A Collection of Essays

About the Book

This volume or collection of essays started many years ago in the sunny island of Barbados. I attended Combermere (then an all-boys’ secondary school). It was discovered from early that I had a knack for speaking and writing. I joined the drama club and the speech and debating society. As for writing, most of my essays were said to be creative and highly imaginative. Mr. Frank Collymore, then deputy headmaster and founder of the renowned Caribbean magazine BIM, encouraged me to develop my writing skills. I became the first student editor of the school magazine The Combermerian in the year 1950.

About the Author

Professor C. Alfie Gill was born in Bridgetown, Barbados and educated at Calvary Moravian Boys’ School and Combermere Boys’ School. He taught at Combermere and founded the Regent High School in 1952. Professor Gill later went to England and graduated with an LLB Degree from London University. He worked for both the British and Canadian governments in administration. He later settled in the United States, where he earned an M.B.A. from the New York Institute of Technology. He became Director of Finance for a huge anti-poverty programme in the late 70’s in Yonkers, New York. With the changing politics of the 1980’s and the defunding of the C.E.T.A. programme by President Reagan, he returned to the field of education. First as a licensed Business teacher and later as a Specialist in Special Education. He joined the faculty of the City University of New York, (B.M.C.C) in 1988 as an Adjunct Professor. Professor Gill retired from C.U.N.Y. in 2003. Professor Gill founded his own business “Quality Systems”, (Started in 1975) which specialized in Accounting and Tax Services for small businesses. He was the President and C.E.O. He was active in many community and Afrocentric organizations. In 2003 he was elected as co-chair of the New York Coalition of Faith-Based Organizations, active in the fight against A.I.D.S. He gave the 2004 Black Civilization Day lecture at the Jerusalem Cathedral of the Sons of God Spiritual Baptist Church. He also gave the Barrow Memorial Lecture in New York in January 2004. C. Alfie Gill continues to spend his retirement years in the United States of America.