#TurksandCaicos, 23 December 2022 – My fellow Turks and Caicos Islanders and all other residents of our beloved country, from my family I wish you a Merry Christmas to all our people at home and abroad, and a happy and safe holiday season. I do this from my Office as Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of the People’s Democratic Movement, an office to which I am attached with a sense of humility, honor and commitment.
Those of us who celebrate the birth of Christ do so with feelings of great joy in memory of his arrival in Bethlehem. His lessons show us the importance of love, affection, forgiveness and courage. At this time, we should share our expressions of joy and celebration with the less fortunate among us.
This Christmas, many families will not be able to celebrate the holidays as they used to. This can be, unfortunately, as a result of losing a parent, a child, a grandparent or a dear friend. Others may be separated from loved ones because they now live abroad. Let us remember them and visit them where possible.
We must remember that there are some of us who will not experience the joy of unwrapping a present on Christmas morning or the smell of a roasting ham or turkey. I know that most of us who have jobs have had to cut back on our spending and stretch our dollars as far as they will go as the cost of living in the country has gone way up.
Moreover, many of us know at least one family that is struggling to provide even the basics. I ask that you find it in your hearts to share something with the less fortunate among us. Each of us can make a difference to make Christmas a joyous season for someone else.
Let us renew and live the teachings of our parents and grandparents and of Christ himself to love one another, to be tolerant, to be honest, to respect one another and to care and share. And if we can all express this throughout the year, our people will try one more time. There is no better time to start than this Advent season.
I look forward to continuing to meet and talk with you in the New Year about how as a country and as individuals we can collectively improve our lives, wealth and sacred honor, and contribute to building our Turks and Caicos.
Most importantly, I look forward to really discussing our sense of a people, who we are, where we want to be, and how we’re going to get there.
May Peace and Happiness be with you and may God give us the courage to face 2023 with love, courage and compassion.
Have a wonderful Christmas.
