Mrs. Paulette Zonicle (centre), Bahamas Consul General to Washington, D.C., is pictured with Mrs. Ann Marie Davis (third from left), Rev. Dr. Rubyann Darling (fifth from right) and six students from The Bahamas who are in Washington, D.C. to participate in the 2014 National Student Leadership Forum (NSLF) during a courtesy call on the Consul General on Friday, October 321, 2014.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Mrs. Ann Marie Davis, wife of Deputy Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis, and Rev. Dr. Rubyann Darling, along with six students from The Bahamas who are in Washington, D.C., to participate in the 2014 National Student Leadership Forum (NSLF) on Capitol Hill paid a courtesy call on Mrs. Paulette Zonicle, Bahamas Consul General to Washington, D.C., on Friday, October 31, at The Bahamas Embassy’s Consular Annex, 1025 Vermont Avenue, N.W.

Bahamian students participating in the forum, being held from October 31 to November 2, include Myer Bowe, College of The Bahamas; Shada Charlton, Bahamas Baptist Community College; Tazaro Hudson, St. Augustine College; Nia Daise, Valencia College; Ashtonjulian, Atlantic College; Robert Culmer, St. Augustine College; and Alphonso Simms, St. Michael School.

They were welcomed to the Consular Annex by Consul General Zonicle and taken on a tour of the suite of offices. They arrived in Washington on Thursday and are scheduled to return to The Bahamas on Monday.

According to the NSLF website, in 1990 “several Congressional leaders started the first annual National Student Leadership Forum with the vision of encouraging, challenging and inspiring this select group of young leaders.”

“Then Vice-President Quayle, U.S. Senator Pete Domenici (R-NM), U.S. Representative Jim Slattery (D-KS) and then Missouri Governor John Ashcroft convened a group of university student leaders who were politically, culturally and religiously diverse,” the website states. “They gathered around the study of Jesus’ leadership model. The inaugural national gathering in 1990 marked the culmination of many smaller events that occurred over twenty years on various campuses throughout the country. The national forum served as a catalyst for many state forums, which helped develop a core of students whose relationships were cemented in shared experiences.”

The website added: “Today the dream lives on and continues to encourage the leaders of tomorrow toward growth and maturity. Student Leadership is a growing vision that now includes state and regional forums, a nine-month post graduate internship, and the Congressional Fellows internship program for college students in Washington D.C.”

The Bahamas’ involvement in the forum was initiated by Rev. Dr. Darling, who said she initially got involved with the forum in 1984 at the invitation of Rev. Billy Graham’s son-in-law, Mr. Denton Lott.

“This is a wonderful experience for these young students who are following a leadership path,” Rev. Dr. Darling said. “True leadership must involve faith and values, and this is what this forum seeks to accomplish.”