The president of the Brooklyn-based St. Vincent and the Grenadines Ex-Police Association, USA, Ardon Tannis, says his group has “seen record increase” in its honorary membership over the last three years.
Tannis told group’s annual Dinner and Awards Ceremony, on May 19, at the Friends of Crown Heights Educational Center in Brooklyn that the honorary members include a qualified certified public accountant (CPA) and an ordained minister of religion and spiritual mentor. He said the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Ex-Police Association, USA regular membership is also experiencing new growth, with more than 50 percent of the current executive officers being new members.
“I am also delighted to announce that in an organization that is male-dominated females are playing meaningful roles in management and are leading the charge in other areas, such as entertainment,” Tannis said.
“With renewed strength and vigor, we are strategically repositioning the organization to introduce social services to our community and institute programs that would attract younger former police officers,” he added.
“With these changes in mind, we have begun the process of registering the organization as a 501 (c)(3), which would bring us tremendous benefits,” Tannis continued.
He said the group has “formalized” its scholarship program, named “The St. Vincent and the Grenadines Ex-Police Association USA Inc. Scholarship Awards.” This program will benefit the children of former and current members of the Royal St. Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force and the community at large, Tannis said.
He said the group continues its quest to acquire a home and a venue from which it intends to operate our programs.
Consequently, the ex-police head said a building account is now in effect with a “seed deposit” of US$5,000. “We eagerly await its germination and subsequent growth,” he added.
“With your contribution we continue to make a difference in the lives of current members of the Royal St. Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force,” he added, stating that, recently, the group shipped stoves and kettles to the local Police Welfare Association.
“Financial assistance and other form of support to members of our community both here in New York and St. Vincent and the Grenadines are ongoing,” Tannis continued. “The support and assistance we give is only made possible by the support we receive from you the public. I say a heartfelt thanks to everyone who supported us through the years.”
New York Consul General Howie Prince said the Consulate General of St. Vincent and the Grenadines to the USA was “pleased to salute” the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Ex-Police Association of New York on its 38th anniversary “as a landmarked institution in these United States.
“From the humble origin of rising to the occasion of the repatriation of a fallen comrade back to a final resting place in SVG [St. Vincent and the Grenadines], you have grown to be a respected and most benevolent body representing and assisting former and current police officers at home and in the Diaspora,” Prince said in remarks printed in the souvenir journal.
“Your outreach has not gone unnoticed over the past year,” he added. “I speak with confidence when I say that the recipients of your scholarship program, as well as those that benefited from your gifts of stoves and kettles are extremely grateful after personally hearing some of the outpouring of thanks showered on you while on a recent trip to St. Vincent [and the Grenadines].
“Good follows good; so, keep up your good works, for He who sees all and knows all will pour His blessings on those who consider the widow, the poor, the needy, the sick and the shut in,” Prince added.
Laverne McDowald-Thompson, president of the Brooklyn-based Council of St. Vincent and the Grenadines Organizations USA, Inc. (COSAGO), the umbrella Vincentian group in the U.S., congratulated the ex-police group for “the great job you have been doing in keeping your organization structured.
“We commend your service here in the Diaspora and at home,” she said. “In this time of your celebration, we join in giving thanks for the leaders, members, supporters, friends and all Vincentians, who have joined in your work and have been with you on this journey for 38 years.
“The journey seems long, but when you are on a mission to give back and to help those who are less fortunate than oneself, this journey is endless,” McDowald-Thompson added.
“As you strive to move your organization forward, it is important to reflect, as there can be no proper planning without reflection,” she continued. “I encourage you to look at where it has been, where is it now and where is it going.”
