For Immediate Release

Dominican Appointed to Washington DC Mayoral Commission

Dr. Emanuel Finn, a Dominican national resident in Washington, DC has been appointed by Washington, DC, Mayor Anthony Williams to the Mayor’s Advisory Commission on Caribbean Community Affairs for a three-year term, which expires in 2007.

On Wednesday, March 3, 2004, the fifteen members of the Commission were sworn in by the Mayor at a ceremony at City Hall on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC. In attendance were family members, members of the DC City Council, and representatives of the Caribbean Diplomatic Corps.

The Commission, which is comprised of a cadre of exceptionally talented Caribbean professionals, is chaired by Mr. Chris Gardiner, a Washington, DC Certified Public Accountant (CPA) from the Turks & Caicos Islands. Commission members come from the English-speaking Caribbean, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, and Haiti.

Dr. Finn’s nomination was submitted to the Mayor’s Office on Boards and Commission by Ms. Judith Ann Rolle of the Embassy of Dominica in Washington, DC. This is the first time a Dominican national has been selected to serve on a Washington, DC Mayoral Commission.

The role of the fifteen-member commission is to advise the Mayor and City Council on policy matters and issues of interest to the Caribbean community in the greater Washington, DC metropolitan area, and by extension to the Caribbean region. Some of these issues include, but are not limited to, health, education, housing, urban revitalization, employment, immigrant issues, judicial matters, environment, economic development and financial assistance for small businesses.

The Commission serves as the voice of the Caribbean community in the city government and its goal is to organize, promote and empower the Caribbean community in Washington DC, through involvement in political processes, public policy, economic development and trade.

Dr. Finn relishes the opportunity to represent Dominica in that capacity in the most powerful and influential city in the world. According to Finn, “Serving on the Commission on Caribbean Affairs is a form of giving back to the place where it all began

for me and where I am so far away from, but yet always so close to. That forum provides another excellent opportunity to put Dominica on the map and world stage’.

Commenting on the appointment of Dr. Finn to the Commission, Dominica’s UN Ambassador Crispin Gregoire said, “ It is indeed an honour for a Dominican national to be so recognized, and Dr. Finn’s appointment will afford our country a substantial role in ensuring that the concerns of the Caribbean community in Washington, DC are accorded greater attention by the Mayor and City Council.”

Dr. Finn, who hails from the eastern community of La Plaine, is a former Congressional Fellow in the United States Senate on Capitol Hill. He currently serves as the Dental Director of Washington, DC, where he resides with his wife Chrissie, and daughters Sari and Alanna.

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