iNews Briefs
Cayman police warn public and employers about fake sick notes
The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service (RCIPS) are warning Cayman’s public and employers for fake sick notes,
The sick notes were stolen along with blank prescriptions and an unknown quantity of cash during the break-in at Cayman Clinic on Crewe Road, George Town, Grand Cayman, last Thursday (10).
Anyone with information about the break-in should contact the RCIPS burglary squad on 324-0683.
See iNews Cayman story published July 11 2014 “Cayman Clinic burglary – Burglary team appeals for witnesses and information” at: http://www.ieyenews.com/wordpress/cayman-clinic-burglary-burglary-team-appeals-for-witnesses-and-information/
Caribbean lodging sector in its latent stages of recovery
From JLL
Many Caribbean markets are surpassing prior peak RevPAR levels as strengthening lodging performance is driven by the rise in tourism spend across the region. The Caribbean’s general investment climate remains cautiously optimistic, with a 1.2 ratio of buyers to sellers, high return requirements (relative to other regions) and limited transaction volume-to-date. Hoteliers in the Caribbean, however, remain sharply-focused on improving operational margins and product quality in the near-term.
The Caribbean lodging sector infographic (at: http://www.joneslanglasalle.com/ResearchLevel1/JLL-Caribbean-lodging-infographic-2014-web.pdf) outlines the major trends and general outlook for the region.
(EDITOR: Cayman is shown as one of the top 3 markets in the Caribbean – see attachment)
Cayman’s Miss Lassie’s House receives Sponsors Plaque
The home of one of the Cayman Islands most well known artists, Gladwyn K. Bush, affectionally known as Miss Lassie, has received a Sponsor’s Plaque from the Cayman National Cultural Foundation (CNCF).
The Plaque was unveiled by Premier Alden McLaughlin, and Leader of the Oppositon McKeeva Bush. Also present was CNCF chairman Martyn Bould, CNCF’s Artistic Director Henry Muttoo, Minister of Culture Osbourne Boddenand invited guests.
Miss Lassie died in 2003 at age 89 and her home was opened to the public in December 2012. She only started painting at the age of 62.
The cultural treasure of Miss Lassie’s property was acquired with the support of the Cayman Islands government.
New President at CheapCaribbean
From Caribbean Journal
Apple Leisure Group’s CheapCaribbean travel company has named Steve Dumaine its new president, the company announced in a release.
Dumaine succeeds Flo Lugli, who had served as the company’s interim president since March following the departure of its previous president.
He had most recently served as chief strategy and technology and operations officer at Travelocity. Before working at Travelocity, he worked at Hotels.com and Expedia, among other stops.
“I’m thrilled to take this company to new heights with a focus on innovation and value to our customers,” Dumaine said in a statement. “I look forward to building on our momentum as beach vacation experts and casting my vision for the kind of growth that is valuable to all of our stakeholders.”
Cheap Caribbean was acquired by Bain Capital and Apple Leisure Group in 2013.
For more: http://www.caribjournal.com/2014/07/15/new-president-at-cheap-caribbean/
Flowers sea swim raises $56,000 for food for Cayman’s children
More than US$56,000 was raised through registration fees from nearly 900 swimmers and even more spectators and walkers who took part in the recent Flowers Sea Swim.
The money has gone to the Cayman Islands Feed Our Future campaign that provides food for schoolchildren who would otherwise not get food during the day.
The programme works with children ordering from their school’s canteen, which bills the charity. Over 200 children are recipients of the free meals.
Feed Our Future has also launched a summer programme that donates weekly food baskets and recipe ideas to selected families in need.
The $56,000 cheque was handed over to the charity by Frank Flowers and Dara Flowers Burke.
Maradona: Messi didn’t deserve Golden Ball
By Stefan Coerts Goal.com
Argentina icon Diego Maradona feels Lionel Messi did not deserve to win the Golden Ball following his performances at the World Cup.
The Barcelona star beat the likes of Thomas Muller, Arjen Robben and James Rodriguez to the prestigious individual award after scoring four goals in seven performances at this summer’s tournament and guiding his team to the final, yet Maradona feels the 27-year-old only won it for commercial reasons.
“I would give him heaven if possible,” Maradona said during his show on Telesur. “But it’s not right when someone wins something that he shouldn’t have won just because of some marketing plan.”
Maradona then went on to voice his disappointment with Argentina’s 1-0 defeat in Sunday’s final against Germany following Mario Gotze’s goal in extra time.
“I feel sorry for my country. Mario Gotze’s goal really hurt. There’s a huge sadness in my heart that we lost the final,” he said. “All things put together, I think Argentina deserved at least penalties. That Germany won was the result of a misunderstanding in the Argentine defense.”
The 1986 World Cup winner also had his say on Alejandro Sabella’s decision to replace Ezequiel Lavezzi with Sergio Aguero at halftime and argued that the Argentina boss got things wrong.
“I don’t understand the substitution of Lavezzi,” Maradona said. “He was phenomenal down the wing. Kun Aguero didn’t have the same impact. It was not his tournament.”
For more: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/maradona-messi-didnt-deserve-golden-125700538–sow.html
Cayman Triathlon presents $1,500 to girls home
To assist in the upcoming expansion of the Francis Bodden Girls Home on Grand Cayman, the Cayman Islands Triathlon Association recently presented $1,500 to the Children and Youth Services Foundation (CAYS).
Funds were raised from the 2013 Arch & Godfrey Cayman Islands Triathlon, held last November.
The CAYS Foundation was the charity of choice of the event sponsor.
The Frances Bodden Girls Home operates a care and protection program offering two-hour residential care for youth who are court-ordered as being in need of care and protection in a safe and nurturing environment.
Attending the presentation for CITA were Trevor Murphy, president, and Angela Sealey for Children and Youth Services Foundation.
The next CITA events are the Stroke & Stride series, sponsored by ASAP in August, and the annual Cayman Islands Triathlon, which is once again sponsored by Arch & Godfrey, Red Sail Sports and Governors Square. It is scheduled for Nov. 2.
Registration for Stroke & Stride is now open at www.triathlon.ky. Registration for the Cayman Islands Triathlon opens Aug. 1 when all event details will be revealed. For further information about triathlon in Cayman, visit www.triathlon.ky
MakerBot comes to select Home Depot stores in US
By Matt Burns from Techcrunch
Home Depot is redefining the term DIY now that MakerBot printers and scanners are available in some retail locations.
As part of a pilot program (pdf link), the 3D printers will be sold and demonstrated in 12 stores throughout California, Illinois and New York. Home Depot started selling the printers on its website three months ago. The latest generation of the Replication, the new Replicator Mini and MakerBot’s Digitizer 3D scanner are available from Home Depot at their suggested retail prices.
Of course, simply selling a MakerBot printer is not enough. If 3D printers are to become mainstream, their capabilities need to be demonstrated and that’s part of the plan here. At each of the Home Depot locations, the MakerBot printers will be given prime real estate and staffed with retail associates trained in 3D printing and able to print 3D doodads to give away to prospective customers.
MakerBot printers are also available at Microsoft Stores and Micro Center Stores. However, this move into Home Depot should introduce 3D printing to a decidedly different demographic largely unaware of the advantages and limitations associated with 3D printing.
3D printing itself will not replace home centers like Home Depot. But soon, the capabilities of 3D printing will be mature enough that the retailer can simply point customers to the devices if they do not stock some obscure item. “Need an odd hinge? Print it yourself!”
Cayman gets its Commonwealth Games Pin
From he Cayman Islands Olympic Committee
It’s official – we have our Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games Pins in the office available for sale. A huge thank you to Caymanian artist Jaime Doak for designing the turtle with Scottish flare. We’re always happy to support our local artists. We have very limited numbers and with all Games pins, they are available for sale at $5.00 locally or US$10 plus the cost of shipping if you are overseas. All funds raised go back into the development of sport and athlete preparation in the Cayman Islands. Contact [email protected] for more information.
The 2014 Commonwealth Games are being held in Glasgow from July 23rd to Aug. 3rd.
Cayman is sending 26 athletes to the 2014 Games – it’s the largest Commonwealth Games team they have ever sent under the Olympic Committee. They will compete in athletics, boxing, cycling, gymnastics, shooting, squash and swimming.
Ebay & Sotheby’s announce new online marketplace for art, antiques & collectibles
By Mary Beth Quirk From Consumerist
Need a new conversation piece for your parlor? Or perhaps you’ve always wanted to own a set of medieval and renaissance manuscripts but didn’t know how to get your hands on a set just like the one you saw on Antiques Roadshow. A new joint effort from eBay and high-end auction house Sotheby’s will bring those antiques, collectibles and art to an online marketplace for shoppers.
The two announced today that they’re working on an online platform for bidders to peruse and buy pieces online, reports the Wall Street Journal, to keep up with the demand for high-end items people want to buy from their computers or mobile devices.
And while Sotheby’s has long been a big name in the physical auction world, last year 17% of of the total lots it offered were bid on via the Web. The time is right for an upscale, online channel, the two companies say.
“The growth of the art market, new generation technology and our shared strengths make this the right time for this exciting new online opportunity,” said Bruno Vinciguerra, Sotheby’s chief operating officer, in a statement. “We are joining with eBay to make our sales more accessible to the broadest possible audience around the world.”
The first live auctions will take place at Sotheby’s New York headquarters, with a new eBay marketplace dedicated to Sotheby’s will have a new live auction feature and real-time bidding.
Grand Cayman’s airport parking pay system to be overhauled
As all of us know who use Owen Roberts International Airport and pay to park our car there the paid-parking system there often doesn’t work.
Installed eight years ago to do away with the attendant it has been a constant pain and frustration to all who use it.
The main problems are: the pay machine fails to issue change; the machine fails to read ticket stubs that indicate how much is owed for parking; often it does not recognize CI bills and even when you have paid and received a receipt, the machines at the exit gates often fail to read the card and open the gate. This results in motorists having to call a parking attendant.
Originally the overhaul of the paid parking system was to have waited and to be part of the overall upgrading of the airport but it has been decided the problem is so serious it has to be done now.
The Authority has acknowledged the automated machines have never been popular with the public and the Authority will explore the option of an attendant as well in the redesign.
SEA Semester: Colonization to conservation in the Caribbean
From repeating Islands
SEA Semester, an educational organization known for pairing experiential learning and academic excellence, is offering a new program starting on September, 29, 2014, called “Colonization to Conservation in the Caribbean.” The SEA (Sea Education Association) ship will sail across the Atlantic Ocean from the Canary Islands, Spain, to the Caribbean, following the trajectory taken by Spanish ships of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. This is a rare opportunity for college students interested in the Atlantic World and in Caribbean History to experience a trans-Atlantic sailing voyage in those latitudes. The program will be offered again in the spring, starting on January 5, 2015.
Description: “Connect the dots…trace the lasting effects of past human impacts on the present Caribbean environment beginning with the great European voyages of exploration. Sail in the wake of Christopher Columbus on this transatlantic voyage from the Canary Islands to Grenada. Examine 500 years of environmental and cultural change while shaping your understanding of the diverse histories and legacies of colonialism that remain visible in today’s Caribbean.”
SEA is an educational institution dedicated to exploration, understanding and stewardship of the oceans, and to the study of humanity’s relationship with the oceans.
For more information, see http://www.sea.edu/voyages/caribbean_fall_studyabroadprogram
For more: http://repeatingislands.com/2014/07/15/sea-semester-colonization-to-conservation-in-the-caribbean/
Cayman business owner from Trinidad, Vera Kissoon, dies
We are very sad to announce the death of Vera Kissoon, owner of Singh’s roti shop in George Town, died Sunday at the Cayman Islands Hospital. She was 54.
Vera Kissoon was born in Trinidad and moved to Cayman in 1992. She spent most of her working life contributing to the community, including her volunteer efforts for Batabano and Pirates Week.
She opened Singh’s Roti Shop in 2000 and was instrumental in bringing authentic traditional Trinidadian cuisine to the Cayman Islands.
She was also one of the top producers of life insurance and managers in the Caribbean, working in managerial roles at British American Insurance, British Caymanian Insurance, and Colonial Life Insurance Company. After Colonial Life Insurance closed its Cayman branch in 2009 she became a private life and health insurance consultant.
Vera battled breast cancer, and the disease later spread to her bones.
In addition to her husband and daughter, Mrs. Kissoon is survived by a son Dannel Rahamut.
The funeral service will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday at John Gray Memorial Church, West Bay.
OffshoreAlert London 2014 conference
3rd Annual European Financial Intelligence & Investigations Conference
10-11 November 2014 * The Bloomsbury Hotel * London
Join us this coming November 10 and 11 at The Bloomsbury Hotel in London for OffshoreAlert’s third annual European conference on Financial Intelligence Investigations.
This year’s programme will encompass the full spectrum of issues affecting high-value international finance, including the latest legal, political, regulatory, compliance and tax issues, the detection and prevention of fraud and money laundering, and asset recovery. All with an emphasis on offshore financial centres, or small international financial centres, as many prefer to be called.
As always, we will provide a friendly and professional forum where an expected 150-plus finance industry stakeholders from more than 20 countries and jurisdictions can meet and network.
You can attend this conference at a highly competitive price with reductions for group bookings. Up to 14 CPD points are available.
Registration (at £545+VAT per delegate or £490+VAT when you register 2 delegates or more through 13 August) includes full access to the Conference on 10th and 11th November, coffee breaks, lunch on both days, a drinks reception on Monday night and 14 CPD points.
To register or learn more, please visit the Conference website or download the brochure.
Cayman lady bartender climbs mountain to raise money for Sherpas
Angel Robledo, a bartender at Karma Restaurant & Lounge, Westshore Centre, Seven Mile Beach, Grand Cayman, has just returned after climbing Alaska’s Mount McKinley.
Robledo spent 26 days on the mountain that has a 20,237 foot peak.
She said the team she was with was stuck at 14,000 feet for a week waiting for good weather to move up to a higher camp because of bad weather.
She hosted a fundraiser at the Karma restaurant before she left to climb and raised almost $250 for the families of 16 Sherpas in need. The Nepalese government, for its part, had provided the victims’ families a total of $400 each.
She said she wanted to give something back to the families of some of the people who have helped her climb.
She has also been to Mount Everest base camp, and climbed mountains in New Zealand, Peru, China, Tibet and Nepal.
Watch the interview with the man bringing EVs to [Cayman and] the Caribbean
By Chris Demorro From evobsession
Electric cars don’t make sense everywhere, but within the narrow confines of a Caribbean island, EVs are pretty much the perfect vehicle. EV World recently interviewed former Chrysler executive John Felder, who is the driving force behind an eight-island EV dealer network aimed at bringing EVs to the Cayman islands.
Felder retired to Grand Cayman island in 2007, and since then has lobbied the local government to lower its 42% import tax on electric vehicles. He succeeded in bringing the tax rate down to just 10%, making it the third-lowest EV import rate in the Caribbean. In a recent video interview with EV world, Felder also talked about his efforts to build an eight-island electric car dealership network with the aim of bringing EVs to the many other islands dotting the Caribbean Sea.
Felder’s efforts began with GEM neighborhood electric vehicles, and he also helped bring the Chinese-built Wheego electric car to Budget Cayman rental car. There are also a growing number of public EV chargers powered by solar or wind power.
The advantages EVs offer to island living should not be underestimated, and if you’re an island dweller yourself, this two-part interview is well worth watching.
For more and video: http://evobsession.com/interview-man-bringing-evs-caribbean/
Blaze at pawn shop in Cayman is being treated as arson say police
The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service are appealing for witnesses to the car blaze Sunday (13) night in the car park of George Town pawn shop Cash Whiz on North Church Street Grand Cayman.
Police and fire personnel attended and the blaze was extinguished by fire officers. The vehicle involved was a Ford Explorer and the right passenger side of its dashboard was extensively damaged when the intense heat blew a hole in the right side of the front windshield. The fire is being treated as arson but no one was physically injured as a result of it.
George Town CID is appealing for any witnesses who were in the area at the time of the fire, or who may have information that could assist the investigation.
Members of the public are asked to contact Sergeant Graham or DC Ryding at 516-3070 or use CRIME STOPPERS at 800-8477 (TIPS)
Violence from 2 separate incidents lands 3 men in Cayman hospital
The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service (RCIPS) reported that in the early hours of Sunday (13) morning at around 2am a fight between two men at a home in Bodden Town resulted in one being stabbed in the neck and leg and the second being arrested.
An RCIPS spokesperson said the fight in Bodden Town involved a 54-year-old man and a 38-year-old. The younger of the two received stab wounds in his neck and his right leg and was taken by ambulance to the hospital while the 54-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of wounding and is still in police custody.
In a separate incident on Monday (14) morning at about 2:21 am the George Town hospital reported that two men had arrived with stab wounds. A 36-year-old man from George Town was stabbed in the chest and was taken to surgery while his cousin who received a cut to the left side of his face was treated and discharged. The men were reportedly at a night spot off Shedden Road, in George Town having cocktails when they were attacked by three males and two females who demanded money.
Cayman Governor to preside over police graduations
Her Excellency the Governor, Mrs. Helen Kilpatrick, CB will preside over the 2014 Police Recruits Graduation Ceremony on Thursday, 17 July 2014, 2.30 – 5 pm at The Harquail Theatre
Participants: Recruits, Premier Hon. Alden McLaughlin; Deputy Governor Hon. Franz Manderson, Commissioner of Police David Baines, parents, other invitees and guests
Background: Following an intensive recruitment drive, selected recruits have been undergoing training and are now ready to graduate.
The Caymanian Bar Association has a new and improved Website
The Caymanian Bar Association (“CBA”) has launched a new and improved Website. The Website now boasts a wide range of News, Events and Publications that allow members and the general public to keep up to date with recent projects and initiatives of the CBA.
The Website also includes more information on what the CBA is about, its Council Members and a Message from the CBA President, Abraham Thoppil.
With the help of the Student Chapter of the CBA, a new section of the Website has been created specifically for Law Students and Articled Clerks. The Students/Articled Clerks section provides useful information and guidance to Caymanians wishing to pursue a career in law.
Please visit our new Website at www.caymanbar.org.ky and let us know what you think.
About the Caymanian Bar Association
The Caymanian Bar Association was established in 1988 after senior Caymanian attorneys perceived the need for an organisation to address issues of particular relevance to Caymanian attorneys and effectively to represent the views of Caymanian attorneys who were, and are, a minority in the profession in the Cayman Islands. To that end, all Caymanians (as defined in the Immigration Law (2013 Revision)), who are admitted to practise as an attorney in the Cayman Islands and possess a current practising certificate, are eligible to be members of the Association. Most Caymanian attorneys that are eligible have joined the Caymanian Bar Association, and today it represents the interests of more than 140 Caymanian attorneys.
