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Volume: 119 No.23, December 23, 2021

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ROLLING THE DICE WITH OUR LIVES

COVID cases leap 200% as Sands warns: we’re ‘gambling at our peril’

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net FORMER Health Minister Dr Duane Sands has said the country continues to “gamble” with COVID-19 “at our peril” as the Ministry of Health reported 79 new infections on Tuesday.

This represents an increase of more than 200 percent from the 26 cases recorded on Monday’s dashboard and is the largest case count in a single day since October.

According to the confirmed COVID-19 numbers for Tuesday released

yesterday, there were 73 new cases in New Providence and six cases in Grand Bahama.

Eleven of the new cases had a history of travel, which could point to imported cases. There are 21 people in hospital with COVID-19. Nineteen of them are considered moderately ill and two are in the Intensive Care Unit receiving treatment.

For much of the month, COVID-19 infections were either in the single digits or low double digits, the highest being 41 on December 18.

SEE PAGE THREE

FREE National Movement Leader Michael Pintard said when negotiations between Royal Caribbean/ITM Group were bogged down after Hurricane Dorian, the sale and acquisition of the Grand Lucayan hotel was put in jeopardy.

The Minnis

administration had tied the sale of the property to the ability of Bahamas Ports Investments Limited, the joint partnership between RCL and ITM Group, to nail down the port deal, a decision former Tourism Minister Dionisio D’Aguilar has since called a mistake.

Privately, government officials have blamed the SEE PAGE FOUR

- SEE PAGE EIGHT

DORIAN TAX CONCESSIONS EXTENDED FOR ANOTHER YEAR

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net

THE government announced yesterday that the Special Economic Recovery Zone orders for Abaco and Grand Bahama due to expire on December 31 have been extended to December 31, 2022.

But Abaco Chamber of Commerce president Ken Hutton says the extension for Abaco needed to be for three years, not one.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

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‘LINKING LUCAYAN TO PORT PROJECT WAS BEST DEAL’

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

FRONT PORCH: LOVE’S PURE LIGHT AT CHRISTMAS

JOYELLE MCINTOSH

JOYELLE’S MURDER: THREE WIN APPEAL

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Court of Appeal has overturned the convictions of three men who were accused of murdering Joyelle McIntosh, a Queen’s College elementary school teacher whose killing in 2015 shook the country.

McIntosh and her then 13-year-old son were driving along Parkgate Road when, the boy

ARMANDO SARGEANT, left, and Johnny Mackey. testified in the Supreme Court, his mother swerved to avoid hitting a man who was lying in the road.

Seconds after swerving, McIntosh was shot in her neck; she continued driving but crashed SEE PAGE FIVE

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

FOLLOWING revelations about the administration of contracts at the Bahamas Public Parks and Public Beaches Authority, officials were yesterday in the process of trying to verify contractors so money owed can be paid.

According to Press Secretary Clint Watson, anyone who does not submit the required documents to the SEE PAGE FIVE

STATESIDE HOPE OUT OF HEARTBREAK

- SEE PAGE NINE

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

PAGE 2, Thursday, December 23, 2021

THE TRIBUNE

SENATORS PAY VISIT TO SINGING BISHOP

SINGING Bishop Lawrence Rolle with members of the Senate during their visit to his feeding programme.

What 'doing more' could look like.

THE Senate partnered with Bishop Lawrence Rolle’s feeding programme on Second Street, Coconut Grove, yesterday.

The feeding programme aimed to help over 5,000 families and Bishop Rolle commended the senators and organisations that donated to the cause. He

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also stressed that his feeding programme needs more help in order to reach more families.

President of the Senate LaShell Adderley and senators from both the government and opposition volunteered at the feeding programme this year.

SENATE members got to see the feeding programme in action.

Photos: Donavan McIntosh/Tribune Staff

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THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 23, 2021, PAGE 3

Rolling the dice with our lives from page one

On September 30 the country recorded 84 new cases and 130 were recorded on September 29. That month saw several days with triple digit COVID-19 cases.

The situation began to improve in October when there were no triple digit days recorded and the highest number was 84 cases in one single day. In November, the highest number recorded was 39 cases.

This comes after several large events were held on the weekend.

In an interview with The Tribune yesterday, Dr Sands said while the government may be behind the “eight ball” in tightening measures, it’s never too late to act in the best interest of the economy and public health.

“Let’s look at the last 14 days when on the eighth of

December we would have had less than five cases and then there has been a deliberate progressive inextricable climb in cases,” he said.

“I think this ought to have come as no surprise because the same phenomenon is being seen around the world and in particular from the areas that we attract visitors. If you look at the number of travel related cases, in December we’ve had 438 cases, 158 of them had a history of travel and so there is no doubt that we have a combination of either multiple clusters, community spread and imported cases.”

Asked if officials should act now to tighten measures, Dr Sands said: “We are a bit behind the eight ball, but perhaps the saying is ‘it’s never too late’ it’s unfortunate that we did not stop some of the large gatherings from happening.

“The event over the weekend could only be described as a super spreader event and anecdotally there have been others. We all need to be disciplined.

“We all need to be playing our role and that includes the government, the Royal Bahamas Police Force, the COVID patrols, but most importantly the citizenry of The Bahamas.

“We all need to understand the role that each of us plays in keeping this country COVID safe. The implications for the health and welfare of Bahamians is paramount but the implications for an emerging economy are also huge and we gamble with COVID at our peril,” Dr Sands said.

Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis is expected to address the country today on the readiness of public health care for a potential impending fourth wave of the virus.

PM TO REVEAL PLAN TO TACKLE COVID WHEN he addresses the country today, Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis will reveal his administration’s plan to address a number of areas including the health sector’s readiness to tackle a potential fourth wave of COVID-19 among other things.

Mr Davis is set to bring remarks today during the Office of the Prime Minister’s press briefing at 11am.

Press secretary Clint

FORMER Health Minister Dr Duane Sands.

Watson said Mr Davis will also speak of the government’s work during its first 100 days in office.

“The Prime Minister will update the country on the health sector’s readiness to deal with a potential fourth wave that is happening around the world,” Mr Watson told The Tribune yesterday. “He will also encourage Bahamians as they gather this weekend with family or for events

to please be careful and to follow all of the health protocols as the omicron variant is very contagious.”

Health officials have not yet confirmed that this strain of the coronavirus is in The Bahamas, however it is the dominant strain in the United States. Mr Watson continued: “He will also take questions on other issues as we come near to the 100 days in office for his administration.”

‘WE NEED MORE ENFORCEMENT OF PROTOCOLS’

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

THE head of the Consultant Physicians Staff Association has suggested more enforcement of COVID-19 protocols is necessary in view of reports of large events being held recently.

Dr Sabriquet Pinder-Butler also said if it is decided more restrictions are needed to protect public health, then the country should be willing to do what is necessary.

She spoke after Health Minister Dr Michael Darville indicated on Tuesday changes may come to COVID-19 protocols for large gatherings.

Several events occurred over the weekend, including a Junkanoo rush out and a large party at the Botanical Gardens.

The CPSA president told reporters yesterday: “We know that there’s a process perhaps that needs to be communicated more widely

DRUG ARREST

A MAN was arrested at Lynden Pindling International Airport on Tuesday for drug possession.

Shortly after 3pm, detectives from the Drug Enforcement Unit along with their United States counterparts searched a man at the domestic section of the airport. During the search, officers found five sealed packages.

An inspection of the packages revealed a substance suspected to be cocaine. The suspect was arrested. The total weight of the suspected drugs is 12.5 pounds and has an estimated street value of $100,000. An investigation is ongoing.

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for persons to be aware that they should be contacting the ministry prior to having events so that they are also aware of the proper COVID protocols that are necessary.

“Having said that, unfortunately we know that despite us sometimes having rules and regulations, unless we have persons policing those things similarly with seat belts, etc, we just aren’t always able to police ourselves on our own.

“So, I think that the ministry perhaps needs to look again at re-engaging the COVID police, the ambassadors, etc, to perhaps visit these activities before they occur and perhaps visit while they’re going on just to ensure that we’re all following those guidelines.”

She added that in various countries there have been restrictions reimplemented due to a rise in COVID-19 cases. She said all citizens “must do what is necessary” to ensure the safety of the country.

She said: “If we want to

continue to allow this country to continue to flourish, our economy to move forward, our children to return to school, then all of us as citizens have to do what is necessary...”

The latest dashboard from the Ministry of Health showed a huge jump in daily COVID-19 cases, from 26 to 79.

Last week, there was also a slight in crease in cases.

Asked if more restrictions are needed, Dr Pinder-Butler answered: “Sometimes you know when things and events can change and are fluid, we know that it would mean that we too would also have to look at what’s in the best interest of our people because this just does not impact one of us.

“This is a public health global crisis and I think this is why we have seen many countries’ restrictions have had to be reintroduced and certainly I think that as a people we too have to be mindful of that. We’ve had restrictions before. I know that we don’t like restrictions. We like our

freedom and I think that is something that we should all want to embrace, but we have to also be safe.

“We don’t want persons to lose their lives. We don’t want hospitalisations that aren’t necessary and if we do have to look at having other restrictions to safeguard our population I think it’s something that we should consider.

But in the meantime, so that we try to mitigate that from happening we have to do our best to follow those preventative measures.”

With the omicron variant spreading internationally, there have been questions raised about more stringent testing requirements for travellers entering the country. The association president said certain aspects should be taken into consideration.

“We know that with us fighting this pandemic for almost two years we have to look at what is considered best practices and if it is that the World Health Organisation and other standard bodies consider that those

are things that would help us to be able to detect cases more readily, etc, and we look at perhaps the economic cost and the timeline

these things may occur as it relates to travel, we too as a country would have to consider those things and see if it would benefit us,” she said.

PAGE 4, Thursday, December 23, 2021

THE TRIBUNE

MITCHELL AGAIN CRITICISES CIVIL SERVICE

By TANYA SMITHCARTWRIGHT tsmith-cartwright@ tribunemedia.net

FOREIGN Affairs and Public Service Minister Fred Mitchell has again criticised the state of the civil service, saying “poison pills” have been left behind by the Minnis administration leaving the public sector wrought with “passive aggressive resistance” that needs to be fixed.

Mr Mitchell, also the Progressive Liberal Party’s chairman, repeated his call on party supporters to be patient and “hold on”.

“There’s plenty of passive aggressive resistance throughout the system; poison pills left by the last administration,” Mr Mitchell said. “I was told an extraordinary story by a public official, about why my people can’t get paid on time.

“Their answer was because Hubert Minnis called the general election unexpectedly, the whole system which budgets and payment was thrown off and so the entire system is in disarray and off balance.

Well, I told you, ‘IMF’ – It’s Minnis’ Fault.

“There is a serious point

behind all of this. We must fix the public administration. We must fix the institutions of government so that they can appropriately respond to what the political directorate requires. That’s a serious point.”

In showing PLP supporters the value of being patient, Mr Mitchell told a personal story as an example of the same.

“I got back from Harvard in 1980 after a glorious year abroad getting my master’s degree, expecting to return to work at ZNS,” he said.

“Try as I might, I could not get a meeting with Lynden

Pindling, with whom I had had an almost every day relationship with between 1977 and 1980 as the director of news at ZNS and later as a student at Harvard.

“Now I was back and I couldn’t get this meeting with him or even a return call. It took a combination of George Smith, the then-Transport Minister, and Loftus Roker, the then-National Security Minister, both of whom were my friends, to get the meeting.

“When I met Sir Lynden, he told me that I couldn’t get back to ZNS because there was resistance in

management to my return and he would have to craft out a role for me somewhere else. That somewhere else was part of his office, parked in the Bahamas Information Services.”

He said his Harvard education meant nothing in this situation, nor did his history with the PLP. “A degree from Harvard meant nothing and the work of a PLP former Centreville chair and Long Island NGC member meant nothing,” Mr Mitchell said.

“This was not good for the self-esteem of a 27-year-old, but I survived.

“So, why am I telling you

this story? Politics is a difficult business. There’s no prescriptive or normative patterns to tell you. Each example is different and everyone has to cut their own path. But I remember the feeling of emptiness and worthlessness like it was yesterday.

“I am saying this because of the tidal wave of complaints that we are not responding to the faithful as we should with the appropriate dispatch. I want, though, to keep our rational minds and not jump to conspiracy theories. Things will ease in time. We have met ourselves in a hostile polity.”

‘Linking Lucayan to port project was best deal’ from page one Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa for the struggling port negotiations.

The agreement between the government and BPI for the Grand Lucayan was cancelled on Monday.

Royal Caribbean said the cancellation was a mutual decision after ITM Group decided not to proceed with the acquisition. The company said it looks forward to participating in the new public bid process for the property.

“Upon learning of ITM’s withdrawal, Royal Caribbean immediately began searching for a new partner with experience as an established operator in the land-based hospitality industry,” Royal Caribbean said in a statement. “We look forward to participating in the new public bid process for the purchase of the Grand Lucayan once a bid is issued by the government of The Bahamas.

The transformation of the Grand Lucayan into a premier entertainment resort will complement our plans for the development of a world-class cruise port facility in Freeport to reestablish Grand Bahama as one of the world’s most popular cruise destinations.”

In his statement, Mr Pintard reiterated the FNM’s

THE GRAND Lucayan Resort. position that it acquired the Grand Lucayan because it was not prepared to let the hotel close and deteriorate like the Royal Oasis and Xanadu properties did before it.

“The Royal Caribbean/ ITM Group was thought to be an ideal purchaser, credible, well-funded with an ambitious plan for the redevelopment and expansion of berths at the Freeport

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff Harbour and a new strategy for the Grand Lucayan property,” Mr Pintard said.

“The port deal anticipated construction of up to seven new berths to accommodate the largest cruise ships in the world. With this new harbour development, hundreds of thousands of additional cruise passengers would be delivered to Freeport on an annual basis, who using local

transportation would make their way to the Grand Lucayan for a fun-filled day at the beach or take advantage of the wide variety of other ecotourism adventures available on the island in addition to enjoying the redeveloped Harbour facilities themselves. It was considered a win-win-win.

“The negotiations for the acquisition of the Grand Lucayan hinged on the

Royal Caribbean/ITM Group reaching an agreement with the Freeport Harbour Company on the construction of their new berths. Unfortunately, those negotiations bogged down in the wake of Hurricane Dorian and the pandemic and eventually stalled putting the sale/acquisition on hold and eventually in jeopardy.

“A study commissioned

by the government, conducted by accounting firm KPMG, concluded that the best chance for the longterm success of the Grand Lucayan was for it to be linked to the port deal being contemplated by the Royal Caribbean/ITM Group, which guided and gave the government the confidence to try to finalise a deal with the three parties.”

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation Chester Cooper told reporters on Tuesday that he does not believe a buyer’s interest in the Grand Lucayan will hinge on what happens with the port.

The more activity there is on the island, naturally the better it will be for a new investor into the property,” he said. “But one is not contingent upon the other.

It was a bad idea to couple them at the very beginning because here you have two private entities negotiating with each other on separate sets of circumstances that impact the deal on the Grand Lucayan resort while we sit and while the property deteriorates and people continue to be unemployed.”

Mr Cooper said the government has identified six credible interested parties.

He said the government hopes to recoup its more than $150m investment in the project.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 23, 2021, PAGE 5

Joyelle’s murder: Three win appeal from page one into a wall shortly after.

Her son left the car and ran away. Prosecutors said he was shot at while running from the scene.

Johnny Mackey, Armando Sargent and a man who was arraigned when he was a juvenile were charged with murdering the mother, attempting to murder her son, conspiracy to commit armed robbery and attempted armed robbery. The third intended appellant, who has not been named since he was charged as a minor, was accused of actually shooting McIntosh.

Mackey and the third intended appellant were later convicted of all of the offences while Sargent was convicted of manslaughter, conspiracy

to commit armed robbery and attempted armed robbery.

The men filed an application for an extension of time to appeal their applications. Ultimately, the Court of Appeal approved Sargent and Mackey’s applications for an extension of time, quashed their convictions and did not order a retrial. They approved the third man’s application for an extension of time, quashed his convictions and sentences and ordered a retrial.

Prosecutors relied on confessions during the Supreme Court trial. The accused argued those confessions were obtained through oppression.

Regarding the man who was charged as a minor, the alleged shooter, the Court of Appeal wrote in its judgment: “As is unfortunately

PROCESS TO VERIFY IDS UNDERWAY from page one

authority will not receive outstanding funds.

“They are going through the verification process for those present contract holders to find out who has which contract and what accounts are they going to and who are behind these contracts,” Mr Watson said yesterday.

“Once persons bring their documents and are verified, they will qualify for their payment electronically.

“It’s the process they must go through in order to be paid.”

A public notice was published in The Tribune by the authority yesterday advising people holding valid contracts to present themselves to the National Sports Authority on two days – yesterday and today – to make the document submissions.

The required documents included a copy of the contract, government issued identification or in the case of a corporate entity, evidence a power of attorney to verify the person is authorised to act on behalf of the entity along with an ID. A tax compliance certificate, NIB company registration certificate and VAT certificate if the annual value of the contracts with the authority was in excess of $80,000 is also required.

The authority also asked for bank account information as no termination payment would be made to third party accounts on behalf of the terminated contractor.

McKell Bonaby, BPPPBA chairman, could not be reached for comment.

Last week it was announced the authority would terminate all current contracts after external investigators found numerous lapses in its functioning and internal controls.

Mr Bonaby suggested last Friday that as many as 1,400 contractors will be affected by this.

During a press conference at the Office of the Prime Minister, Mr Watson said the contracts will be terminated in a legal manner so that contractors who have a valid contract will be paid.

“However,” he said last week, “they will now be

paid in a way that fully complies with all existing laws, regulations and best financial and accounting practice.

“Given that there is no information on file relating to the ‘Know Your Customer’ requirements, every contractor will be required to attend in person at a venue to be announced shortly and provide the basic KYC documentation for the maintenance of proper internal records of the authority.

“They will have to produce a document or documents to prove their identity (such as a passport, driver’s licence or NIB card), they will have to confirm their bank details, and they will have to be tax and NIB compliant, as the law requires,” Mr Watson said at the time.

Mr Bonaby previously said some 300 general service workers will fill the void after current contracts are cancelled. He said by mid-January the authority expects to “right-size the ship,” allowing those workers to return to their usual duties.

K Christie and Co Chartered Accountants conducted the operational review of the BPPPBA which uncovered the lapses in operations.

The firm said it did not perform an audit of the authority; the experts merely conducted a review requested by the Ministry of Finance, one that does not fit the requirements of an audit as outlined by International Standards on Auditing or International Standards on Review Engagements.

The probe found the authority went tens of millions of dollars over budget despite no “real needs on the ground” for this overspend; found inconsistencies in signatures on contracts; and VAT returns were not filed, among other lapses.

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too often the position, the only evidence connecting the intended appellant to the crimes was a confession given to the police.”

The judgment said: “Sargent challenges, inter alia, the learned judge’s decision to admit his statement and record of interview and the judge’s decision not to accede to his no case submission. Sargent alleged that the record of interview and statement attributed to him were obtained through oppression, but the officers denied his assertions.

The judge below heard the evidence and preferred the evidence of the officers. In the circumstances counsel conceded that the judge had the discretion to decide whose evidence he would accept.

“Relative to the submission of no case to answer, while the evidence

demonstrates that Sargent knew a robbery would occur, there was no evidence led that could lead to a reasonable inference that he knew a gun was on the scene before the commission of the offences.

“There was no request by the Crown or the judge to leave the alternate offences of robbery and attempted robbery to the jury, therefore those offences were not left to be considered by the jury. In these circumstances Sargent’s case ought not to have been left for consideration by the jury. It is not in the interest of justice, therefore, to order a retrial.

“Mackey was selected from an ID parade by (the son) as the man lying in the road. “During his record of interview Mackey told officers that he was lying in the road because he caught

a cramp. Mackey did not sign the record of interview.

“At trial, Mackey testified he was forced to admit that he was lying in the road to cause a car to stop in furtherance of a robbery.

Similar to Sargent’s case, no evidence was led by the Crown that Mackey had knowledge of a plan to use a firearm. It is clear that each of the offences for which Mackey was convicted was dependent on a finding that he was a part of a plan to commit armed robbery with the use of a gun.

“No alternate offences were left for consideration by the jury. As the Crown’s evidence did not meet the required standard to give rise to a proper conviction it would not be in the interest of justice to order a retrial in Mackey’s case.

“The evidence against (the third intended

appellant), a juvenile and the shooter in the Crown’s case, was two confessions, one of which was given without the presence of his mother or an attorney. The judge below found that confession to be a spontaneous admission. The second confession was given in the presence of a social worker and a pastor as, on the evidence of the police, (the) mother could not be contacted.

“The court is of the view that the first confession ought not to have been admitted and its admission prejudiced the jury and brings the safety of the conviction into doubt. The circumstances of the case are appropriate for (him) to be retried.”

The judgement states that the third intended appellant is to remain on remand until he is retried.

FOUR NEW FIRE TRUCKS DELIVERED

DEPUTY Prime Minister Chester Cooper and Chairman of the Airport Authority Paul Bevans.

THE Airport Authority held a commissioning and dedication ceremony for four fire trucks at Arawak Port facility on Tuesday.

The fire trucks are to be used at airports in Abaco, Eleuthera, Exuma and New Providence.

Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper said the trucks are equipped to handle all types of fires including gas and electrical.

He said he is honoured to say that the Family Islands will not be left out in respect to these fire trucks, and noted training in their handling will continue.

DEPUTY Prime Minister Chester Cooper at the wheel of one of the new fire trucks.

Photos: Donavan McIntosh/ Tribune Staff

PAGE 6, Thursday, December 23, 2021

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THE TRIBUNE

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The rising numbers of cases don’t lie IN all the talk about COVID-19, there is one thing that is inescapable – the numbers.

And sad to say, those numbers are on the rise.

On Tuesday, another 79 new infections were reported, the highest number in a single day since October.

Across the US, cases are surging with the new omicron variant having swiftly become the dominant version of the virus, and it is likely that with significant numbers of arrivals from the US to our shores, both tourists and Bahamians returning for Christmas, that omicron is here too.

Look, too, at the photographs of people crowded together at events, many not wearing masks, and it’s easy to see we are tempting fate.

Former Health Minister Dr Duane Sands puts it bluntly, saying that we gamble with COVID-19 “at our peril”.

As he says, we may already be too slow in tightening measures – cases are already on the rise – but that doesn’t mean we can’t act now to try to slow that rise.

He said: “We are a bit behind the eight ball, but perhaps the saying is ‘it’s never too late’. It’s unfortunate that we did not stop some of the large gatherings from happening.

“The event over the weekend could only be described as a super spreader event and anecdotally there have been others. We all need to be disciplined.”

We need to look at how such events get the go-ahead during a pandemic.

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville has said that some events had approval but perhaps protocols they were told to follow were not implemented – well, for such events shouldn’t police or ministry staff be on site to check and shut them down if they are not doing as they were instructed?

The head of the Consultant Physicians Staff Association, Dr Sabriquet PinderButler, has called for more enforcement of COVID protocols.

She said: “Unfortunately we know that despite us sometimes having rules and regulations, unless we have persons policing those things similarly with seat belts, etc, we just aren’t always able to police ourselves on our own.”

That is very telling, and very sad – but judging by some of the scenes we have seen, very true. There are those who

are doing their very best to follow all the procedures to help us get past this pandemic – and there are those who are doing the very opposite.

Is it already too late to stop a fourth wave? The way the numbers are rising, we may already be in it.

What now?

This morning, Philip “Brave” Davis will address two things – the first 100 days of his administration, and what his government is going to do to tackle COVID-19.

Any administration coming into the situation of an ongoing pandemic would have had a difficult task – both in terms of the health crisis itself, and the economic fallout surrounding it.

Today we will see how much of Mr Davis’ talk of being able to handle the pandemic while on the campaign trail will turn into action.

There is still much to see from this new government in terms of what it promised – not least of all the pledge of free testing for COVID-19.

That came to a head when Atlantis workers faced the prospect of having to pay for their own tests to be allowed to come to work – and still has not been satisfactorily resolved.

Amid those scenes of large crowds gathering, there is also the possibility of changing regulations on large gatherings to stop the same happening again.

So the spotlight will be on Mr Davis when he gets up to speak. Doing nothing is not an option. So what will his government do?

This is no time to dither, no time to delay – it is a time to be decisive.

We have seen Mr Davis’ administration be decisive already this week with the ending of the Grand Lucayan deal – though without a replacement buyer lined up.

That same decisiveness needs to be seen again – though this time with a plan already in place.

Having been in office 100 days means Mr Davis has no reason not to have in place everything he promised on the campaign trail, and he should be able to lay out exactly what we can expect to see, and when we will see it.

The nation shall be watching with interest.

Unity benefits the Caribbean EDITOR, The Tribune.

A COMMONWEALTH is a nation, state and or other political unit, founded on law and united by compactor tacit agreement by the people for the common good.

The creation of an all encompassing Commonwealth of Caribbean Nations based upon their regional and island culture, as a cornerstone to complete Caribbean unity.

Assertion: So long as individual Caribbean island nations must compete against each other, and with much larger and more powerful international competing nations these separate nations of the Caribbean will not reach their full political-economic potential. Only by uniting the Caribbean into one socio-politically economic powerhouse will this commonwealth and its member nations achieve the respect and competitive fear of their opponents within international markets.

Presently there are many

Caribbean centred international organisations such as Commonwealth Caribbean where nation states work together to promote their goals individually within the organisation.

I assert that a fully united Caribbean can and will fulfill the aspirations and needs of each of its member states while assuring this group has the united might in political-economic leverage. A united Caribbean will be stronger in many ways...

• Greater Purchasing Power as a group, with a larger united population..

• Political power and influence through a united front to all friends and competitors.

• Greater influence on the international stage.

• Unity of purpose, national outlook and asperations.

• United financial clout.

• Pooling a collective financial revenue to be applied to each member in the same fashion no matter the size of population or island mass.

• Uniting each members ambassadorial, consulate and foreign affairs ministries into one unit.

• A united commonwealth will assure the ability to quickly and profoundly respond to natural, climatic crisis through the establishment of an internal emergency ministry whose job is to save lives, repair and rebuild that which has been damaged quickly.

Each member must work towards a democratic outlook and practice. A complete democratisation of the Caribbean will be required and demanded.

Democracy is the natural human state of most Caribbean nations and must become the basis of this commonwealth. Whether a small or large island nation, within such a commonwealth all must be seen as equals, receiving similar advantages and benefits.

STEVEN KASZAB Bradford, Ontario, Canada.

December 17, 2021.

FACE masks and fairy lights as visitors pose under a tree decorated for the Christmas season amid the COVID-19 pandemic at a shopping district in Los Angeles yesterday.

Photo: Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP Jamaal Rolle is on holiday

Making hard decisions with compassion EDITOR, The Tribune.

THIS past week the Hon Philip “Brave” Davis, QC, MP, our beloved, for now at least, had to make the tough decision to say no to the hosting of carnival this year.

The rationale which I fully agree with was that there were too many risks of the event being a possible super spreader of the deadly COVID. Health and medical personnel had also warned about such possibilities.

Educators were also concerned that with the proposed reopening of class rooms in January that children and young adults ran yet more risks of infecting other students or becoming infected themselves.

The decision was no doubt a hard one, but one which had to have been made in the abundance of caution.

The USA-based operators of the now traditional carnival during the holidays and their local lawyer have threatened to sue someone or entity. As a disbarred attorney with extensive experience and training I fail to see how they could sue and on what legal grounds.

I, of course, do not wish to speculate. What I am able to say right now is that it is a given that the ruling political party would usually make application for

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net the annual carnival to come in and facilitate the obtaining of all relevant permits.

There would appear never to have been a problem, logistically, with these routine matters.

This year, however, the continued presence of COVID mitigated against the required approvals being rubber stamped.

Approval from the Ministry of Health & Wellness was critical.

That ministry after extensive consultation and the onsite inspection of the facilities at Fort Charlotte advised against hosting the event at this time. The operators may be obliged to “sue” someone or the other, but, on the evidence in the public domain, it cannot be the Davis administration. The latter is duty bound and constitutionally mandated to ensure the health and safety of All Bahamians and residents within our wonderful nation in any and all circumstances.

Yes, the operators and hundreds of Bahamians who possibly would have worked the carnival have had their expectations and hopes of making some cash dashed and evaporated.

In addition, the costs of shipping in the assorted

attractions and rides, along with erecting them must have been exorbitant. I feel for them, but the well being of a single Bahamian or resident far outweighs any potential financial benefit.

The PM was obliged to make a hard decision herein. He rose to the occasion, but he consulted widely and only made the decision based on medical and scientific data and advice from the experts.

He employed compassion along with cold and hard facts - but with compassion. Had we not been exposed to the pandemic, I have no doubt that the Carnival would have been up and running by now.

Some are disappointed and were looking forward to a little bit of fun and opportunities to socialise with family and friends.

Next year, the Lord Jesus Christ willing, we may see the return of Carnival either by the operators currently in town or a brand new set if they do not wish to come back to our shores.

The government of any democratic nation is separate and apart from the ruling party. It follows that if the party and/ or any of its officials are caught up in a contractual dispute that would be a private matter, no more, no less.

ORTLAND H BODIE, Jr Nassau, December 19, 2021

New Day or same as usual?

EDITOR, The Tribune.

DID the Carnival issue cause the New Day to become “same as usual”?

Carnival arrives… set up on Clifford Park.

Definitive denial from press officer OPM… PM had nothing to do with the issue (Note PM is Minister of Finance!)

Ministry of Health challenged they say they have not been approached.

Carnival people definitive - “We had PM’s approval.”

And on and on until yesterday, the press officer OPM reads a statement from the Minister of Finance - Prime Minister confirming carnival will not be granted permits. Well they were but did not have the all-important health permits.

Bulla, talk about egg all over ones face – New Day bush crack gone!

Yes, if you are over 49, you know the process that the political party in office, usually are the “partners”

with carnival and receive a “share of proceeds” means they are “in business”… require a Business Licence - VAT Tin number, etc, just like everyone else, but did the PLP or the FNM ever comply with this simple requirement?

Not impressed with how the first serious public issue was handled Mr Prime Minister - New Day? A MOSS Nassau, December 17, 2021.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 23, 2021, PAGE 7

CONDITIONAL DISCHARGE OVER ONE GRAM OF MARIJUANA

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

A 28-YEAR-OLD man found with one gram of marijuana earlier this month was granted a conditional discharge and ordered to attend counselling yesterday.

Clyde Rolle appeared before Magistrate Shaka Serville yesterday after police found a gram of Indian hemp at a home

where he was staying on December 2.

The court was told that around 10pm officers armed with a search warrant went to an apartment complex located on Wright’s Lane off Wulff Road.

When they arrived at the home, a man opened the door and was shown the search warrant.

Prosecutor Kenny Thompson said police, while conducting their search of the home,

discovered a clear plastic bag containing marijuana in one of the bedrooms.

The defendant was subsequently arrested and taken to the Drug Enforcement Unit, where he admitted to the offence.

During his interview with police, Rolle also told officers he had purchased the drugs from someone he knew and said they were for his personal use.

After pleading guilty to the charge, the defendant

told the court he used marijuana to help him sleep and as a means to cope with his problems.

Speaking about those problems yesterday, Rolle, father of a seven-year-old girl, explained he had lost his job due to the COVID19 pandemic and was also experiencing issues with his child’s mother.

In response, Magistrate Serville told the defendant there were other methods he could have used

to cope with his problems as opposed to smoking marijuana, which he reminded him was not legal in the country.

He said while he understands many believe the country’s marijuana laws will soon be amended, the reality is use of the drug is still prohibited and further advised him to follow the law.

Before handing down his ruling, Magistrate Serville gave Rolle the ultimatum

of either receiving a fine or going to counselling for help. Rolle chose the latter.

As a result, he was granted a conditional discharge once he attends counselling at the Community Counselling and Assessment Centre.

Magistrate Serville warned him that failure to comply with the conditions of his release will result in a $150 fine. The matter was adjourned to May 2, 2022.

‘I saw injury to the face of mother’ ANN Marie Davis speaking at Balmoral Club on Tuesday.

‘EMBRACE VOLUNTEERISM’ ANN Marie Davis, the wife of Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis, urged attendees of a recent Christmas luncheon to remember the spirit of the season and give back to those in need.

She spoke on Tuesday at a luncheon hosted by the Office of the Spouse at Balmoral Club.

“As we fellowship this yuletide season, let us be mindful of our less fortunate brothers and sisters,” Mrs Davis said. “Spread a little holiday cheer for it is better to give than to receive.”

She addressed mostly wives of parliamentarians, Cabinet ministers present, and friends.

“We have come to the end of another challenging year on many fronts — socially, domestically, economically and personally — all of which were further adversely impacted by the twin existential threats of Hurricane Dorian and the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I echo the sentiments of our Prime

Minister in Glasgow earlier this year that those of us who are least responsible for fallout from global warming are most impacted by it.

“Notwithstanding our challenges both nationally and personally, it is written that we are to be thankful in all things so today we are thankful and grateful for the many gifts that God has bestowed upon us.”

She also thanked corporate partners and NGOs such as ZONTA International, the Crisis Centre, FOAM and STRAW who have given their time and resources to draw greater public awareness and attention to social ills like child abuse and domestic violence.

She also said: “I have called on Bahamians to embrace a culture of volunteerism; to be our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers; and I have asked corporate Bahamas to offer greater support for the work of NGOs. I make those clarion calls again today.”

FOOD STORE WORKER ON $50K THEFT CHARGE

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

A FORMER food store employee was charged in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday with stealing over $50,000 from her employer.

Alice Anderson, 30, stood before Senior Magistrate Derence Rolle-Davis facing six counts of stealing by reason of employment, three counts of falsification

of accounts and one count of money laundering (acquisition) for her alleged actions between February 2020 and May 2021.

Police said that Anderson, while serving as a cashier at Solomon’s Fresh Market, stole $51,706.28 from the company to which she had access by reason of employment. The 30-yearold is further accused of acquiring the stolen funds sometime between January

2019 and May 2020.

It is also alleged that she made numerous false entries into the company’s POS system, purporting to show that $4,051 was refunded by Solomon’s.

During yesterday’s hearing, Anderson pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.

Bail was granted at $25,000 with two sureties and the case was adjourned to February 22 and 23 for trial.

MAN ACCUSED OF SETTING FIRE TO HOME

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

A 31-YEAR-OLD man was remanded to prison yesterday charged with setting fire to another man’s home last month.

Toriano Johnson was charged with arson after he was accused of setting fire on November 4 to a tenroom single-storey stone structure owned by Troy Johnson.

Prosecutors alleged the accused caused $35,000 worth of damage when he set fire to the home.

Due to the nature of the offence, Johnson was not required to enter a plea and the case was adjourned to March 1 for service of a voluntary bill of indictment.

As a result, he was remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services.

However, he has a right

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to apply to the Supreme Court for bail.

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

A POLICE officer testified in court yesterday how he noticed injuries on a woman who alleged she was hit in the face by her child’s father.

Officer John Spence’s testimony came during the trial of 28-year-old Wadlet Meris, who is accused of causing harm to his child’s mother on August 23.

He is further accused of assaulting another woman on the same day. However, Meris denied the charges during his first appearance before Magistrate Shaka Serville.

During yesterday’s trial, Officer Spence, who is attached to the Central Police Station, told the court that on August 28, he recorded a complaint from a woman in reference to causing harm.

Asked yesterday if he had seen any injuries on the woman, the officer replied he observed injuries to her left eye, which he said was swollen.

He also testified that about two or three days later, he arrested Meris as a result of the complaint.

During cross-examination, the defendant’s attorney Glenda Roker asked if he recalled only seeing injuries on Rolle’s eye.

In response, the witness said he couldn’t recall but told the court he remembered receiving pictures detailing all the injuries.

When asked how he determined Rolle was punched in the left eye, Spence said it could have occurred by other means.

Also giving testimony yesterday was police officer Mico Johnson, who spoke about his role in interviewing the defendant.

Officer Johnson said during the interview, the accused denied the offences, claiming it was the women who fought him during the time of the incident.

During cross-examination, Ms Roker asked the witness if he recalled Meris

reporting to police that his child’s mother had threatened him.

To which he replied: “Yes.” He also said he remembered Meris telling the police his child’s mother had initiated the argument.

Ms Roker also asked why it took a week for police to question him after the incident allegedly took place.

Officer Johnson said he was not present when the defendant was arrested nor when the complaint was made.

When asked if the defendant was co-operative, Officer Johnson replied that he was.

At the end of yesterday’s hearing, Ms Roker asked the magistrate for a final adjournment concerning the assault charge, noting no evidence had yet been given in relation to the offence.

Magistrate Serville agreed and the matter was adjourned to May 24, 2022 for a continuation of the trial.

HOUSEBREAKING ACCUSED REMANDED

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

A 21-YEAR-OLD man accused of breaking into a woman’s house earlier this month was remanded to prison yesterday.

Trevano Smith, of Moss Town, Exuma, was arrested after police said he broke into Terry-Anne Rolle’s home on the island with intent to commit a felony sometime between December 17 and December 18.

It is further alleged that around 4.30 am on December 18, the accused

assaulted a police officer, resisted arrest and also issued threats of death.

During his hearing before Senior Magistrate Derence Rolle-Davis, Smith was not required to enter a plea to the burglary charge.

However, he denied the remaining offences.

After recording his not guilty pleas, Magistrate Rolle-Davis granted him bail at $800 with one surety and adjourned the matter for trial in Exuma to February 2.

Regarding the burglary charge, Smith was told he would have to apply to the Supreme Court for bail.

In a separate matter, 35-year-old Lathario Clarke was arraigned on one count each of shopbreaking and stealing for actions he allegedly committed on May 2.

Clarke was arrested after he was accused of breaking into the Department of Agriculture’s Animal Control Unit and stealing an assortment of items, including one pack each of tissue, canned juices and chips all valued at $99.

He denied the offences during his hearing before Magistrate Shaka Serville yesterday and the matter was adjourned to January 11 for a bail hearing.

PAGE 8, Thursday, December 23, 2021

THE TRIBUNE

Love’s Pure Light THIS Christmas column is dedicated to a dear priest friend, a source of mercy, of laughter, and of everlasting friendship, who continues to discover and to share new light and life.

The incarnation of God in human history is the revelation and splendour of love’s pure light: “Silent night, holy night Son of God, love’s pure light Radiant beams from Thy holy face With the dawn of redeeming grace…”

Wonderfully crafted and hewn in the image and likeness of our Creator, we reflect love’s pure light, though the darkness and shadows of our sinfulness and self-absorption diminish, occlude and trap this light. Our many forms of blindness or, alternatively, receptivity to light affect how we see and treat others.

An episode entitled, “Dear Sis” of the television series, M*A*S*H, offers a glimpse of how we may be vehicles of light and joy and hope and love. The chaplain of the mobile army surgical hospital set during the Korean conflict is Fr John Patrick Francis Mulcahy, a generally mild-mannered Jesuit priest who is also an amateur boxer.

In the episode, Fr Mulcahy feels he is mostly ineffective as compared with the medical professionals daily saving lives.

He believes he is on “the edge of effectiveness”, bumbling, and often failing in his duties of pastoral comfort and care.

During the dreary and drab Christmas celebration in the mess tent, most of the hospital staff recall better Christmases as they long to be with their loved ones.

The brilliant surgeon and blue blood and wealthy Major Charles Emerson Winchester, who is sometimes obnoxious, aloof and condescending, is dismissive when told there is a present under the tree for him.

Winchester opens his gift, expecting little. To his overwhelming surprise and delight, the gift is his childhood toboggan cap, evoking powerful and wonderful memories from past Christmases. He is mystified as to how this loving gift made its way from Boston to Korea.

It turns out that it was Fr Mulcahy who wrote to Winchester’s family months earlier asking them to send a gift that would cheer their son amid the misery and gore of war.

The response of the

typically bumptious Boston Brahmin to Fr Mulcahy: “You saved me, Father. You lowered a bucket into the well of my despair and you raised me up to the light of day. I thank you for that.”

The episode concludes with the camp singing “Dona Nobis Pacem” (Grant/Give Us Peace) as a choral gratitude to Fr Mulcahy for his compassion and his bearing of goodness and light.

The lead surgeon and character Hawkeye Pierce reminds the camp that Fr Mulcahy is: “Someone who’s too modest, too utterly simple a man to know how much strength he gives us just by the decency of his life among us.”

Love’s pure light shines or is refracted through the prism of our lives, whether through acts of kindness such as those exemplified by the fictional Fr. Mulcahy or through the fragility and wounds to which we are all heir.

HUMAN PRISM

At the end of A Farewell to Arms, Hemingway reminds: “The world breaks everyone, then some become strong at the broken places.” These fractures and broken places are a part of the human prism through which light may pass, no matter how strenuously.

An addiction endured or arrested may be a source of empathy. A human weakness or mistake leads to a more merciful heart. A terrible diagnosis or illness becomes a fountain of gratitude. The death of a loved one serves as the lifeblood for greater service to others.

Emily Dickinson offers us another way of seeing and experiencing light: “By a departing light We see acuter quite Than by a wick that stays.

There’s something in the flight

That clarifies the sight And decks the rays.”

Mercy in the midst of darkness, of despair, of distress, is one of the most penetrating incarnations of light. Michelangelo reportedly and famously declared: “Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it.” And: “I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.”

A friend recalls the story of a pastor seeing another in despair and like a sculptor wielding the chisels of compassion and mercy, carved through stony despair to set the better angels free from another in desperate need of liberation.

The engulfing and consuming darkness of our egotism, self-absorption, pus-filled wounds, crippling lust for power and money, negativity, judgmentalism, meanness of spirit, self-pity, nastiness and viciousness, and all manner of deadly sinfulness can be purified, redeemed and healedthrough love’s purer and more powerful light.

The French impressionist Claude Monet (18401926) was fascinated and obsessed with light, helping to spark “a revolution in painting”.

He was fascinated initially by how light breaks up on things, moving along to how light breaks up between things to how light breaks up by itself.

Monet’s most brilliant study of light was through the Nymphéas, the famed Water Lilies he began painting in 1914 and continued until his death in 1926.

The Water Lilies is not the name of one painting. It is a series of more than 250 paintings, and are among the most iconic images of Impressionism.

“The water lilies elicit light and shadows of the passing hours from sunrise in the east to sunset in the west… The artistic study of the changing effects of light was communicated through painting the same landscape at various hours of the day.”

“Monet did not explain his fascination with light; rather he used his art as sensation to comfort

He kept trying to capture the light, just as many of us do when we are drawn to the many sunrises and sunsets in nature and in our lives.

MAJOR Charles In 1923, Emerson Winchester, Monet watched by “Radar” had two O’Reilly as he unwraps French surgerhis childhood toboggan citizens in ies to cap, top, and above the wake remove left, Father John Patof the devcatarick Francis Mulcahy, astation racts. in the M*A*S*H and carnage Paintepisode Dear Sis. of war as ings done they moved on during the with their lives.” cataracts affecting his sight have a reddish tone. Some suggest that following surgery Monet purchased a home “he was able to see certain and garden in the French ultraviolet wavelengths town of Giverny, where he of light that are normally and his large family settled. excluded by the lens of the The house and grounds eye; [having …] an effect on covered approximately the colours he perceived.” two acres and was a retreat We all have cataracts where he spent half of his and spiritual and moral life. obstacles which colour or He was an avid gardener, blur our vision or blind us who oversaw the growing to sources of light and the of his water lilies and the colours of hope they may cultivation of the ponds grant. There is more light on which they grew. On a programme on TVO on in the world and in the famous gardens around the ordinary circumstances of world, the presenter dis- our days and dark nights cussed the many years he of heart and soul than we spent studying Monet’s gar- often dare imagine.

The Incarnation of Jesus dens and Water Lilies.

Yet, it was not until a Christ is a Light of the particular trip to Giverny World that is not diminthat he fully realised that ished by the sinfulness that more than the lilies, Monet haunts our weary souls, was painting the light on our weary world, and the the lilies. He painted the tsunami of evil that haunts light through the tragedy our planet, including the of World War I, through voracious greed despoiling the loss of a beloved wife, God’s creation.

When we look at our through the dark periods of his life and those of his lives we are often horrified that we struggle still, year family and friends.

MONET’S GARDEN

after year, decade after decade by the very same patterns of sin. And, yet, salvifically, gloriously, wonderfully, the patterns of grace and mercy and love’s pure light abound!

Why our Christmas jubilee? “Why your joyous strains prolong? What the gladsome tidings be/ Which inspire your heavenly song?” Our jubilee is love’s pure light. Gloria, in excelsis Deo! Gloria, in excelsis Deo! Gloria, in excelsis Deo! From the imagining of light from Raphael Rudnik: “The light, God’s white light breaks and must bedizen: Colours are the deeds done by light as it breaks.

Life itself breaks, bright crowds of things happen, My soul must break into words as it speaks.”

The colours of a rainbow are a spectrum with more variation and splendour than can be viewed by the naked human eye. Yet through the prism of our human being, our souls and spirits, we have the ability because of our Creator, to enjoy and express the spectrum of love’s pure light.

Even when we are shattered and in pieces, even when we only barely make it to the foothills of hope, even when we are praying for the desire to have the desire to love again, even after our most tragic mistakes and falls, even after we endlessly repeat our frailties and weaknesses – love’s pure light has the power to redeem, to replenish and to restore.

This is the gift of the Incarnation from which may flow the many gifts and incarnations of love’s pure light we may reflect to others and to ourselves.

Blessed Christmas!

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 23, 2021, PAGE 9

HOPE OUT OF HEARTBREAK IN A COUNTRY SO OFTEN AT ODDS IT’S the day before Christmas Eve and all across the land...

Some call it fly-over country. Others might describe it as drive-through country.

They are referring to parts of the US that most travellers don’t notice except from an airplane window or looking out from a vehicle hurtling along the highway.

There aren’t many tourist attractions in drive-through country. You might need a bathroom break or maybe a snack along the way. Otherwise, for most it is largely forgettable.

Somerset County Pennsylvania is like that. It lies in southern Pennsylvania along the border with western Maryland and eastern West Virginia.

Mining country. Outdoor country, with fishing in the summer, skiing and snowmobiling in the winter and hunting all year long. Your neighbour might live over the ridge, but in tough times there is a sense of community, sometimes born of dire necessity, that might be hard to find in the city or in its wealthy suburbs.

Life can be difficult in Somerset County. A big food market might be 20 miles away over some pretty rough roads. A movie theatre? You have to drive over to the next county to find one that’s still open. According to the recently completed 2020 census, the county population is at its lowest point since 1910.

Thousands of vehicles rush through the county along the Pennsylvania Turnpike every hour, but few stop over. On clear days you can see jet trails miles up in the blue sky. September 11, 2001, was a day like that. And thanks to the heroic, still too unheralded actions of the passengers on American Airlines flight 93 on that day, a huge jetliner crashed into a wood in the northern part of Somerset County, putting on the map forever the hamlet of Shanksville. But for the actions of the passengers, that flying bomb would have detonated in Washington, DC. There’s a marvellous memorial complex at the

site now, just off Highway 30, and it draws some visitors to the county. Brenda Thomas has likely been there, but she lives 35 miles to the south, over many ridgelines, and she has her own tragedy to live with.

She has done that with courage and grace that has inspired many.

Brenda’s son Trevor Paul Thomas was born in 1998, so he was 21 years old when he died in a motorcycle crash in September 2019, one week after beginning his senior year in college.

“It was the worst thing in the world,” Thomas told reporters of the tragic accident which also claimed the leg of Trevor’s best friend.

Brenda recalled her son “was always kind to everyone. That’s just who he was”. Over 1,000 people attended Trevor’s funeral.

When Brenda’s time comes, even more may celebrate her life, because in the memory of her son she has started a movement based on “random acts of kindness” cards. She makes sure that at least once each week, she does some good deed for a complete stranger. She then gives the grateful recipient with the following message on it: “If you receive this card, then you must be a recipient of a random act of kindness.” People who get the kindness and the card are encouraged to return the favour to someone else, creating a kind of chain of kindness – all in the memory of Trevor Thomas’s life.

Brenda and her husband started their movement by printing up the cards and leaving them in their mailbox for friends and neighbours who might want to join. “I was amazed by how many people came and got them,” Brenda later told the Washington Post. Many of the resulting good deeds are celebrated on the Facebook page #liveliketrev23.

“We will keep paying it all forward in Trevor’s honour because it would make him so proud,” Brenda said.

She recalled one particular recent good deed she performed while visiting her daughter in Massachusetts.

THE SOMERSET County Courthouse, a fixture in an often overlooked part of the country.

STATESIDE

with Charlie Harper

At a restaurant for dinner, Brenda spotted a young mother with her nine-year-old son and fiveyear-old daughter. She quietly paid the woman’s bill of $100, gave the waitress a Trevor card for the woman and quietly left the restaurant.

The young mother is a 30-year-old bartender.

After she got Brenda’s card, she researched and learned about the Thomas’ movement in honour of their son.

“I’m looking now for the perfect opportunity

to repay this kindness for another stranger,” she said.

“I want it to matter, because it mattered so much to me.”

••• Some of this might sound familiar, even if you’ve never had the chance to visit Tangier Island, Virginia. Tangier Island sits in the middle of the lower Chesapeake Bay, not too far north of the mouth of the bay at Norfolk and Hampton Roads with their huge US Naval bases, but

SANTA taking part in the Tangier Holly Run.

a million miles away in its quiet atmosphere.

The “city” of Tangier, occupying part of this onehalf square mile of sand nearly lost in America’s most significant eastern ocean estuary, recorded a population of 727 in the 2010 census. Now the number of residents has declined to 687. Tangier is officially listed as the 11,962nd largest city in the United States.

The island’s maximum height above sea level is three feet. All of Tangier’s residents are white and they make their living fishing for crabs or serving in the island’s modest hospitality business. A mailboat brings visitors and newspapers – and mail – several times a week. Visitors and returning residents often arrive via private chartered aircraft.

To describe Tangier as isolated is a significant understatement.

Locals speak a brand of English that takes getting used to, and is often largely incomprehensible to newcomers.

But at Christmastime, the Holly Run brightens up things considerably.

Now more than 50 years old and growing in scope each year, the Holly Run is a kind of airlifted Christmas present assembled by amateur pilots from the mainland. It got started by a mainland lawyer who noticed on getaways to the island that there was no holly there. He started loading his small plane with holly wreaths at this time of the year and donated them to island residents.

Now, dozens of amateur pilots use the Holly Run as an excuse to get aloft. They have expanded their cargo to include art and medical supplies and financial assistance for many of the island’s elderly, impoverished residents. A small annual campaign has begun, and this month the pilots also delivered cash donations of over $12,000.

Meantime, the island has become a kind of symbol for global warming. It is clearly fighting a losing battle against storm-driven soil erosion and rising sea levels. A recent gale pushed Bay water up to levels covering 90 percent of the island. Scientific studies estimate the island will longer be inhabitable by 2053.

The island got a big jolt of publicity in 2002 with publication of best-selling forensic crime novelist Patricia Cornwell’s “Isle of Dogs.” Cornwell, author of more than 30 blockbuster books most of which feature heroine and Richmond chief medical examiner Kay Scarpetta, has maintained some ties to Tangier Island and to Washington, where she does some of her meticulous research.

A recent trip to DC created an opportunity for a Christmastime visit for Cornwell with Wesley Thomas, a survivor of 29 years living homeless on the streets of the capital.

Alerted to Thomas’ account of relying on her novels to survive his decades without permanent shelter or much hope, Cornwell arranged a personal meeting at a local church. After presenting Thomas with a copy of her most recent work, Cornwell reportedly noticed an inscription on the church’s stone wall: “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”

PAGE 10, Thursday, December 23, 2021

THE TRIBUNE

BISHOP SENDS CHRISTMAS MESSAGE OF PEACE THE Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of The Bahamas and The Turks and Caicos Islands, Rt Rev Laish Boyd, has sent a message of peace for Christmas.

Quoting Luke 2:14 - “Peace on Earth and goodwill to all people” - in his message, he went on to say: “One of the most well-known sayings in the Christmas story, as recorded in the Bible, are the words of the angels to the shepherds in the field at night.

They foretold that Jesus would bring peace on earth and goodwill to all people.

This startled and confused the shepherds. However,

Jesus’ life, teaching and actions eventually showed everyone how this could be possible. Jesus is still in the business of making peace and goodwill.

“What is peace? It is the absence of war, but it is also the absence of or freedom from disturbance, conflict, uneasiness, worry. Peace is well-being and contentment, which God brings and which God’s people should nurture, inspire and create wherever we go. In other words, we are God’s ambassadors (2 Corinthians. 5:20), we are a letter sent from God to the world (2 Corinthians.3:3).

“Peace is the ultimate desire and goal of many people. It is what we yearn for. This Christmas, as talk of “peace on earth” is in the air, remember some basic things about your peace journey: “1 To have times in your life where you do not have peace is normal. All human beings experience this from time to time.

“2 Peace is within our grasp. We have to do right, be fair to others, help others and give of ourselves, if we expect to have peace within.

“Let us all acknowledge our weaknesses, accept our mistakes, ask for

forgiveness, and also give forgiveness to others.

“Let us acknowledge the pains and hurts in our lives and seek to address them. Talk about them with someone we trust.

Get counselling – as we go to the nurse or doctor with physical issues, so we need to seek help for wounds that are emotional, psychological, and mental, or wounds of the memory.

“We need to take spiritual counsel from clergy and other key spiritual persons in our lives.

“Take care of yourself.

Be good to yourself. It all helps to make a difference.

“3 Peace must be pursued. We will not find peace, or begin to address our circumstances, if we simply sit and do nothing. Take responsibility for yourself.

Take steps to advance on your peace journey.

“4 Create peace for others. Make a difference for others by being interested, through warmth, friendship, listening and encouraging, through sincerity, kindness, and helping people to better their circumstances. This lightens their load.

“5 Remember to find peace in God. God is the source of true peace, the

peace on earth that creates the goodwill that the angel talked about. We are the catalyst for the peace that we want to see in the world.

Jesus is the flame which burns within us, and the warmth of that flame radiates from us into the world to make the gospel real and meaningful.”

He concluded: “May God’s peace be yours somehow this Christmas. Let us all try to bring that peace into being for others.

“The Anglican Diocese of the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands joins me in wishing you all a peaceful Christmas and a happy 2022.”

PRIME Minister Philip “Brave” Davis pictured during his visit to the Press Club.

PRIME MINISTER ENCOURAGES HONEST REPORTING AT PRESS CLUB DURING a courtesy call on Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis, president of the Press Club Anthony Capron asked the nation’s leader to assist the group in sourcing a space for its headquarters.

Mr Capron said the planned space would be used to train journalists, host visiting journalists and

social events.

Mr Davis said he understands the importance of the fourth estate adding that he sees the Press Club as an important part of media support.

“I endorse honest and fair reporting. The PLP has always been held to a different standard in the media than other parties. I support

NASSAU

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Press secretary Clint Watson said he sees the Press Club as a bridge between the next generation of journalists and the principles upon which journalism in The Bahamas

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were built.

“We must ensure that there is training and that we don’t lose the institutional knowledge that’s been built over the years.

I commit to working with the Prime Minister to assist you in finding a home for the press club,” Mr Watson said.

The Press Club intends to

host a number of seminars next year including one on ethics in reporting.

Mr Capron said the club’s media awards ceremony was sidelined because of the pandemic but hopes that it will return next year. He invited the Prime Minister to be one of the speakers at the event.

The Press Club which was

founded and constituted in the 1970s, was revived in 2014.

In attendance at the meeting were executives: Anthony Capron, president; Anthony Newbold, immediate past president; Lindsay Thompson, secretary and members Serena Williams, Kermit Taylor, and Shelly Lewis.

DOCTORS MAKE DONATION TO HOME FOR THE AGED

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

PERSIS Rodgers Home for the Aged received a $2,500 donation from the Consultant Physicians Staff Association yesterday.

Shirley Clarke, one of the home’s administrators, said the facility appreciated the donation because this year has been “very difficult”.

“Well, you know it’s the pandemic and people (weren’t) giving to us like how (they) normally do and you know we very much depend on assistance from the outside,” she said.

Currently, Ms Clarke said the home needs cleaning

supplies as well as some bedding.

The home has 20 elderly residents and nearly all of them are vaccinated, according to the administrator.

“Before they come into the home we require them to get vaccinated,” she said.

“We do not allow visitors at this time but relatives, they can come in and they can see their relatives.

“We bring them out and they can talk at a distance.”

CPSA president Dr Sabriquet Pinder-Butler was present to make the donation.

“We know that our population is ageing more,” she told the media.

“We encourage persons

to take care of their health so that they (can) age gracefully, but we know that there have been challenges in the economy and in the country.

“So, persons perhaps who would have helped before were not able to do so and I do think that more can be done to take care of the elderly in this country and so this is one of the reasons why CPSA thought it was fitting for us to look at older persons and the elderly and we contacted the home.

“They were gracious to let us know what was needed and we thought it was fitting to provide them with a donation so that it can help them towards the items that would help.”

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 23, 2021, PAGE 11

COMMITTEE CALLS ON JORDAN FOR INTERVIEW

TRAVELLERS wait in line to get tested for COVID-19 at Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles on Monday.

Photo: Jae C Hong/AP

THE House panel investigating the January 6 US Capitol insurrection requested an interview and information from Republican Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio on Wednesday, the second time this week the committee publicly sought to interview a sitting member of Congress.

In a letter to Jordan, Mississippi Rep Bennie Thompson, Democratic chairman of the panel, said the panel wants the lawmaker to provide information for its investigation surrounding his communications with then-President Donald Trump on Jan 6 and Trump’s efforts to challenge the result of the 2020 election.

“We understand that you had at least one and possibly multiple communications with President Trump on January 6th,” the letter reads. “We would like to discuss each such communication with you in detail.”

California to require booster CAT IS FOUND shots for healthcare workers SAFE NINE DAYS AFTER TORNADO SACRAMENTO, California Associated Press

CALIFORNIA will require health care workers to get a booster shot of the coronavirus vaccine, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Tuesday, pledging to make sure hospitals are prepared as a new version of the disease begins to spread throughout the state.

California already requires health care workers to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, a directive that took effect in September and has since led to the firing or suspension of thousands of people. Now it will join New Mexico as at least the second state to require booster shots for health care workers.

Newsom made the announcement on his personal Twitter account. His office declined to give more details, including how many workers would be affected and whether frequent testing would be allowed as an alterative. Newsom has scheduled a news conference in the San Francisco Bay Area on Wednesday.

“California will require healthcare workers to get their booster,” Newsom said. “With Omicron on

the rise, we’re taking immediate actions to protect Californians and ensure our hospitals are prepared.”

California has so far fared far better than many other states that are dealing with a coronavirus surge, with areas in the Midwest and Northeast seeing the biggest jump in cases and hospitalizations amid frigid temperatures that have kept people indoors.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists California as a place with “high” transmission of the virus, along with nearly everywhere else in the country. But in the last week California averaged 114 new cases per 100,000 people, less than half the national rate.

Meanwhile, coronavirus related hospitalisations have been rising slowly in California, up 15 percent in the last 11 days to 3,852. That’s less than half as many as during the late summer peak and one-fifth of a year ago, before vaccines were widely available.

But while hospitals overall have fewer patients than last winter, many have fewer workers to treat the patients they do have. The staffing shortage comes as businesses are having trouble finding workers,

including hospitals. A recent study by the University of California-San Francisco estimated the state’s nursing shortage could persist until 2026.

“The staffing shortages we are experiencing are worse than ever,” Kiyomi Burchill, group vice president for policy for the California Hospital Association, said in an interview Tuesday before Newsom made his announcement about booster shots.

California is poised for a surge in new infections amid holiday parties and family gatherings forced indoors by a series of winter storms.

But experts say the nation’s most populous state is likely to avoid the worst scenario — spikes in hospitalisations and deaths — because most Californians have either been vaccinated or already been infected.

That gives a higher level or protection against the omicron variant that, while not guaranteeing people won’t get sick, means they are less likely to need to go to the hospital.

“It’s a highly transmissible respiratory virus and people are going to get it. And they are going to get it every winter,” said Dr Monica Gandhi, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of California, San Francisco. “We have to

go toward measuring our true success with a disease, which is how we’re doing with hospitalisations.”

More than 70 percent of the state’s nearly 40 million residents have been fully vaccinated while 42 percent have gotten a booster shot.

As of Monday omicron is now the dominant variant of the coronavirus in the United States.

Much about the omicron variant remains unknown, including whether it causes more or less severe illness.

Scientists say omicron spreads more easily than other coronavirus strains, including delta. Early studies suggest the vaccinated will need a third shot for the best chance at preventing infection but even without the extra dose, vaccination still should offer strong protection against severe illness and death.

Computer models used by state officials to forecast the virus say hospitalisations will stay steady through the holidays and dip slightly in mid-January.

In San Diego, researchers recently discovered the highest levels of coronavirus since February in a wastewater treatment plant that serves about 2.3 million people.

NINE days after a tornado demolished his three-storey office building in downtown Mayfield, Kentucky, Sonny “Hoot” Gibson was standing in the rubble when he thought he heard a faint meow.

It instantly gave him hope that his office cat, Madix, who hadn’t been seen since before the storms hit, was alive. Gibson said he had tried to find the solid black cat with yellow eyes that liked to greet customers of his rental business, but had given up after a few days.

“I don’t know how anything could’ve survived not just the tornado but the destruction that came along with it,” he said.

Gibson was standing in the rubble Sunday afternoon when he heard the faint noise.

“It was just an incredible feeling to put him in my arms,” Gibson said. “If cats actually have nine lives, he probably used up about eight of them in that nineday period.”

LAST US SLAVE SHIP ‘INTACT’ UNDER THE OCEAN FRENCH KIDS BIRMINGHAM, Alabama Associated Press

RESEARCHERS studying the wreckage of the last US slave ship, buried in mud on the Alabama coast since it was scuttled in 1860, have made the surprising discovery that most of the wooden schooner remains intact, including the pen that was used to imprison African captives during the brutal journey across the Atlantic Ocean.

While the upper portion of the two-masted Clotilda is gone, the section below deck where the captured Africans and stockpiles were held is still largely in one piece after being buried for decades in a section of river that hasn’t been dredged, said maritime archaeologist James Delgado of the Florida-based SEARCH Inc. At least two-thirds of the ship remains, and the existence of the unlit and unventilated slave pen, built during the voyage by the addition of a bulkhead where people were held as cargo below the main deck for weeks, raises questions about whether food and water

containers, chains and even human DNA could remain in the hull, said Delgado.

“It’s a stunning revelation,” he said in an interview.

The discovery enhances the research value of the Clotilda’s remains and sets them apart from all other wrecks, Delgado said.

The finding was confirmed in a report that was provided to The Associated Press and led to the site becoming part of the National Register of Historic Places in November.

“It’s the most intact (slave ship) wreck ever discovered,” he said.

“It’s because it’s sitting in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta with fresh water and in mud that protected it that it’s still there.”

For Joycelyn Davis, a sixthgeneration granddaughter of African captive Charlie Lewis and vice president of the Clotilda Descendants Association, the story of what happened more than 160 years ago is best told through the people who were involved, not a sunken ship. But she said she’s excited to learn more about what

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has been discovered, adding: “I think it’s going to be a surprise for us all.”

The Clotilda was the last ship known to transport African captives to the American South for enslavement. Nearly 90 feet in length, it departed Mobile, Alabama, for an illegal trip to purchase people decades after Congress outlawed such trade in 1808.

The ship had been sent across the ocean on a voyage financed by a wealthy businessman whose descendants remain prominent in Mobile. The Clotilda’s captain transferred its human cargo off the ship once it arrived in Alabama and set fire to the vessel to hide evidence of the journey. But most of the ship didn’t catch fire and remained in the river.

Shown on navigational charts since the 1950s, the wreckage was publicly identified as that of Clotilda in 2019 and has been explored and researched since then, Delgado said.

The state has set aside $1m for preservation and research, and additional work planned at the site

in early 2022 could show what’s inside the hull, Delgado said. But far more work is needed to determine whether the ship could ever be pulled out of the mud and put on display, as some have suggested.

“Generally, raising is a very expensive proposition. My sense is that while it has survived, it is more fragile than people think,” said Delgado. “A recovery could be a very delicate operation and also a very expensive and lengthy process.”

Freed after the South lost the Civil War, some of the enslaved Africans who were transported to America on the Clotilda settled in a community they started called Africatown USA a few miles north of downtown Mobile.

A documentary about the nowimpoverished community by Alabama-born filmmaker Margaret Brown titled “Descendant” will premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January, and descendants of the Clotilda captives are planning an annual gathering in February. Work is underway on a new museum that’s meant to be a catalyst for tourism and new development in the area.

GET VACCINES FRENCH schoolchildren clung nervously to their parents as they entered a vast vaccine center west of Paris on Wednesday — then walked excitedly away with a decorated “vaccination diploma,” as France kicked off mass COVID-19 inoculations for children age 5 to 11.

It’s not a moment too soon for the French government, which is facing the highest recorded infection rates since the pandemic began but trying to avoid a new lockdown.

The health minister said that the swiftly-spreading omicron variant is expected to be dominant in France by next week, but ruled out additional restrictions on public life for now. Officials are hoping that a surge in vaccinations will be enough to limit the mounting pressure on hospitals.

SPORTS PAGE 14

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2021

Tennis ace Sydney wins Baldacci Open Nationals S

ydney Clarke is your Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association’s 2021 Giorgio Baldacci Open Nationals women’s champion.

Clarke emerged with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Elana Mackey yesterday at the National Tennis Centre in the tournament finale of the draw.

In a matchup between the top two seeds, Clarke, the UAB Blazers sophomore, bested Mackey, a junior at Mars Hill University.

By virtue of securing their berths into the final, Clarke and Mackey will be back on the Billie Jean King Cup team, formerly the Fed Cup. After a bye in the first round, Clarke defeated Sierra Donaldson 6-0, 6-1.

Meanwhile, Mackey defeated Sapphire Ferguson 6-3, 6-3.

SEE PAGE 19

TROPHY FEVER: Shown, from left to right, are Sierra Donaldson, champion Sydney Clarke and runner-up Elana Mackey with their trophies after Clarke emerged as the BLTA’s 2021 Giorgio Baldacci Open Nationals women’s champion. She earned a 6-2, 6-0 win over Mackey yesterday at the National Tennis Centre.

Photo: Racardo Thomas/Tribune Staff

Booker and Ayton help Suns get win vs Lakers LOS ANGELES (AP) — Devin Booker continued to distance himself from a hamstring injury that cost him seven games, scoring 24 points with nine rebounds and seven assists as the Phoenix Suns earned a 108-90 victory Tuesday night over the Los Angeles Lakers.

Booker played 32 minutes and went 8 of 16 from the field one game after he was on the court for 26 minutes in his return Sunday during a blowout victory over the Charlotte Hornets.

“I feel great, man, and I think every game it’s going to feel better,” Booker said. “I’m just getting some runs up under me but we have a good team that makes it easy to mesh with and get back with. When you have the support of all 15 guys, plus the coaching staff, it gives you a lot more confidence when you’re out there.”

Deandre Ayton had 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Mikal Bridges scored 14 as the Suns won their fourth consecutive game and improved to 2-2 on the road since the end of their 18-game winning streak December 3.

LeBron James scored 34 points for the Lakers, who lost their third game in a row as coach Frank Vogel remained in health and safety protocols for the second straight. Four Lakers players also are in protocols, including starting guard Avery Bradley.

“Obviously, we are in a rough patch right now with guys in and out of protocol, guys who are injured,” James said. “We just have to stay together until we become whole, or as whole as possible. But I love our fight. I thought we had a good fight tonight, we just couldn’t make enough plays.”

Russell Westbrook had 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers, who were without star Anthony Davis for the second consecutive game. Davis is expected to miss at least four weeks with an MCL sprain in his left knee.

James injured his left ankle with 6:05 remaining in the third quarter when he came down on the right foot of the Suns’ Jae Crowder. He remained in the game but looked hobbled the rest of the way.

SEE PAGE 17

PAGE 17

MCPHEEMCCUIN, REBELS WIN 12 STRAIGHT

By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net YOLETT McPheeMcCuin continues to lead her Ole Miss Rebels to milestones on their strong start to the season.

Behind another stellar defensive effort, the Rebels won their 12th consecutive game, a 61-53 win over the No.18 ranked South Florida Bulls in their final game of the West Palm Beach Invitational in West Palm Beach, Florida.

The win now pushes the Rebels to the programme’s longest winning streak since the 1991-92 season and was also their first win against a ranked non-conference opponent since 2007.

McPhee-McCuin previously led the Rebels to win over ranked teams against the Kentucky Wildcats, both in the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons.

Defence has been the team’s identity en route to a 12-1 record and have held 10 of those opponents below 55 points.

The Bulls have several signature wins on their tournament résumé, including over the No. 3 Stanford Cardinal and the No.9 Oregon Ducks.

“Our defence wears people down so we don’t really have to press.

Because, first of all, I’m going to play at least 10 people,” she said. “So those shots they were making,

SEE PAGE 17

NCAA DIV 2: BAHAMIAN PLAYERS ON STREAKS

By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

LOS Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James, right, shoots against Phoenix Suns’ Deandre Ayton during second half of an NBA basketball game on Tuesday night in Los Angeles. The Suns won the game 108-90.

(AP Photo/Jae C Hong)

STUART AND DEMONS HAVE LOFTY EXPECTATIONS

By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net DAUNTE Stuart and his Northwestern State Demons head into the 2022 season with lofty expectations based on several noteworthy publications.

For the second straight year and the third time since 2019, the Demons were in the “receiving votes” category of Collegiate Baseball magazine’s Fabulous 50 preseason poll.

Stuart is one of 22 lettermen set to return to the Demons’ roster next season.

The 5’11, 180-pound second baseman comes off a season of milestones where he was

named a Freshman All-American by Collegiate Baseball magazine.

He also became the first position player STUART in school history to win the award and was named to the Southland Conference second team when the league announced its annual awards.

Stuart was the Demons leader in batting average (.278), doubles (13), home runs (7), RBIs (30) and total bases (84). He drew more

walks than any other player in the Southland Conference and ranked 16th in the nation with 44. His walk total ranks sixth in school single-season history, one away from moving him into a three-way tie for fourth place.

After an 0-4 start, Stuart followed with a team long 10-game hitting streak which ran from February 21 to March 7, a team-leading 12 multi-hit games and tied for the team lead with eight multi-RBI games. Over the course of the streak Stuart homered in three of four games.

The Demons are set to open their season at home on February 18 against Stephen F Austin.

SEVERAL Bahamian basketball players at the NCAA Division II level took respective win streaks into a brief winter break.

Jordan McFall and Slippery Rock won their sixth consecutive game with an 86-81 win over West Chester in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference home victory at Murrow Fieldhouse in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania.

Despite being held scoreless and playing just two minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, McFall finished with 21 points on 8-10 shooting from the field and added six rebounds.

Slippery Rock improved to 9-2 overall and leads the PSAC at a perfect 5-0 record thus far. They also have the longest active winning streak in the Atlantic Region.

In his first year with the programme, the junior guard is averaging a team leading 17.2 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.

The Rock will return to the court on January 5 when they host Pitt-Johnson.

Malachi McCoy and his Benedict Tigers won their eighth consecutive game with a 71-62 win over the Kentucky State Thorobreds at the Benjamin E Mays HRC Arena.

McCoy finished with his third double double of the season - 12 points and 10 rebounds.

The Tigers improved to 9-3 overall and 6-0 in the

SEE PAGE 19

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 23, 2021, PAGE 15

Can Pro Picks get a mulligan for Week 16?

And beyond?

By BARRY WILNER AP Pro Football Writer A mulligan is a golf term, of course. Pro Picks would like to apply it to the NFL. We’d like the opportunity for a do-over on any of the choices this week — made before any games have been played — that get messed up because of more pandemic-related issues.

Some of our selections in Week 15 fell into that category, with rosters severely depleted by COVID-19 after the picks were in.

We have a deal?

Anyway, while the 49ers are surging, the Titans are stumbling.

With three weeks remaining in the regular season, the final Thursday night game — barring more COVID-19 rescheduling — has all sorts of playoff implications.

The key in Nashville could be Tennessee’s defence against the Niners’ rushing game.

Tennessee has allowed a total of 43 yards rushing combined over the past two games.

San Francisco ranks fourth in the NFL averaging 142.3 yards per game

and has a special playmaker in receiver Deebo Samuel.

Samuel has rushed, yes rushed, for seven touchdowns, at least one in five straight games while being used out of the backfield at times, on jet sweeps and in other manners.

He’s the first receiver in the Super Bowl era to do that and the third 49ers player since the 1970 merger to have a TD run in at least five straight games.

The 49ers (8-6) have won five of six games and are 5-2 on the road. They could solidify their standing as a wild-card team with a victory. Tennessee is 9-5 and remains in first place in the AFC South. But the Titans have struggled recently.

No. 12 San Francisco is a 3 1/2-point favorite at No. 9 Tennessee.

49ERS, 23-17 KNOCKOUT POOL: The Dolphins came through against the Jets, who we actually considered picking this week. Then we woke up and chose PHILADELPHIA. No. 11 Los Angeles Chargers (minus 9 1/2) at No. 31 Houston

AP PRO PICKS: Major playoff implications Thursday night

With three weeks remaining in the regular season, the final Thursday night game — barring more COVID-19 rescheduling — has all sorts of playoff implications. The key in Nashville could be Tennessee’s defense against the Niners’ rushing game.

GAME SF at TEN LAC at HOU

STORYLINE

PICK SF 23-17

49ers could solidify their standing as a wild-card team with a victory

LAC 30-13

Chargers are in the midst of a playoff push that likely will succeed

IND at ARI

Indy is playing well with balance, Cardinals haven’t displayed much lately

IND 20-17

CLE at GB

Considered this for Best Bet but December weather at Lambeau is tricky

GB 27-16

BUF at NE

Bills could creep back into AFC East race bringing Miami along, but ...

NE 22-15

MIA at NO

Whoever wins this one will be in nice shape for a wild-card challenge

MIA 17-16

DEN at LV

Whoever wins this one will be in nice shape for a wild-card challenge

LV 23-20

BAL at CIN

Pro Picks can’t believe it has come to this in the AFC North

CIN 21-20

PIT at KC

Steelers could have a say in the AFC North ... or maybe not

KC 27-16

LAR at MIN

Vikings probably need to win this to remain in it for a wild-card ... nope

TB at CAR

Considering how undermanned Bucs are, betting line might be too high

TB 23-14

NYG at PHI

Considering how undermanned Giants are, betting line might be too low

PHI 30-13

LAR 31-26

WAS at DAL

Line seems about right, particularly if Washington can get back some pieces

DAL 20-10

CHI at SEA

Justin Fields would like to someday be compared to vintage Russell Wilson

SEA 19-15

DET at ATL

Lions already have blown the first overall draft spot

ATL 22-17

JAC at NYJ

J-E-T-S!

NYJ 21-15

The Chargers are in the midst of a playoff push that likely will succeed.

BEST BET: CHARGERS, 30-13 No. 8 Indianapolis (plus 1 1/2) at No. 7 Arizona, Saturday Indy is playing well and has balance. The Cardinals haven’t displayed much lately.

UPSET SPECIAL: COLTS, 20-17 No. 19 Cleveland (plus 7) at No. 1 Green Bay, Saturday We also considered this for Best Bet but weather in December at Lambeau Field is tricky.

PACKERS, 27-16 No. 10 Buffalo (plus 2 1/2) at No. 6 New England

NOW OFF COVID-19 LIST, WADDLE BACK AT PRACTICE FOR DOLPHINS

DOLPHINS wide receiver Jaylen Waddle looks on during practice in preparation for their game against New York Jets on Sunday.

(David Santiago/Miami Herald via AP)

PACKERS STAY ON TOP OF AP PRO32 POLL, CHIEFS AND BUCS FOLLOW

By SIMMI BUTTAR AP Pro Football Writer NEW YORK (AP) — With three games to go in the regular season, Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers are on quite a roll.

— NFC North champs.

— Top record overall in the NFL at 11-3.

— And maintaining their top spot in the latest AP Pro32 poll.

The Packers earned all 12 of the first-place votes for 384 points in balloting yesterday by media members who regularly cover the NFL. The Packers clinched their division on Sunday after holding off the Baltimore Ravens. And the Packers will stay at home on Christmas as they host the Cleveland Browns.

“Aaron Rodgers is starting to put some separation between himself and the rest of the field in the MVP race, and a Packers team that had a tougher time than expected in Baltimore is still in the driver’s seat for the No. 1 seed in the NFC,” Newsday’s Bob Glauber said.

The surging Kansas City Chiefs, who have won seven in a row, moved up two spots to No. 2 after topping the Los Angeles Chargers in OT last week. The defending champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers slipped a spot to No. 3 after getting blanked at home by New Orleans on Sunday night.

The LA Rams gained two spots to No. 4 after getting

past the Seattle Seahawks on Tuesday night in a game delayed two days because of a COVID-19 outbreak.

Another NFC team moving up two places is Dallas, now at No. 5 in the poll.

The Cowboys will face Washington on Sunday night in a key NFC East matchup.

The New England Patriots fell three places to No. 6 after losing to the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday night.

The Colts’ 27-17 win lifted them four spots to No. 8. “(Running back Jonathan) Taylor and a dynamite, turnover-feasting defense make them a scary playoff team,” Fox Sports’ John Czarnecki said of Indianapolis.

The Patriots host the Bills on Sunday in a game that could go a long way toward deciding the AFC East.

The Bills inched up a spot to round out the top 10 after handling the Carolina Panthers.

The Colts head to Arizona to take on the Cardinals on Christmas night.

The Cardinals, who were No. 1 in the poll as recently as two weeks ago, dropped another two spots to No. 7 after their stunning blowout loss at Detroit.

And the Tennessee Titans, trying to fight off the Colts in the AFC South, open Week 16 as they host the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night.

The Titans are ranked ninth, the Niners are 12th.

The Bills could creep back into the AFC East race and bring Miami with them. But ...

PATRIOTS, 22-15 No. 17 Miami (plus 3 1/2) at No. 18 New Orleans, Monday night Whoever wins this one will be in nice shape for a wild-card challenge.

DOLPHINS, 17-16 No. 22 Denver (plus 1 1/2) at No. 21 Las Vegas Whoever wins this one will be in nice shape for a wild-card challenge.

RAIDERS, 23-20 No. 14 Baltimore (plus 2 1/2) at No. 13 Cincinnati Pro Picks can’t believe it has come to this in the AFC North.

BENGALS, 21-20 No. 15 Pittsburgh (plus 7 1/2) at No. 2 Kansas City Of course, the Steelers could have a say in the AFC North. Or maybe not.

CHIEFS, 27-16 No. 4 Los Angeles Rams (minus 3) at No. 16 Minnesota The Vikings probably need to win this to remain viable for a wild-card berth.

Nope.

RAMS, 31-26 No. 3 Tampa Bay (minus 11) at No. 26 Carolina Considering how undermanned the Bucs are heading into this, betting line might be too high.

BUCCANEERS, 23-14

No. 20 New York Giants (plus 10) at No. 28 Philadelphia Considering how undermanned the Giants are heading into this, betting line might be too low.

EAGLES, 30-13 No. 23 Washington (plus 10 1/2) at No. 5 Dallas This line seems about right, particularly if Washington can get back some pieces.

COWBOYS, 20-10 No. 27 Chicago (plus 6) at No. 25 Seattle Rookie Justin Fields would like to someday be compared to vintage Russell Wilson.

SEAHAWKS, 19-15 No. 29 Detroit (plus 6) at No. 24 Atlanta The Lions already have blown the first overall draft spot.

FALCONS, 22-17 No. 32 Jacksonville (plus 1) at No. 30 New York Jets Even with their lack of talent and COVID-19 concerns, the Jets are better.

J-E-T-S, 21-15 ___ 2021 RECORD Last Week: Straight up: 11-5. Against spread: 8-8.

Season: Straight up: 145-78-1. Against spread: 125-96-2.

Best Bet: Straight up: 9-5-1. Against spread: 10-5.

Upset Special: Straight up: 12-2. Against spread: 12-2.

PAGE 16, Thursday, December 23, 2021

THE TRIBUNE

THE GREAT BAHAMAS SHOOT OUT POOL TOURNAMENT TROPHY HIGHLIGHTS

Great Bahamas Shoot Out Pool Tournament in epic showdown THE stage was set for an epic showdown yesterday as the Great Bahamas ShootOut Pool Tournament came to a close following four successful weeks of intense competition.

A full slate of players competed in the 16-bracket round one which saw Alfredo Rolle emerge as TGBSO round one champion, relegating Sammy Poitier to second place.

For winning round one, Rolle earned $200 in cash, a first-place trophy and a spot in the championship round.

Rounding out the top tier was Stario Thurston who defeated Laverette

Sweeting to secure a third place finish.

Dario Woodside won round two, also earning $200 in cash, a first-place trophy for round two and a spot in the championship round. Woodside defeated Winston Hanna Jr who finished the night second and will be the fifth and sixth seed respectively in the tournament finals. Antonio Lewis defeated Author Deveaux to come in third place.

Everette Newry won round three and earned $200 in cash, the first-place trophy for round three and a spot in the championship round. Ferlando Lockhart came in second with

Eugene Wallace finishing third. Rounding out the top four was Jerome Wright.

Donico Brown won round four, taking home $200 in cash, the first-place trophy for round four and a spot in the championship round.

Brown defeated Michael Demeritte who finished the night second to make it to the championship round of The Great Bahamas Shoot Out Pool Tournament Finals. Robert Rahming defeated Terrell Florvill to come in third place.

The top four finishers in each round earned a spot in the championship round in which they will automatically receive a medal, a

chance to win $1,500, $700 or $300 cash, and the overall tournament trophies.

The Great Bahamas Shoot-Out Pool Tournament is intended to provide a safe, fun competitive environment for adults every Friday leading up to Christmas, according to a press release.

The pool tourney features a pre-happy hour, with DJ E.z.e from 5pm to 8pm and an after-party with a special invited DJ guest weekly. The tournament is being held at Da Chill Spot restaurant and bar, East Street South. The tournament director is Tavaughn Rolle from The Pool Table Guyz company.

CUP SFS WILL SEE SPURS FACE CHELSEA, ARSENAL VS LIVERPOOL

By ROB HARRIS AP Global Soccer Writer LONDON (AP) — Antonio Conte will have to overcome former club Chelsea to reach the League Cup final early in his Tottenham career.

A Premier League and FA Cup winner as Chelsea manager, Conte is trying to deliver Tottenham’s first trophy since winning the League Cup in 2008.

In the quarterfinals yesterday, Steven Bergwijn scored the opener and — after Jarrod Bowen’s equaliser — set up Lucas Moura’s goal as Tottenham overcame West Ham 2-1.

Chelsea knocked out west London rival Brentford with a 2-0 win after being handed a breakthrough in the 80th minute by Pontus Jansson’s own-goal before Jorginho’s penalty.

The other two-legged semifinal in two weeks will see Arsenal play Liverpool.

Diogo Jota scored Liverpool’s winning penalty in a 5-4 shootout win over Leicester after the game ended 3-3 after 90 minutes.

Arsenal beat Sunderland 5-1 on Tuesday.

REDS’ COMEBACK There was an immediate impact at Anfield by Jamie Vardy whose double made

it 10 goals in 14 appearances against Liverpool.

Goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher got a touch to Vardy’s shot in the ninth minute but couldn’t keep it out.

The striker sidefooted in a cross from Patson Daka four minutes later.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain prevented the game running away from Liverpool by pulling one back in the 19th but James Maddison restored Leicester’s two-goal lead in the 33rd with a strike from 25 yards.

Having made 10 changes from the side that drew at Tottenham in the Premier League on Sunday, Jürgen Klopp turned to more experienced players in the second half — including Jota who netted in the 68th.

Leicester was preparing for a semifinal until Takumi Minamino equalised in the fifth minute of stoppage time.

But with a chance to win the shootout for Liverpool, Minamino failed to convert.

After Ryan Bertrand’s penalty for Leicester was saved

by Kelleher, Jota responded by hitting the target to send Liverpool through.

GOAL BURST The three goals in north London came in a fiveminute spell. Pierre-Emile

TOTTENHAM’S HARRY KANE, top, duels for the ball with West Ham’s Craig Dawson during the English League Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London yesterday.

(AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

Hojbjerg’s pullback was turned into the net by Bergwijn in the 29th minute.

The lead only lasted until the 32rd when Eric Dier’s clearance was intercepted by the visitors and eventually reached Bowen who, on the turn in the penalty area, switched the ball between his feet before equalising.

But Tottenham was quickly back in front with Bergwijn dribbling past Manuel Lanzini and squaring to Moura to squeeze the shot through the crowded penalty area into the net.

CHELSEA LATE BREAKTHROUGH Chelsea only took control at Brentford after N’Golo Kante was brought on for the final 15 minutes.

The World Cup winner with France was involved in the buildup before a cross from Reece James was turned into his own net by Jansson.

The win was secured in the 85th from Jorginho’s penalty after Mason Mount was tripped by goalkeeper Álvaro Fernández.

LIVERPOOL’s Diogo Jota celebrates after scoring his sides second goal during the English League Cup quarter-final soccer match between Liverpool and Leicester City, at Anfield Stadium, in Liverpool, England, yesterday.

(AP Photo/Jon Super)

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Thursday, December 23, 2021, PAGE 17

Celtics end Cavaliers’ winning streak at 6 with 111-101 victory

By KEN POWTAK Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Jaylen Brown scored 34 points and the Boston Celtics beat depleted Cleveland 111-101 on Wednesday night to end the Cavaliers’ winning streak at six.

Robert Williams III added a career-high 21 points along with 11 rebounds and seven assists, and Jayson Tatum had 18 points.

“Tonight was taking advantage of the coverage,” Boston coach Ime Udoka said about Brown.

“He had some big guys on him.”

It was Brown’s second straight game with 30 points or more.

SUNS FROM PAGE 14 “Yeah, I’ll be ready for next game,” James said.

Losing Booker for 2 1/2 weeks could have sent the Suns spiraling backward, but they found success and still hold the best record in the NBA as Christmas approaches.

“I think a big part of it comes down to our team culture, how guys step into situations and we remain ourselves,” said Cameron Johnson, who also had 14 points. “You can see our identity on the court when we have everybody. It’s a group of guys that likes playing together and we play for each other.”

After a slow start and a 54-52 lead at halftime, the Suns led by as many as 13 in the third quarter on two occasions and carried an 85-73 lead into the fourth. The Lakers’ Carmelo Anthony was ejected in the third period when he argued a non-call after a shot attempt and received his second technical.

Phoenix’s lead reached 20 points for the first time at 100-80 with 5:17 remaining on Johnson’s 3-pointer.

TIP-INS Cavaliers: Lamar Stevens, Dylan Windler, Denzel Valentine, RJ Nembhard and Ed Davis also are in protocol. …

They missed nine of their first 10 on 3-point attempts. … They signed forward Tre Scott from the G League Cleveland Charge to a 10-day contract via the NBA’s hardship exception. … Garland and Osman were each whistled for a technical.

Celtics: Williams returned to the starting lineup after missing the last game for personal reasons.

Udoka said the team is still in a “holding pattern waiting for two negative tests” on the seven players that are in COVID

“It’s one of the better days I’ve had since I’ve been back,” said Brown, who has been out twice with a bothersome right hamstring, including five games this month.

Darius Garland led Cleveland with 28 points, and Kevin Love had 18.

The Cavaliers were missing starters Isaac Okoro, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen and five other players in the NBA’s health and safety protocol.

Also short-handed, Boston signed 40-year-old Joe Johnson to a 10-day contract Wednesday. The crowd chanted “We Want Joe! “We Want Joe!”” and broke into a loud cheer when he got off the bench and came into the game.

He got a huge ovation when he hit a fallaway jumper in the final minute.

Brown remembered idolizing Johnson as a kid.

“A lot of memories,” said Brown of watching Johnson play for the Hawks when he was growing up in Atlanta. “A lot of (playoff) runs. In Atlanta, I got to go to a lot of those games.”

Down 23 points, the Cavaliers cut it to 10 at 85-75 on Garland’s basket — the first of the final quarter — but Williams had a steal and breakaway dunk that sparked the crowd and started an 8-0 spree.

“Just to keep playing,” Garland said about the team’s situation. “It’s nextman-up mentality,”

protocol, which includes starting center Al Horford and forward Grant Williams, who plays extended minutes.

STILL POPULAR Seven-foot-6 centre Tacko Fall, who saw limited action the past two seasons with Boston but was a fan favourite, made his first career NBA start due to Cleveland’s limited roster.

He got a loud ovation when he was introduced, and there was a spattering of cheers when he did something positive during the game. “I’m not here, I’m a Cav now,” Fall said.

“But Boston is always going to mean a lot to me.

This is almost like a second home for me.”

Chris Paul had 11 points and nine assists for the Suns, who face the Oklahoma City Thunder at home tonight before their Christmas showdown in Phoenix against the Golden State Warriors.

JaVale McGee had 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Veteran guard Isaiah Thomas scored three points on 1-of-11 shooting in his third game since signing with the Lakers on Friday.

Talen Horton-Tucker had three points on 1-of-13 shooting for Los Angeles in his first game back from health and safety protocols.

“Yesterday was my first day out of the protocol and really today was my first (full) official day,” said Horton-Tucker, who entered averaging 11.3 points per game.

“I’m just trying to get back into the groove of things.”

In just his second game of the season, Trevor Ariza had 12 points for the Lakers.

UP NEXT Suns: Home vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder tonight.

Lakers: Home vs. the San Antonio Spurs tonight.

PHOENIX Suns’ Deandre Ayton descends after making a basket during the first half of the team’s NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night in Los Angeles.

(AP Photo/Jae C Hong)

DONCIC IN NBA PROTOCOLS, LEAGUE POSTPONES 2 MORE GAMES

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer DALLAS star Luka Doncic entered the NBA’s health and safety protocols yesterday, adding his name to the list of top players who might be sidelined for games on Christmas because of coronavirus-related concerns.

That news came not long after the NBA called off the next game for both the Toronto Raptors and the Brooklyn Nets due to COVID19 issues, after determining that neither team has the minimum eight players necessary to start a contest.

Toronto’s game at Chicago scheduled for Wednesday was postponed, as was Brooklyn’s game at Portland today.

The moves raise the total number of postponements this season in the NBA to nine because of virus-related reasons, including three consecutive Nets games that have needed to be rescheduled.

Brooklyn’s next possible game

REBELS FROM PAGE 14 they didn’t have the legs to make them when they needed to, and that’s because of our defense.

And so, if you have to play us the next day, you can’t get rest, and you just play the game; you know you’re in for a fight because we’re going to wear you down for 40 minutes.”

USF fell to 9-4 on the season The Rebels defence forced 14 turnovers and kept USF scoreless through the first six minutes of the fourth quarter as they pulled away.

With a non conference schedule that opened with a loss to Belmont and concluded with their first win against a ranked team this season, McPhee-McCuin said the series of tests

would be Saturday, part of the NBA’s five-game Christmas slate, with the Nets scheduled to visit the Los Angeles Lakers.

But with what is believed to be a league-high 10 players in the health and safety protocols, a list that includes Kevin Durant, James Harden and — even though he has yet to play this season — Kyrie Irving, it certainly would seem like that game may be in jeopardy.

“Obviously, teams around the league are really severely getting impacted and games are getting postponed,” Miami guard Duncan Robinson said.

“It’s kind of unsurprising, in that this is the chaos that we’ve kind of come to expect over this last, whatever it’s been, year-and-a-half or something like that.”

The Christmas schedule may, at minimum, be missing much of its star power from a player perspective. Among those scheduled to play on Saturday and listed out for games on Wednesday were Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo

have prepared them for a stacked Southeastern Conference.

“It’s been great for our group,” she said, “We’ve been able to play against a bunch of different styles and I think that has allowed us as a group to bond and figure things out.”

The Rebels will open play in the SEC, on December 30 when they host the Arkansas Razorbacks.

In their first game of 2022 and what is expected to be a litmus test for the programme, Ole Miss will face the no. 1 ranked South Carolina Gamecocks on January 2. The game will be broadcast live at noon on SEC Network/ESPN2.

The Rebels were listed at no.6 in the SEC Preseason Coaches Poll, the highest projection in programme history since the conference began the practice in 2007-08.

and Atlanta’s Trae Young; the Bucks have three players in the protocols and the Hawks increased their protocols list to five.

Doncic has been ruled out of today’s Dallas-Milwaukee game, along with five other Mavericks for health and safety reasons — including Trey Burke, who revealed earlier this season that he is unvaccinated. Dallas is scheduled to face Utah on Christmas.

Boston, scheduled to play Milwaukee on Christmas, had seven players listed as out for Wednesday’s game with Cleveland because of protocols — one fewer than the Cavaliers, whose list is now at eight.

There had been six games on Wednesday’s schedule, including Raptors-Bulls. For those games alone, at least 48 players were ruled out because of virus-related issues.

The league entered Wednesday with 84 players from 20 teams known to be in the protocols, a figure that fluctuates almost on

an hourly basis. But the NBA has no plans to pause the season, Commissioner Adam Silver said earlier this week in an interview with ESPN. If the Nets-Lakers game ends up postponed as well, the NBA is reserving the right to move another game into that 8 pm Eastern time slot to accommodate ABC’s needs. The league told the 10 teams with games scheduled on Christmas that shifting some starting times is a possibility and that the priority is filling ABC’s 2:30pm, 5pm and 8pm game slots.

For now, those games, in order, would have Boston at Milwaukee, Golden State at Phoenix and Brooklyn at the Lakers. The early game is Atlanta at New York.

“We want to do what we can to keep the business going, but also keep our families safe and do our part,” Suns coach Monty Williams said. “It doesn’t seem like the virus is going anywhere, so we might as well do what we can to keep each other safe.”

MISSISSIPPI head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin calls to players in the first half of an NCAA women’s basketball game against Samford on Friday, December 17, 2021, in Oxford, Tenn.

(AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

‘BUDDY’ HIELD CANS 16 IN 105-89 LOSS TO LA CLIPPERS

By MICHAEL WAGAMAN Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Eric Bledsoe scored 19 points, Paul George had 17 in his return to the Clippers’ lineup, and Los Angeles held off the Sacramento Kings 105-89 last night.

Serge Ibaka added a season-high 17 points, including three dunks and 12 points in the fourth quarter, to help the Clippers end a three-game losing streak.

LA had lost three straight to Sacramento, including twice this season.

Tyrese Haliburton had his fourth consecutive double-double with 22 points and a career-high 13 assists for Sacramento. Chimezie Metu added 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Chavano “Buddy” Hield missed his first nine shots and was 1 for 12 in the first half. He finished with 16 points, two blocks, one steal, six rebounds and three assists.

George had missed nearly two weeks with an elbow injury before being cleared to return. The seven-time All-Star struggled with his shot most of the game and was hit with a technical foul in the third quarter. He made a clutch 3-pointer as part of the Clippers’ gameending 10-3 run.

Ibaka’s dunk put the Clippers ahead by 10 points early in the second quarter.

Nicolas Batum later scored off an assist from George to make it 49-36, before Damian Jones scored for the Kings.

Sacramento signed guard Ade Murkey to a 10-day contract. Murkey had been playing for the Kings’ G-League team in Stockton.

UP NEXT Clippers: Face the Nuggets in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Kings: Host the Grizzlies on Sunday.

BUCKS TOP ROCKETS 126-106 MILWAUKEE (AP) — Jrue Holiday scored 24 points, Khris Middleton added 23 in his return from injury and Milwaukee beat Houston to snap a twogame skid.

Middleton missed three games because of a hyperextended left knee.

The two-time All-Star played 28 minutes and had six assists.

The Bucks were missing two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo for a fourth straight game as he remains in the NBA’s health and safety protocols along with teammates Bobby Portis and Donte DiVincenzo.

Christian Wood led the Rockets with 20 points and 11 rebounds.

THUNDER 108, NUGGETS 94 OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai GilgeousAlexander had his second career triple-double with 27 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists to help Oklahoma City beat Denver.

Darius Bazley had 17 points and 11 rebounds, Lu Dort had 15 points and rookie Jeremiah Robinson-Earl added 14 points and nine rebounds for the Thunder.

Nikola Jokic had 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists for the Nuggets.

MAGIC 104, HAWKS 98 ATLANTA (AP) — Franz Wagner scored 25 points, Robin Lopez had 10 points and a career-high 11 assists and Orlando beat Atlanta.

Cam Reddish finished with a season-high 36 points, and John Collins had 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Hawks. They have lost seven straight at home.

PAGE 18, Thursday, December 23, 2021

THE TRIBUNE

TYREFLEX and Insurance Management joined forces to sponsor a new silver Mercedes Benz to the player who got a hole-in-one. Someone came close but a miss of an inch was not a win.

FLOATING Heritage Trophy Winners -- And the floating trophy goes to the three, 2-man teams that formed the entry from New Providence. Pictured l-r, Chris Bloore, Title sponsor ALIV CEO John Gomez, Paul Major and Ben Harris who teamed with Bloore. Not pictured: Phil Andrews and partner Jenna Bayles, 2nd place finishers and Felix Stubbs who partnered with Major, finishing third.

SAY yes to the volunteers – Mario Carey hosted the 1st Annual Potcake Golf Tournament to aid BAARK. The volunteers, l-r, Laura Kimble, Rachel Hale, Louisa Holowesko and Lori Roach.

CATS need love, too – BAARK Volunteer Louisa Holowesko, left, presents Paradise Island’s beloved cat lady Vicki Bethel with a prize from the 1st Annual Potcake Golf Tournament.

WINNER of 7-day Royal Caribbean cruise – Greg Gellman, left, collects the top raffle prize, a 7-day cruise donated

by Royal Caribbean, on behalf of winner Gerhard Beukes.

That’s ALIV CEO John Gomez presenting the certificate.

DUDES in designer duds – Hey guys, it’s a fairway, not a runway, but for Glinton, Sweeting O’Brien founding partner Andrew O’Brien, centre, and Greg Gellman, American Embassy, what TITLE sponsor -- ALIV CEO John Gomez and marketing director surrounded by tournament volunteers from BAARK at the 1st Annual better time is there to show a little style? That’s park volunteer Potcake Golf Tournament to raise funds for the organisation that aims to spay or neuter up to 6,000 dogs and cats in the coming year. Lori Roach announcing.

First Annual Potcake Golf Tournament ‘huge success’ PEDIGREES may have their Westminster Kennel Club show, but it was the Bahamian Potcake – that special breed of dog with the narrow head and a keen sense of how to cross the street on its own terms – that stole the show during the 1st Annual Potcake Golf Tournament.

The golf tourney was hosted by businessman, triathlete and golfer Mario Carey to raise funds for BAARK, Bahamas Alliance for Animal Rights and Kindness.

“We had a great tournament, full course, 124 players, exceeding what we originally expected to register. The weather was perfect, the Ocean Club course on P.I. was in top condition.

Best of all, everyone had a super time and we helped BAARK, which is doing an awesome job of spaying and neutering dogs for the health and well-being of the domestic pet population and to keep our communities safer,” said Carey.

“It was the first tournament of its kind so I wasn’t

sure what to expect but the volunteers from BAARK were tremendous and it worked out perfectly.”

With ALIV as the title sponsor and Royal Caribbean donating the top raffle prize, the tourney and raffle winners walked away with a treasure trove of goods from golf for four at Albany, Lyford Cay and Paradise Island, airline tickets on Tropic Ocean Airways and hotel stays to gift baskets from John Bull and libations from Sands, Tito’s (Bahamian Brewery) and Caribbean Wines & Spirits.

The tournament with three mini-tourneys in the mix included best gross (overall) score, best net and the heritage trophy in which 2-person teams representing a country or island of their heritage were pitted against one another.

Marcus Farrington and Andrew Bell were dual winners, best twosome in tourney with the lowest overall score (gross) and took second in net score.

Chris Bloore with a single digit handicap of 7 and

ON COURSE – Pictured l-r, Bill Holowesko, Steven Kelly, both representing sponsor Odyssey Aviation, Alex Dupuch and his dad, Peter, enjoying a day on the Paradise Island course for a worthy cause.

Photos by Ronnie Archer partner Ben Thomas placed first in the net score division and Kelsey Rolle and James Gomez were third in net.

THE ONE that got away – so close to a hole-in-one but a miss is as good as a mile.

The heritage trophy sponsored by ALIV went to the teams of Bloore and Harris, Phil Andrews partnering

with Jenna Bayles and Felix Stubbs with partner Paul Major.

Other net winners included Patrick and Alex Stevenson fourth, Doug Cowper and partner Robert Davidowski fifth, and Kit Spencer and Christine Cassell sixth.

The player who came in last won golf lessons with Ocean Club pro Mike Simons.

Carey said the idea for the tournament was borne from a desire to assist Vicki Bethel, the woman Paradise Island calls the cat lady.

“Every day Vicki goes out in the golf cart in the dark at 5am and feeds up to 30 to 40 cats, then goes to work managing all the events for the Ocean Club Golf Club,” said Carey.

“We want to make sure that Vicki knows she will always be supported in caring for the cats that keep Paradise Island rodent-free.

“When I asked her how I or my team could help her, Vicki said host a golf tournament for BAARK because of the incredible work they do, so today is all

because of Vicki paying it forward to BAARK.” The organisation said the cheque with tournament proceeds would be a major contributor to its most ambitious plans yet.

“We are incredibly appreciative to everyone who came out and had fun while helping us meet the financial obligations that we face as we take on our most ambitious project to date.

“Our mobile unit arrives in the first part of 2022 and

by March, we intend to be on the road here in Nassau spaying and neutering up to 6,000 animals in the coming year,” said Laura Kimble, Baark! chairman.

“We have so many dedicated volunteers and friends helping us put an end to animal abuse and cruelty that includes overpopulation of strays and I feel like today we just gained 124 new friends and their friends,” she lamented.

Among the standouts – a portrait of a potcake by artist Jamaal Rolle. It was auctioned off with all funds going to BAARK.

FROM left to right, sponsor Robert Pantry, Founder and CEO of Simplified Lending, Carlos Barria, Anderserik Bywell and Better Homes & Gardens MCR Group’s Timothy Smith.

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MARVIN Rolle in action.

Thursday, December 23, 2021, PAGE 19

Face off at noon: Marvin Rolle vs Spencer Newman in today’s finale

NCAA FROM PAGE 14

SPENCER Newman in action

TENNIS FROM PAGE 14 On the men’s side of the draw, today’s finals matchup is set as Marvin Rolle is slated to face Spencer Newman at noon.

Both players have qualified for the 2022 Davis Cup team. No.2 Rolle defeated Hampton University sophomore, No.4 Donte Armbrister 7-5, 2-6, 6-2.

In a matchup between the Newman brothers, No.3 Spencer Newman advanced after No.1 Baker Newman retired in the third set 6-1, 7-6 (5), 2-5.

All four semifinalists have played in the national championships and have previously represented The Bahamas on The Davis Cup team.

Baker’s path to the finals included a bye and a 6-3, 6-1 win over Rodney Carey Jr. Spencer defeated Nathan Thompson in the opening round (6-0, 3-0, Retired), and Michael Major Jr in the quarterfinals 6-0, 6-1.

Rolle defeated Savano Hanna in the opening round 6-0, 6-0 and Sharano Hanna 6-0, 6-0. Prior to the

SYDNEY Clarke in action.

PLAY ACTION: Champion Sydney Clarke and runner-up Elana Mackey exchange greetings at the net after Clarke emerged as the BLTA’s 2021 Giorgio Baldacci Open Nationals women’s champion yesterday at the National Tennis Centre.

Photos: Racardo Thomas/Tribune Staff final, Jeffrey Thompson and competition with the 11-12 Savano Hanna will open position match at 10am.

ELANA Mackey in action.

Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The junior forward is nearly averaging a double double in his third season with the Tigers at 9.6 points and a team-leading 8.8 rebounds per game while shooting 57 percent from the field.

Benedict takes a break for the Christmas holiday and will return to action with a road game at Lane College on January 5.

Lathaniel Bastian and the Angelo State Rams men’s basketball got its second straight win after a pair of losses with an 85-75 win over Arlington State at Stephens Arena in the Junell Center.

The Rams are now at 9-2 overall and will begin Lone Star Conference play on December 31 against St Edward’s.

In 11 games with nine starts, Bastian is the team’s leading rebounder at 7.2 per game, and is fourth in scoring at 11.9 points per game.

The Newberry Wolves have a pair of Bahamians on their roster - Sherman Robinson and Malik Joseph.

Robinson finished with eight points and a team high seven rebounds in a 66-65 win over Lenoir-Rhyne at Shuford Memorial Gym in Hickory, NC. His past two appearances have been his best of the season and the only games where he played in double figure minutes for the first time in the programme.

Joseph’s best performance of his freshman season was a 17-point performance in just 14 minutes off the bench of a November 23 win over Wingate. He is averaging 3.8 points and 2.7 rebounds per game.

Jevaughn Ferguson is averaging 4.3 points and 3.1 rebounds per game for the William Jewell Cardinals in his third season with the programme.

As a freshman he averaged 2.1 points and 1.9 rebounds per game in 26 appearances and averaged 4.4 points and 2.6 rebounds last season in 14 games with seven starts.