On behalf of our President Kerryann Ifill (of Barbados), The Members of the Executive Committee and the wider membership of the Caribbean Council for the Blind, I extend condolences to the family, friends and associates of William \u201cBill\u201d Lightbourne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I first heard about Bill on a development visit to the Turks and Caicos\nIslands close to three decades ago. Everywhere I went (from Grand Turk to\nProvo) people told me about Bill Lightbourne. When I asked to meet him, they\ntold me that he was a \u201cSon of the Turks\u201d but he was doing great works in the\nBahamas. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"William](\"http:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-content\/uploads\/William-Bill-Lightbourne.jpg\")
When I finally met Bill (in the Bahamas) about a year later, he demanded that I return to the Turks and Caicos Islands to see a family of blind children in Provo, who needed help desperately. I adjusted my schedule and visited Provo as soon as I could.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Department of Social Services in Grand Turk, facilitated my visit\nto the family on Provo. We were shocked and dismayed by the scene of seven\nchildren who are blind, living in squalid, filthy and stinking conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They made noises like wild animals and crawled about amidst filthy rags\nheavily soiled with urine and human waste. I was afforded an audience with the\nthen acting Governor, who took a keen and decisive interest in the cases of the\nchildren.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I am delighted to report that the British Government exhibited strong\nand positive leadership in pursuing a humane and developmental resolution of\ntheir circumstances. A number of the children eventually attended the Salvation\nArmy School for the Blind in Jamaica.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Such was the persuasive power, good will and determination of the late\nBill Lightbourne. But that is not all to be said about this simple but\nextra-ordinarily great man. He and his wife Lucy, hosted me several times (for\nsumptuous meals) at their home in Nassau.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
CCB and our international partners were inspired by his dedication to\nthe education of children who are blind in the Bahamas. He inspired us to make\nscholarships available to teachers at the school for them to study education of\nthe visually impaired at The Mico University College in Jamaica.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bill was a tireless advocate on behalf of people with special needs\nacross the Bahamas and throughout the Caribbean. Often, he was the epitome of\nthe \u201c1-man multitude\u201d and at other times, he was the good foot soldier,\nmarching to the rhythm of equal opportunities for special needs people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On many other occasions, William Lightbourne was the determined and\ncunning general, leading his army into battle on behalf of people with special\nneeds. I have had the privilege of working with hundreds of people (from all\nwalks of life) across more than 50 countries. However, it is easy to say that I\nfound Bill Lightbourne to be one of the truly inspirational human beings I\nencountered. A good man, loving husband, special needs educator, disability\nrights activist, citizen of the Caribbean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
May his soul transcend eternity and his memory continue to inspire all\nof us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Arvel Grant
Chief Executive Officer
Caribbean Council for the Blind and Visually Impaired.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
On behalf of our President Kerryann Ifill (of Barbados), The Members of the Executive Committee and the wider membership of the Caribbean Council for the Blind, I extend condolences to the family, friends and associates of William \u201cBill\u201d Lightbourne. I first heard about Bill on a development visit to the Turks and Caicos Islands close to three decades ago. Everywhere I went (from Grand Turk to Provo) people told me about Bill Lightbourne. When I asked to meet him, they told me that he was a \u201cSon of the Turks\u201d but he was doing great works in the Bahamas. When …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25,138],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1037","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-latest-news","category-main"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1037","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1037"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1037\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1046,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1037\/revisions\/1046"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1037"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1037"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eyecarecaribbean.com\/site\/ecc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1037"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}