Cecilia Salazar, a Trinidadian actress and mother, shares her journey and the profound influences that shaped her career. She discusses her early passion for acting, her diverse work experiences before fully transitioning into acting, and the challenges of making a living in the arts.

Salazar emphasizes the importance of honing one’s craft, the shift to producing content during COVID-19, and the lack of commercial support for the arts. She highlights the evolution of theater in Trinidad and the need for continued support and documentation of its history. Salazar also touches on potential solutions for young artists, including training and producing opportunities.

She concludes with a motivational message to follow one’s passions with joy, love, and purpose.

I was very concerned by the appointment of Jagdeo Singh as Speaker of the House of Representatives. Whenever I saw or heard his name, I remembered that he had once been imprisoned. The Speaker of the House of Representatives was once convicted on corruption charges, sentenced to seven years, and lost his appeal. In 2005, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council overturned the conviction due to misdirection during his trial. Despite this, I kept asking myself, “With all the bright, capable, and reputable people in our country, why couldn’t someone else be chosen for such an important position?”

If we want to truly develop our country, we must raise the standards of those we place in leadership. The Speaker is meant to be a symbol of fairness, dignity, and integrity. Someone should hold this office with an unquestionably positive reputation. Choosing a person with such a controversial past is likely to cause us to lack confidence in the current government.

And this is not the only worrying example. After ten years of legal battles, we are now told that the extradition order against Jack Warner was legally flawed and unconstitutional. Millions of dollars in public funds have been spent on this case, built on what is now said to be a non-existent agreement with the United States. To make matters worse, there are claims that successive Attorneys General and senior state lawyers may have misled both our courts and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. Whether this was done deliberately or not, it shows serious carelessness at the highest levels.

We are a developing country, and we cannot afford poor examples of leadership. Every appointment either builds or breaks public trust. Our young people deserve to see leaders who are honest, ethical, and dependable. If we want a better future, we must do better now.

Appointing a leader with a tainted history, such as Jagdeo Singh, and supporting the failed extradition case of Jack Warner erodes public trust. Our developing nation deserves ethical, respected leaders who inspire confidence, not controversy.


#LeadershipMatters #IntegrityFirst

In this interview, Brian takes us back to his roots. He grew up in a single-parent household in Belmont. He shares how those early years shaped his passion for social justice. They also influenced his belief in the transformative power of sport. He talks about how sport became more than competition for him. It became a lifeline. It was a way to discover who he was. It also showed him how he wanted to lead.

Brian doesn’t shy away from the tough stuff. He speaks openly about the harsh realities in the world of sport. He discusses the political manoeuvrings and the pressures that often tie the hands of Sports Ministers. He argues that real change won’t come from the top. It has to be built from the ground up. He’s honest about the personal cost of pushing for those kinds of systemic shifts.

What stays with me most is his reminder that meaningful change is not a quick fix or a final destination. It’s a journey. He insists that sport must be seen not as a luxury. Instead, it should be viewed as a fundamental part of human development. Sport is vital to both individual growth and strong, thriving communities.

Brenda Butler describes herself as a “lover of life in all its colors,” grounded in her deep faith as a disciple of Jesus Christ, devotion to her 90-year-old mother, and love for family, people, and music. She recalls being surrounded by music from childhood, growing up on vinyl records and diverse radio programming.

Although initially rejected from choirs, her resilience led her to seize an open-call opportunity, which launched her journey from school productions at St. Joseph’s Convent and Presentation College’s joint choir to professional choirs such as Belvedere in Port of Spain.

Her passion carried her abroad, where she sang with gospel choirs and performed at the Dove Awards, where she backed artists like Edwin Hawkins and Kirk Franklin. She emphasizes that music has always been both joy and ministry, a gift from God to share with others.

Brenda names Charmaine Forde’s “2023 Jazz in July” concert as a transformative performance where she felt most at home on stage. To young singers, she stresses persistence and resilience, reminding them that impact comes in many forms. Today, Brenda continues to embrace opportunities to perform while cherishing her full life with family.

BrendaButler #FaithAndMusic #Resilience #Inspiration #CaribbeanVoices #MusicJourney #LifeInColor

Emerson John Charles discusses his journey from Belmont Boys Secondary (now St. Francis Boys College) to becoming an advocate for fitness, community development, and innovation. He credits his secondary school teacher, Mr. Albert King, for inspiring his development.
Emerson reflects positively on his school experience and maintains strong connections with his peers through a WhatsApp group.
Despite the stigma of the Belmont community, Emerson has found it to be a source of pride and personal growth. He is now an innovation expert, holding multiple leadership roles and stressing the importance of systematic innovation management. He outlines the five steps to developing an idea and emphasizes the need for an ‘army of design thinkers’ to address various problems across different sectors.
Lastly, Emerson advocates for creating a national innovation agency and innovation centers to boost Trinidad and Tobago’s competitiveness in global indices.

While out on my early morning run in the rain before 6:00 a.m. on Saturday, I passed hundreds of citizens huddled under huge umbrellas, waiting to register for free medical care from the US Navy. This intake area was set up less than 100 metres from the Port of Spain General Hospital. Police cars blocked entry into the street to manage the large crowd. (The last time we saw persons waiting in the rain like that was the the Burna Boy Concert in Tobago!)
This scene came less than a month after another massive free medical initiative — the Hands International mission, led by Trinidad-born surgeon Dr. Reynold Steve Agard and a team of 120 medical professionals from California and other parts of the USA. Over four days at the Community Hospital of Seventh-day Adventists, they treated and performed surgeries for thousands, with more than 8,000 people registered before the mission began. They even announced plans for an additional 2,000 free cataract surgeries later in the month.
In both cases, the turnout was overwhelming — clear evidence of the desperate need for accessible healthcare in our country. If you cannot afford private medical care, you are often left waiting, suffering, and hoping for a miracle.
What makes this even harder to accept is knowing that many qualified doctors in Trinidad and Tobago are not being employed — a fact highlighted recently by a young female doctor on social media. How can we have an overburdened healthcare system and unemployed medical professionals at the same time?
These foreign medical missions should be welcome additions, not lifelines for thousands who feel they have no other option. It’s time for a serious national conversation — and action — to ensure that quality, timely, and affordable healthcare is available to every citizen all year round, not just when a foreign team visits.

https://trinidadexpress.com/opinion/letters/foreign-missions-shouldn-t-be-lifelines/article_9f21c21a-ba85-4240-9be9-b5229f57113e.html

Dennise Deming invites everyone to join her 70th birthday celebration with a 7K run/walk on Sunday, November 16th. The event, titled 7 – 70 (7K) will start at Harvard and loop to the Savannah and back. Participants, including men, women, children, and grandparents, are encouraged to register on Race Roster. Dennise will also provide a training program for registered participants to ensure they are prepared for the event.

Register here: https://raceroster.com/events/2025/107590/7-to-70-7k-run

Media and communications professional Laura Dowrich shares her deep-rooted passion for Caribbean culture. With nearly 30 years of media experience, she reflects on how the communications industry, particularly digital media, has transformed. \

Dowrich currently serves as the PR manager for the Turks and Caicos Islands’ destination management organization. She highlights the challenges and benefits of social media, emphasizing the importance of countering misinformation.

Her advice to young people interested in communications is to study the field, find mentors, and develop strong interpersonal skills. She also underscores the need for leaders to respect their communications advisors.

Apart from her professional life, Dowrich speaks about her love for music and her efforts to support the Caribbean music industry through her podcast. She calls for more structured industry support and encourages Caribbean unity through travel and cultural exploration.