Spice Isle Cultural Festival (Montreal) Magazine July 2021 | Page 69

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Monifa Ayinde

President of the Grenadian Cultural Association of British Columbia , Canada ( GCABC )

Service Beyond Self

Her confidence is palpable , her charm , undeniable , but these are not the only attributes Monifa Ayinde can claim . She is also resourceful , extremely organized and a naturalborn leader . A Grenadian by birth , Monifa has led the GCABC selflessly for the past 17 plus years . Born in Grand Anse St , George ’ s , Grenada , she migrated to Vancouver , British Columbia in 1971 . She is now semi-retired .
Monifa ’ s employment life in the Province of British Columbia covers a 35 year period working with the Provincial Government , Douglas College and several profit and nonprofit organizations . Although she held several positions over the years , working on the Caricom Education For Employment ( C-EFE ) project in the Caribbean seven years ago remains at the top of her list .
She was the recipient of various awards , including The Dame Nita Barrow Award for Community Service in B . C . presented by the Barbados Cultural Association of BC , The National Congress of Black Women Foundation Award for Community Service and the Vancouver Police Department Award for Service to the Diversity in Policing . Monifa was appointed to The International Diaspora Consultative Committee ( IDCC ) for Grenada ’ s Homecoming in 2012 . For fun , Monifa enjoys reading , music , travel , dancing , taking long walks and entertaining family and friends . She is also the roti master !
Monifa became involved with the GCABC at its inception in 1998 . Over the years in Vancouver , she realized there were lots of pre-conceived ideas and misinformation about the “ small ” Island of Grenada . It was therefore a no-brainer for some of the Grenadians living here to form an Association to dispel some of the myths about their beautiful Islands of Grenada , Carriacou and Petit Martinique . With assistance from the late Casper Shade and George ( Mario ) Bullen , they began to showcase and educate about this gem of the Caribbean .
Presently , Monifa is a Director representing the GCABC on the board of the BC Organization of Caribbean Cultural Associations ( BCOCCA ); she is a Board Member on the BC Provincial Committee for Diversity in Policing ; a member of the Coquitlam Festival Planning Committee and an executive on the TriCity Seniors Action Society .
Monifa is very passionate about working with people . She explained , " I worked with youths and seniors throughout my entire professional life . As a senior myself , since the pandemic , I have become very concerned about seniors in the Caribbean / black community . Based on a recommendation from one of our young