BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – SOMEONE once said: “Give me flowers when I’m alive so I can bereave them when I’m going…not when I’m gone.”
True to this statement is Kittitian-born Ruth Juliet Liburd, who was recently recognised and awarded by a renowned multi-service agency called Part Of The Solution (POTS) in the Bronx, New York for her dedication, commitment and service to that community.
The 82-year-old Bronx resident, who is the last surviving sibling of the late Eunice Taylor and George Liburd of Newtown, Basseterre, is said to be still moving around very strongly after a major invasive surgery some four years ago.
According to her son, Loris S. Liburd-James, Ruth, a retiree, “continues to be of volunteer service to Community Service Centers, POTS in the Bronx and to the Mercy Center in South Bronx”.
He indicated that his mother was a confidant of the Federation’s first Premier, the late Sir Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw, and for several years in the late 1960s was the bookkeeper for the St. Kitts-Nevis Trades and Labour Union.
Speaking to her youthful years in St. Kitts, James said his mother, a pianist, was a teacher and an avid netball player.
Ruth has a very impressive past. She had attained an Associate Degree in Business and Economics from the Waterloo Lutheran University in Ontario, Canada and was employed for a number of years as Assistant Manager at the Industrial Bank under the late Edgar Bridgewater.
The Industrial Bank was renamed the St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla National Bank and it is written that Ruth is a co-founder of the name given to the indigenous financial institution.
Ruth had left her homeland for the United States of America, where she worked and subsequently retired as an Accounting Assistant in New York.
James explained that that his mother is a member of a very large Liburd family in both St. Kitts and Nevis.
She is the aunt of Jean Archibald and the Minister of Public Infrastructure, Posts, Urban Development, Energy and Transport, the Hon. Ian ‘Patches’ Liburd (children of her deceased two sisters); cousin of former Health Minister and Parliamentary Representative of Constituency Two, the Hon. Marcella Liburd, Karl Liburd, Clement ‘Junie’ Liburd and former Ambassador Dr. Osbert Liburd and his siblings; and relative of the late Elaine Maynard-Liburd of Nevis.
At the POTS Award Ceremony, Ruth was congratulated by Congressman Charles B. Rangel and New York State Senator Gustavo Rivera.
The management and staff of SKNVibes join with the family members and friends of Ruth Juliet Liburd in congratulating her as an awardee and wish her health, strength and God’s blessings in continuance of her volunteer service to the community.
POTS is a ‘one-stop shop’ that assists individuals living in poverty on their journeys from crisis to stability and ultimately self-sufficiency. This agency is dedicated to providing a professional and hospitable environment where every interaction is based on compassion and respect.
The organisers and volunteers of this agency believe that every person should have access to the essentials of life. They also believe that POTS’ ‘one-stop shop’ model of providing a coordinated and comprehensive package of support is the best means of addressing the myriad needs that accompany poverty.
