[xml][/xml]
The Bahamas Weekly Facebook The Bahamas Weekly Twitter
News : International Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM


Consul General Randy E. Rolle Returns Home to Inspire Youth
By Arthia Nixon for Bahamas Consul General’s Office of Atlanta
Oct 29, 2014 - 5:49:41 PM

Email this article
 Mobile friendly page
Consul-visits.jpg

Students to visit Atlanta as guests of Bahamas Diplomat who receives praise from local educators


Bimini, The Bahamas - When Randy E. Rolle left his native Bimini, the island was known as the place where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr wrote portions of his Nobel Prize winning speech and Ernest Hemingway got the inspiration for his classic The Old Man and The Sea. Located just 60 miles off the Florida coast, the tiny north western Bahamian island still lures stars to steal away for sail fishing and day trips.

Randy E. Rolle, now the Consul General for The Bahamas to Atlanta and surrounding states, found himself a hometown hero on his most recent trip to the island. He was taking part in the nation’s Diplomatic Week and his visit with students from Gateway Christian Academy and the Louise McDonald High School was nothing short of inspiring. In addition to reflecting on his youth, he charged students to strive for excellence. He also invited them to take part in a new educational initiative he is developing between The Bahamas and Atlanta.

“The kids were very receptive to Consul General Rolle,” said Louise McDonald High principal, Wesley Rolle. “They know of him because his father is here. But to see someone who walked the same streets they walked, representing not just Bimini but the entire country, was inspiring to them. He talked about his huge responsibility, his portfolio, the areas he represented,  and blew them away.”

Head Girl of the school Taje` Lockhart thanked the Consul General for visiting with her peers and for his encouraging words.

Rolle_at_Louise_McDonald_School.jpg
Rolle at Louise McDonald School

“The Consul General’s visit was most productive,” said Pastor Gilbert Rolle, Jr who serves as principal of Gateway Christian Academy. “He was very transparent with his upbringing. He made a huge impact and what he said made a tremendous impact on the students.”

On a personal note, Pastor Rolle expressed how delighted he and his father were to listen to someone they knew as a small town boy and relative, talk about his achievements.

“Oh yes, I knew the Consul General when he was still Randy,” said Pastor Rolle. “I knew him since we were children and grew up together. I even stayed in touch with him when he played football in college. To see him now as one of the youngest representatives of our nation coming from such a small island is significant. Most of the time, we see older people in those positions but he’s not even 40 years old and he’s doing an excellent job. I’m proud to be a Biminite and to be a cousin.”

The Consul General ended his visits by inviting students to Atlanta, where his office is based to consider some of the colleges and universities he will be working with to further their education. The students will be guests of the Consul General and will learn the connections between The Bahamas and Atlanta, tour campuses and more. He also invited them to take part in a new educational initiative he is developing between The Bahamas and Atlanta. A part of that connection is the fact that his own father, Randy Rolle, Sr. played baseball with the Atlanta Braves Organization. Both schools are making preparations to participate.

“Being from a small island like Bimini, I know what it feels like to be in your shoes,” Consul General Randy E. Rolle, told the students. “The Bahamas is bigger than Bimini and the world is bigger than The Bahamas. I never thought I would come from the same classrooms you are in, with some of the same teachers you still have here to where I am on today.”

“Never put limits on your goals and your dreams,” the Consul General went on to say. “You can be what you want to be and it is up to you to focus on your dreams. Regardless of your start, anything is possible.”

Bookmark and Share




© Copyright 2014 by thebahamasweekly.com

Top of Page

Receive our Top Stories



Preview | Powered by CommandBlast

International
Latest Headlines
PM Davis congratulates Miss Teenager Bahamas Flonique Lightbourn
Minister of State Rahming at UN 66th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women
Prince William and The Earthshot Prize Winners and Finalists take centre stage on Day 2 at COP26
Jamaica’s agro-processing sector being enhanced by joint CDB, EU, JBDC project
OAS General Secretariat on the Assassination of the President of Haiti