of achieved goals. All local organizations of JCI Dutch Caribbean are working together under the leadership of JCI Willemstad to get this important event going. For this, JCI Dutch Caribbean likes to count on the support of the private and public sector, and on the community of Curaçao in general. This is because the event as a whole contributes to the economy in general and specifically to the tourist sector.

JCI is a global organization of leaders between the ages of 18 and 40 that transforms passionate young people into capable leaders through training, projects, events, and programs. JCI Dutch Caribbean consists of five local organizations. In Curaçao JCI Creative Leaders in Curaçao (CLIC), JCI Involvement Of Banda Ariba Curaçao (IOBA Curaçao) and JCI Willemstad. In Aruba: JCI Young Active Leaders Aruba (YALA). In Sint Maarten: JCI SXM A.C.T.I.O.N (Aspiring Change To Impact Our Nation).

If you are interested in developing your leadership skills while contributing to the community, please feel free to contact JCI Dutch Caribbean at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. For more information about JCI in general, visit the website www.juniorchamber.international. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram @jcidutchcaribbean for the latest developments and activities from JCI Dutch Caribbean.

6 COVID-19 recoveries today.

omarottley23022021 PHILIPSBURG:--- As of October 22nd, there were four (4) persons who tested positive for COVID-19; however, six (6) persons have recovered; bringing the total active cases to forty-four (44). The total number of confirmed cases is now four thousand four hundred seventy-two (4472).

The Collective Prevention Services (CPS) are monitoring forty-three (43) people in home isolation. One (1) patient is hospitalized at the St. Maarten Medical Center. The total number of deaths due to COVID-19 remains at seventy-five (75).

The number of people recovered since the first case surfaced on St. Maarten has increased to four thousand three hundred fifty-three (4353). Twenty-five (25) people are in quarantine based on contact tracing investigations carried out by CPS.

The total number of persons tested is 58,955.
As the numbers continue to fluctuate, CPS will continue to actively execute its contact tracing measures.

Minister Ottley invites all unvaccinated persons to come out tomorrow to the community COVID-19 vaccination pop-up on Saturday, October 23rd, at SMMC premises in Cayhill from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm.

Prime Minister Jacobs and GridMarket discuss first phase of approach for clean, resilient and affordable energy generation.

silly01102021 PHILIPSBURG:--- In keeping with government’s strategic initiative to have Sint Maarten transition to clean, resilient, and affordable energy generation, Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs met with the representative of GridMarket on Tuesday, October 19, to discuss the first phase of the approach where this project is concerned. This project is in collaboration with Island Resilience Partnership (IRP), the Ministries of General Affairs, VROMI, TEATT, and Finance, as well as utility company NV GEBE. GridMarket is currently aggregating data and key information from government’s GIS system in order to put forth options for more sustainable energy for the people of Sint Maarten.

Prime Minister Jacobs stated, “Several large areas have already been identified for this project and the recommendation is to have the production spread throughout the island. This will reduce the risk of having energy produced at one location such as the GEBE plant in Cay Bay. Sint Maarten is almost entirely dependent on imported oil, as such, it is imperative that we continue our commitment towards diversifying the market with options for renewable energy and a resilient infrastructure as outlined by SDG 7 - affordable and clean energy. By March 2022, we would be able to give a more clear indication as to what is possible for St. Maarten in order to provide more sustainable energy.”

This transformation will align with the Build-Back-Better principle, allowing Sint Maarten to be resilient in the face of future natural disasters and accelerate its long-term climate mitigation and adaptation goals. All phases of this initiative, including final project bidding and vendor selection, will flow through the GridMarket platform.

Government to open condolence book for Vivian Philips.

condolences22102021 PHILIPSBURG:--- On Monday, October 25, at 10:00 AM, a condolence-memorial book will be opened to the public in connection with the passing of civil servant Vivian Philips.

The condolence-memorial book will be open daily from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm at the Government Administration Building on Pond Island until Friday, November 12. Civil servants can sign the condolence book at any time throughout the day.

Vivian Philips worked as a government security guard and receptionist at the Department of Facility Services. She was a quiet, kind-hearted, and helpful person who always had good stories to recount of her past years working for government. She will be dearly missed by all her colleagues, family, and friends.

Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunset Joins the Fight In Eradicating Polio.

polio22102021 PHILIPSBURG:--- World Polio Day is October 24, and the members of the Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunset are taking action on this day to raise awareness, funds, and provide support towards the efforts of eradicating Polio, a vaccine-preventable disease that still threatens children in parts of the world today. Poliomyelitis (Polio) is a paralyzing and potentially fatal disease that still threatens children in some parts of the world.

When Rotary and its partners launched the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in 1988, there were 350,000 cases of polio in 125 countries every year. While on St. Martin and many other countries Polio is just an “ancient” virus, there are still many that are contracting and suffering from this still very live virus. We’ve made great progress against the disease since then. Today, polio cases have been reduced by 99.9 percent, and just two countries continue to report cases of wild poliovirus being Afghanistan and Pakistan, however, we remain committed to the end.

The Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunset will mark historic progress toward a polio-free world while urging the community to help end the paralyzing disease. Eradicating Polio is a massive effort, therefore, the Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunset’s has launched an “End Polio Now Essay Competition”, for students in secondary schools. The theme for the essay competition is, "The Importance of Eradicating Polio". Essays are to be written in the English language with a word limit of 300 to 500 words. The essays must be sent in a word document with the final date submission being Wednesday, October 20, 2021, via email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. This essay competition is for students ages 13 to 17. The winner will be announced on World Polio Day, Sunday, October 24th, 2021, via the club’s social media platform. Rotary Sunset strongly encourages the participation of our young people as they get an opportunity to win a tablet device while promoting the importance of eradicating Polio throughout the world.

With Polio nearly eradicated, Rotary and its partners must sustain this progress and continue to reach every child with the Polio vaccine. Without full funding and political commitment, this paralyzing disease could return to Polio-free countries, putting children everywhere at risk. Rotary has committed to raising US$50 million each year to support global polio eradication efforts. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has pledged to match that 2-to-1, for a total yearly contribution of $150 million. Rotary has contributed more than $2.2 billion to ending polio since 1985, including donations by the Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunset.

The Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunset would like to encourage the community to assist in eradicating Polio. Donations can be made at: https://www.endpolio.org/donate. These funds will help to provide much-needed operational support, medical personnel, laboratory equipment, and educational materials for health workers and parents.

The Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunset meets on the second and fourth Monday of the month at Carl N Sons Unique Inn and Conference Facilities in Cole Bay at 7:30 pm. Due to COVID-19, the club currently meets via Zoom. The club can be contacted via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or via the official Facebook page at facebook.com/rotarysxmsunset.