On behalf of the Central Labor Council of the Virgin Islands, I take this opportunity to wish millennium blessings to the people of the Virgin Islands. We all stand poised at the hopeful beginning of the first truly global century.
The pace of technological change has made the world a global village and turned us all into our brothers keepers in an unprecedented and personal way. As we leave this century it is natural to pause and reflect on the lessons of our past as we use them as the template for our future.
It would take more time and space than is available here to catalog all of the individual touchstone and seminal events in our islands' history. The people of the Virgin Island's have weathered many storms, figuratively and literally.
In the past 100 years alone we have seen the colors of seven flags flying over our capitol, learned to function and flourish without the shackles of slavery, served our nation proudly in several wars and conflicts, organized our labor force and moved the Virgin Islands from an agrarian society to a thriving middle class society with the highest standard of living in the Eastern Caribbean.
We can all be proud that we have come a long way. And we can be equally proud to continue our vigilance and ensure that the accomplishments of the next century and millennium exceed those of the last.
May God bless us all.
