The Tribune

AFTER successfully defeating 11 students from around the country, Gabriele Josephs of Mary Star of the Sea has been named the new junior minister of tourism.

Under this year’s topic, “Diversifying The Tourism Product Through Entrepreneurship” Gabriele and other students duked it out in a thrilling speech competition final.

As the junior minister, he receives the title, the Patrick S Bain Scholarship, an all-expense paid four-day trip to CTO Youth Congress, a $500 cash prize and a trophy. Mary Star of the Sea also receives $500 and a floating trophy to commemorate the accomplishment.

Paloma Cartwright, from the NGM Major High School in Long Island, placed second and in third place was Jacquon Minnis, from CR Walker Senior High School.

Reflecting on his win, Gabriele said he was delighted to have been chosen to represent the Bahamas.

“I feel incredible for the opportunity. I feel incredible that I have the opportunity to represent the Bahamas and for the opportunity to speak to my peers about tourism,” he said.

“The mixture of the sun, sand and sea with the communal atmosphere, the friendly people and the incredible atmosphere and the beauty of our islands that makes the Bahamas so unique and this is what I’m going to promote to the world.”

Evelyn Pinder-Dames, senior mistress of Mary Star of the Sea and coach of Gabriele, described him as being the model student.

“He is very focused academically. He also has a creative mind when it comes to writing and putting things together,” Ms Dames said.

“It’s a pleasure working with him because of his creativity and his natural flair for presenting himself.”

Sabrina Josephs, Gabriele’s mother, believes that carrying the title will bring out the best in him.

“The junior minister title gives him a platform for him to explore. I’ve seen something in him today, that makes me feel as if he should be on a stage,” she said.

Minister of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe marveled at the speeches given by the students.

The Junior Minister of Tourism Programme offers one candidacy per island including New Providence. It is also open to Bahamian citizens of both government and private 11th grade students.

The Junior Minister of Tourism programme was launched in 2002 to promote awareness among high school students. The programme consists of three phases: sourcing interview, speech preliminaries and speech competition finals.