Western Union Salutes Haitian-Americans by Hosting Bicentennial Celebration

December 11, 2003

At the Puck Building, NY, NYLocation

Haitians and Haitian-Americans are gearing up to celebrate their Bicentennial, which commemorates the 200th anniversary of Haiti’s independence as the first free Black republic in the World. Western Union proudly joins the celebration with the establishment of the Haiti Konecte Bicentennial Program. This program, through a series of celebratory events, commemorates the triumph of Haiti and her people.

The first event in the series is the Western Union L’ Union Fait La Force awards dinner and gala, hosted in New York and Miami. The award recognizes the strength, dedication and unselfish contributions of ten Haitian individuals and their work to improve the lives of Haitians and Haitian Americans.

The Western Union L Union Fait La Force award was created in the spirit and joy of the bicentennial celebration and in honor of gifted Haitian leader of the past like Jean-Jacques Dessalines and Henri Christophe. The name of the award is taken from the words of Haiti’s poignant national anthem and means “with unity there is strength.”

“Haiti is a complex and fascinating land with a wealth of history. At Western Union, we believe in connecting people with possibilities and join the voices of celebration of the courageous Haitian leaders of the past who had the vision to connect the people of Haiti with the possibility of independence and those of the present who continue in the footprint of that legacy,” said Western Union Senior V.P. of the Americas, Tom McDermott.

The event was wonderful. It started with an introduction of the hosts of the event, Juan Pablo Valdes, of Western Union. Following Mr. Valdes were the Master and Mistress of Ceremonies, who gave the welcome address, Dr. Joseph Baptiste and Ms. Harriet Michel. The invocation was given by Reverend Jean Motas of Glorious Trinity Baptiste Church, and the Singing of the Haitian National Anthem Lead by Emeline Michel.

The opening remarks were made by Consulate General Hon. Harry Fouche, after which the Mayor’s Office Representative read the Proclamation from Mayor Bloomberg. The Award Presenters were then introduced, Marguerite Laurent, Gary Pierre Pierre, and Veniese Whittingham.

The awards were then distributed, starting with Dr. Carole-Berotte Joseph, who received the award in Education, following with Dr. Jean-Claude Compus and six members of The Aesclepius Medical Society Inc., who received the Health award. Next, the Immigration award went to Ms. Jocelyne Mayas and Ms. Jocelyn McCalla, and, finally, the award for Public Affairs went to Judge M. Margareth Jourdan, Reverend Philius Nicolas and Monsignor Guy Samsaricq.

Other dignitaries on hand were Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott, Hon. Harry Fouche, Consulate General of Haiti,
Mr. Gary Pierre Pierre, Publisher of the Haitian Times. Emeline Michel, well known Haitian singer, Marguerite Laurent, actress, and many more community leaders and heads.

Liberty News Online Magazine is committed to helping to promote Historical Bicentennial Celebration for the Haitian Community. :I appreciated immensely the Liberty News Online Magazine being and covering the Bicentennial Event.” said Consulate General of Haiti, Hon. Harry Fouche.

The African American and Caribbean Section is headed by assistant editor Annette Johnson, and Liberty News Online Staff Writers contributing articles. It will cover articles about the African American and Caribbean communities throughout the U.S.A. For more information, feel free to email us at lncarib@hadofnyc.org. If you are interested in having us cover one of your events, feel free to notify us one week in advance, so we can add you to our master calendar, and have our Liberty News Staff come and write an article about your event. Feel free to email us at lnevents@hadofnyc.org, or telephone us at (718) 507-7616 between the hours of 8:00am and 8:00pm, and ask to speak to Annette or Steve