Misspelled
At first, her name seems simple. The speaker of the House of Assembly is Corine George-Massicote. However, a Beaconite has noticed that Ms. George-Massicote’s name is one of the most frequently misspelled names he has ever encountered in the Virgin Islands. First, there’s Corine, which he has seen misspelled as “Corrine,” “Corinne,” and “Corrinne.” Then there’s the first part of her hyphenated surname, which is often spelled “Georges” instead of “George.” Finally, there’s “Massicote,” which has appeared incorrectly in various publications as “Masicote,” “Masicotte,” “Massicotte” and even “Masiccote.” The Beacon, too, has fallen into the trap: When researching this item, the Beaconite found (and corrected) an SEO tag on the Beacon website with the “Masicotte” misspelling. (Happily, the article itself spelled the name correctly.) The Beaconite feels bad for the speaker, and he is sorry that the Beacon has spelled her name wrong as well. From now on, he hopes everyone will take a moment to get it right. Once again, it’s Corine George-Massicote. Thank you.
Celebrating women
A Beaconite found a great way to celebrate International Women’s Day when she attended a breakfast forum featuring five female entrepreneurs (see her coverage of the event in the business section). Since she is still without a car, she made the trek to The Moorings by foot. It was an early morning, as she arrived just after 7:30 a.m., but the event was a welcome start to her day. The room felt true to the holiday, with purple accents alongside yellow roses placed at each table setting. The female panellists — some of whom have full-time day jobs — discussed what drove them to start their “side hustles,” which ranged from a party-supply business to a human resources firm to coffee shops. They also gave sound advice for anyone wanting to follow suit with a “side hustle” of their own. Those who could not attend the event, which was hosted by Money Matters BVI, could tune in to ZBVI Radio or watch live on the Money Matters BVI Facebook page (where a video of the event is still posted). The reporter finds that she enjoys attending such events on International Women’s Day, and she was pleased to cover this one.
A poultry excuse
Six months to the day after arriving on Virgin Islands soil, a Beaconite is proud to call these islands his home. Sure, there are plenty of things to complain about, but that’s the case anywhere you live. Your experience is what you make of it, and the reporter is finding more evidence of that every day. He sees a silver lining of natural beauty alongside a people with an infectious attitude and drive for success. On a recent afternoon, that natural beauty took the form of chickens doing their thing without any care for the humans around them: A hen with several chicks walked right through a restaurant as if they owned the place. The reporter is sure most residents are sick of the birds or don’t see them at all, but he can’t help cracking a smile at their bobbing heads and beautiful plumage.