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Anneliese “Liz” Ottilie Meyer-Nico Dies at 74

Mat Probasco
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Anneliese “Liz” Ottilie Meyer-Nico Dies at 74

With a mixture of sadness and peace, we share that Anneliese Ottilie Meyer-Nico, affectionately known as “Liz” of Recovery Welcome, St. Croix, passed away on Tuesday, Oct. 15 at the age of seventy-four. After a courageous struggle, Liz has finally found rest and is free from suffering, a relief we all share. 

EPSON MFP image

Liz was preceded in death by her stepfather Ernst Meyer, mother Ida Greipel Meyer and stepbrother Ernst Meyer Jr. She is survived by her Loving and caring husband of 51 years, Miguel Moreno Nico Sr., son Miguel Moreno Nico Jr., and stepdaughter Michele Marie Nico, grandchildren Marisa Elise and Blake Nico, sister Waltraud Feucht, stepbrother Wilhelm Meyer, cousins Friedmar and Robert Greipel, Melanie Warner and family, daughter-in-law Gabrielle Nico, sisters-in-law Lydia Nico-Thomas, Edeltraud Meyer, Maria Meyer, Alejandra(Lydia) Nico, Carmen Gloria Nico, brothers-in-law Adelbert Nico Sr., and Roy DeCambra. Nieces-in-law Armancia Nico-Watts, Patricia & Judy DeCambra, Lisa Thomas. Nephews-in-law Adelbert Jr., Anthony Nico, and Valmy Thomas Jr. 

Special friends: Ricardo Simmons, Rosemarie and Carlos Gonzalez & family, Rolie Reese, Maria Thomas, Elvira Floris & family, Gerhard and Ute Dreher, Laurie Roberts-Lynch, Charlene Joseph, Carlos, and Francis Sterling, Aaron and Tami Sterling, Aleta and Eric Beharry & family, Rolie Reese, Berit Vargas & family, Dr. Carl and Mrs. Leslie Maschauer & St. Croix Vision Center staff, the St. Croix Central High School Class of 1968, Maria Christian, Bernice Cornelius-Reynolds, Myrtle Roberts, Lorna Davis, Eunice Edwards, Ruth, and Miguel Robles, Donna Edney, and Albert and Marie Schuster, Angela Davis, James Watts, Mr. and Mrs. Calvin Belle, Dr. Ludwig and Marlene Kamhuber & family, Carmen Ponce, Leo Santiago, Otto Reithmaier & family, Willis Todmann, Max and Resi Selmeier, Fritz and Lotte Sollner, Martha Del Sol, Liselotte Almer, Kamy Mendoza and Betty Tutien.

The family would like to thank the following healthcare providers: 

St. Croix, Dr. Lisa McMahon, Dr. Dante Galiber & staff, Dr. Elizabeth Delglacco & staff, Dr. Albert Titus & staff, and the staff at Governor Juan F Luis Emergency Room, Continuum Care Hospice doctors and nurses. 

Freehold, New Jersey the Doctors and staff of Central State Medical Hospital and Dr. Raymond Joshua, nurse Shanty Thomas, staff at the Manor Health and Rehabilitation Center, Dr. Zeeshan Khan and Dr. Ketline Peters-Hood, staff at the Freehold Family Health Center, and the Visiting Nurse Association of Central Jersey Nurse Gertrude Mohammed for her loving and caring friendship with Liz.

The family would also like to extend our deepest thanks to James Memorial Funeral Home and Schuster’s Crematorium, whose services were instrumental in honoring her wishes.

Liz’s wishes were clear, and the family was committed to honoring them. She wanted to return home to St. Croix and spend her last days. In honoring Liz’s wishes, there will be no viewing or service. Her family will lovingly spread her ashes across St. Croix, a place close to her heart. Liz will be remembered for her loving, caring, and generous spirit.

Liz will live on through the love she shared, the lives she touched, and the legacy she leaves behind. May her memory be a blessing to all who knew her.

David Baptiste Dies

Mat Probasco
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David Baptiste Dies

David Baptiste transitioned into eternal life on October 18.

He was preceded in death by his sister Gemma Boland.

He is survived by his spouse, Rose Baptiste; children, Davia and Shawn Baptiste; grandchildren, Oce’one Idonel, Djamila, Josiace; siblings, Flora Bannis, Cornelia Drigo, Elrod, James and Isaac Baptiste; nieces and nephews, Isiah, Karen, Kathey Bannis, Kym, Janelle, Irvin, Patterson, Leris, Ronald, Kennedy, Mariel, Ernest, Janise, Eyan, Chandy, Joshua, Marshall, Octavia, Wayne, Warren and Melanie Baptiste, Ruth and Jenna Boland,William, Charles, Helena and Michael Drigo; special friends, Justin, Jno Baptiste, Danase Boland, Bernard Bannis. Host of family and friends too numerous to mention.

Funeral service will be held on Thursday, Nov. 14 at the James Memorial Funeral Home, Inc. Viewing will begin at 10 a.m. with service at 11 a.m. Interment will follow at Kingshill Cemetery.

Professional services are entrusted to James Memorial Funeral Home, Inc.

St. Croix Elections Office Closed Until Nov. 15

Mat Probasco
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St. Croix Elections Office Closed Until Nov. 15
Supervisor of Elections, Caroline F. Fawkes, announces that the Elections System of the Virgin Islands’ St. Croix office, located at Sunny Isles Shopping Center Unit 26, will be closed from Friday, Nov. 8 to Tuesday, Nov. 12 for the facilitation of air conditioning maintenance, deep cleaning and sanitization services. The St. Croix office will reopen on Wednesday, Nov. 15.
Although the St. Croix location will be physically closed for walk-ins, ESVI on St. Thomas will continue to assist voters. Please feel free to contact the St. Thomas office at 340-774-3107, or email, esvi.info@vi.gov.

David Hamilton Jackson and All Ahwe Student Exhibition Opens Saturday on St. Croix

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David Hamilton Jackson and All Ahwe Student Exhibition Opens Saturday on St. Croix
A St. Croix Central High student’s 2021 portrait of David Hamilton Jackson. (Photo courtesy of Sayeeda Carter, painting by Trenyce Swanson)

The opening of the David Hamilton Jackson and All Ahwe Student Exhibition is scheduled for Saturday at Cane Roots Art Gallery in Downtown Christiansted, St. Croix, the Division of Virgin Islands Cultural Education announced.

Educators, students, families, and community organizations are invited to join in a powerful celebration of Jackson’s enduring impact on social justice and freedom of expression in the Virgin Islands. The opening ceremony will begin at noon, with the exhibition viewing following until 4 p.m., according to the press release.

The project began as a collaborative initiative between the Division of Virgin Islands Cultural Education and the Department of Planning and Natural Resources, Division of Libraries, Archives, and Museums. Chief Territorial Curator Monica Marin worked closely with educators to bring art for activism methodologies into the classroom, creating a reflection of civic learning shaped by shared values, according to the press release.

This retrospective gathers student work, past and present, into a powerful blend of words and images that honor Jackson’s ideals of equity and justice. An inspiring collection of student work spanning multiple years is showcased, and it is a dynamic blend of words and images that both honor Jackson and reveal each student’s unique perspective and individuality. For some, Jackson’s ideals of justice and resilience are a call to see themselves as advocates, shaping responses to the issues facing society today. For others, the art becomes a space for vulnerability, expressed through self-portraits that reveal who they aspire to be or offer glimpses into the complexities they are still working through, the press release stated.

Jackson was born in 1884 on St. Croix. He was very instrumental in laborers’ struggles, co-founding the St. Croix Labor Union in 1913. In 1915, he started the first free press for people of color in the territory, The Herald, with the support of Virgin Islands laborers. Jackson’s work remains significant today, as it provides an important framework within which students can place historical struggles into perspective by relating them to current difficulties experienced within society, the release stated.

This project encompasses a variety of resources that assist educators in guiding students through reflective and imaginative responses to the contributions of Jackson, but the exhibition is more than a tribute to Jackson’s legacy—it is a celebration of young voices rising to meet his call. In these works, the heartbeat of a new generation can be felt, bold and unguarded, reaching back to Jackson’s vision while reaching forward to their own. Through lines of poetry, strokes of color, and images of self, they declare who they are, who they hope to be, and all that they carry with them, it said.

Fawkes Says Law Requiring Ballot Boxes ‘Superseded’ 40 Years Ago

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Fawkes Says Law Requiring Ballot Boxes ‘Superseded’ 40 Years Ago
Voters alleged that the Elections System violated a law requiring ballot boxes at voting centers during Tuesday’s general election, but Elections Supervisor Caroline Fawkes said the law was superseded when the territory adopted voting machines decades ago. (Shutterstock image)

The Virgin Islands Elections System reported that 15,338 people cast ballots in the 2024 general election on Tuesday. A handful of those voters — and at least two candidates who won their respective races — said the Elections System violated a decades-old law requiring ballot boxes at the polls.

The law, added to the Virgin Islands Code in February 1963, requires that the “Supervisor of Elections shall furnish to each board of elections one ballot box for each polling place in its district, to contain the ballots voted.”

Cleopatra Peter, who won a seat on the Elections Board representing St. Croix after receiving 1,717 votes, said she asked about the availability of ballot boxes last week and was told by election officials that the law is antiquated.

“If the law says that they need to have marbles to count ballots, you have marbles to count votes,” she said. “If it says, hey, you need paper ballots and you need a ballot box, you put the ballot box here for people.”

Elections Supervisor Caroline Fawkes told The Source that the 61-year-old law was superseded by a section added to the V.I. Code in 1984. That law required that the Elections Board, supervisor and Property and Procurement commissioner acquire 110 electronic voting machines “for the purpose of conducting all party primaries, general elections, and referenda, and for receiving, registering, and counting the votes thereof.”

Fawkes said the territory subsequently began using Shouptronic voting machines in 1986 and adopted the current machines in 2014, one year after she came on board. Fawkes noted that she’d never seen a ballot box during her tenure at the Elections System.

“These same people voted on these machines all their lives,” Fawkes said, wondering why the issue was surfacing now. “But you know, when they live their daily lives, they don’t want to go back to the old telephone system. They don’t want to go back to the old things that happened in the past, but they want elections to be stuck in the past — so, that can’t happen.”

Peter, who described herself as a software engineer by trade, said she’s more comfortable with paper and didn’t trust the machines.

“I could write a program to do anything. I don’t trust the algorithm of that machine,” she said, adding that she thought votes needed to be counted where they were cast.

Fawkes said 20 people raised the ballot box issue with the Elections System — six on St. Croix and 14 on St. Thomas. Peter said people were calling her all day and called the situation “chaotic.”

The V.I. Police Department intervened in at least one dispute over ballot boxes on Election Day. According to a statement by Sgt. Kirk Fieulleteau, candidate Mary Moorhead was escorted from the voting center at Claude O. Markoe Elementary School on Tuesday morning.

“She was detained and removed from the premises because she refused to comply with the orders made by the Board of Elections and she refused my lawful order to leave on her own,” Fieulleteau stated on Tuesday, stressing that Moorhead was not arrested.

Moorhead, a St. Croix Independent who won a Board of Education seat with 2,882 votes, did not wish to comment when reached by The Source on Thursday, citing potential involvement with an unspecified legal action. According to reporting by WTJX, Moorhead was later able to cast her ballot at the St. Dunstan’s Episcopal School voting center.

Fawkes Files Amended Complaint in Elections Board Lawsuit

Separately on Thursday, an attorney for Fawkes submitted amended filings in V.I. Superior Court adding Delegate to Congress candidate Ida Smith to a lawsuit Fawkes filed against the Elections Board last month.

In her initial complaint, Fawkes claimed that the board usurped her authority and acted illegally when it overturned her disqualification of Smith’s candidacy based on residency requirements.

Thursday’s amended filings came three days after Fawkes, represented by attorney Brooke Mallory Rutherford of McChain Hamm & Associates, and Christopher Timmons, acting chief of the V.I. Justice Department’s Civil Division and the attorney representing the Elections Board, met in a St. Croix courtroom to argue whether Fawkes had the legal authority to retain private counsel and file a lawsuit in her capacity as supervisor of Elections.

Judge Yvette Ross Edwards, who denied Fawkes’s request for a temporary restraining order on Oct. 31, said during Monday’s hearing that she would issue a written opinion on Fawkes’ capacity in the coming days.

Later, Ross Edwards agreed with Timmons’s assertion that Smith had a significant interest in the outcome of the case and gave Fawkes one week to add the candidate to her lawsuit.

Smith garnered 2,218 out of 13,613 votes — slightly more than 16 percent — in Tuesday’s general election, according to unofficial results released by the V.I. Elections System. Incumbent Stacey Plaskett handily won with 9,988 votes — over 73 percent. Republican candidate Ronald Pickard received 1,311 votes and there were 96 write-ins.

Fawkes told The Source on Thursday that it doesn’t matter that the 2024 general election has come and gone, because she’s seeking clarity in the law.

“It’s never too late to do the right thing,” she said.

Net Metering Snags, Customer Complaints Dominate PSC Meeting

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Net Metering Snags, Customer Complaints Dominate PSC Meeting
Rooftop solar panels on St. John. (Photo courtesy V.I. Energy Office)

The idea that Virgin Islander homeowners could produce electricity with solar panels on their roofs and sell the power to the Water and Power Authority has been around for over two decades.

The Legislature approved the territory’s first net metering program in 2009. It set a cap on how much power WAPA would buy — 15 megawatts territory-wide, 10 on St. Thomas, and five on St. Croix.

The caps were met in 2015, and work on a new program began. Karl Knight, presently executive director of WAPA, was director of the Energy Office, where many of the details for the new program were worked out. The program was in place in 2020.

Thursday, at a Public Services Commission meeting, it was noted that more than 800 applications had been made for the program. Still, no applicant was getting credit for the power it was supplying to WAPA. It appeared that at least 150 had reached the final stage, and WAPA only had to provide them with a meter.

Commissioner David Hughes said the program was languishing because WAPA did not want it to succeed. Hughes commented during a period of the meeting when he and several others in the Zoom meeting were cut off from the commission meeting room where Knight was making a presentation.

Hughes said the program was “dead in the water” when it reached WAPA.

The program now starts with the applicant submitting a letter and checklist to the Energy Office. Then, the applicant goes through a permitting process with the Department of Planning and Natural Resources. It was reported that DPNR and WAPA had problems with the program because of staffing shortages.

Knight said applicants were not being connected with WAPA because the utility did not have meters on hand. He said the utility expects to receive more than 1,000 meters next week. He said he was not sure if any of those meters could be used to connect net metering customers. However, he did say they could be used to resolve another problem discussed at the meeting — customers complaining about malfunctioning or missing meters.

Hughes said the present situation, in which no one knows which net metering customers are sending power to the grid and how much is being sent, is “dangerous.”

As for customers’ complaints, the authority recently provided a list of pending customer bill adjustments for the period July to September. The staff reported that it was not clear when the adjustments would be made or that the affected customer agreed with the amount of the bill adjustments. The staff report also stated, “During this period, PSC staff received an increase in customer complaints relative to estimated bills, higher than normal bills and nonresponding meters.”

The commission is also preparing to investigate the territory’s ferry rates. The Virgin Islands Code requires the commission to perform a rate investigation at least once every five years.

The investigation is to determine the appropriate rates for the franchisees. At the meeting, the commission voted to appoint Jed John Hope to preside over the investigation.

Commissioners in attendance included Chair Pedro Williams, Raymond Williams, Clement Magras, Laura Nichols-Samms and David Hughes.

Hospital Board Approves More Than $1M To Rebuild Virgin Islands Health Facilities

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Hospital Board Approves More Than $1M To Rebuild Virgin Islands Health Facilities
Juan F. Luis Hospital Interim Chief Executive Officer Hazel Philbert reports to the Territorial Hospital Board Wednesday. (Screenshot from Microsoft Teams meeting)

In addition to approving medical staff for the territory’s hospitals, the V.I. Government Hospital and Health Facilities Corporation Territorial Board approved over $1 million of FEMA funding to rebuild the territory’s health care facilities at its monthly meeting Wednesday.

The majority of the funding was designated for building the Charlotte Kimmelman Cancer Center on St. Thomas. The expenditures were first evaluated by the Finance Committee at a separate meeting and presented to the full board by Dr. Jerry Smith, committee chair, and Darryl Smalls, territorial executive director of rebuilding the territory’s hospitals. Each expense was voted on and approved by the full board Wednesday.

The Finance Committee recommended a change order for work, labor, equipment and materials for the HVAC system at Kimmelman not to exceed $1.4 million, which increases the total cost of rebuilding to $30.6 million. The change order does not increase the time of the contract with J. Benton Construction.

An amendment to the contract with PAGE increases the cost by almost $650,000 for furniture, signage, PET CT imaging equipment upgrades, design for a chilled water system and other projects. According to Smalls, no time will be added to the contract for PAGE’s architectural and engineering work.

The smallest amount the board discussed and approved was a time extension of almost two months and an additional $17,285 to Flad A&E LLC for the permits and office expenses for the Juan F. Luis Medical Center’s hemodialysis outpatient clinic.

JFL’s Interim Chief Executive Officer Hazel Philbert said the hospital continues to focus on staffing, quality service, finances, and a volunteer program. Last month, 10 volunteers were recruited from two high schools and students from Free Will Baptist Christian School and Church of God Holiness Academy were hosted at the hospital.

She also said an application has been submitted to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to expand and relocate dialysis services.

“The recently approved appropriation of one million dollars will be required to support three-month funding needs for supplies, medications, and staffing for these services,” she said.

Philbert reported that eight graduate nurses from the University of the Virgin Islands passed the national exam and were hired by JFL.

Also during the meeting, eight medical staff were approved for initial or additional terms working at JFL on St. Croix and nine physicians and other health care workers for the Schneider Regional Medical Center on St. Thomas.

At the beginning of the meeting, Board Chair Christopher Finch congratulated SRMC on the opening of the dialysis center and JFL for passing a Joint Commission reaccreditation survey. He was told that the CEO Board Selection Committee had narrowed the field of applicants to five for JFL’s next chief executive officer.

Liberty Place Resurrects Services But Not Facility After 2023 Fire

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Liberty Place Resurrects Services But Not Facility After 2023 Fire
The entry to Villa Morales before rehabilitation begins. (Source photo by Susan Ellis)
Villa Morales before rehabilitation begins to become Liberty Place Inc. (Source photo by Susan Ellis)

The V.I. Housing Finance Authority (VIHFA) purchased the former Villa Morales Restaurant and adjoining apartments in 2019 when the property owners retired. In 2021, the repurposed facility became Liberty Place Inc. — transitional housing for unhoused individuals. In 2023, the facility suffered a fire and has yet to reopen, but it has begun to offer some services.

Liberty Place, Inc., a 501c3 non-profit corporation, was founded in 2011.

Although Liberty Place remains closed, Allahwe Services, the management agency, formed the Assertive Community Action Team (ACAT) and began providing outreach services again in August for people experiencing housing insecurity. The Assertive Community Action Team is funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Community Development Block Grant, and administrated by the Office of Disaster Recovery and VIHFA.

Allahwe, founded in 2016, works in collaboration with Frederiksted Health Care, the V.I. Human Services Department, V.I. Health Department and VIHFA. ACAT has a menu of free services that include locating crisis intervention, food, identification papers, medical assistance, and Social Security. Through continuous contact, they hope to be able to help reduce people being unhoused on St. Croix.

Executive Director Daina Frederick told The Source there are currently two social workers contacting the unhoused population where they live — on the streets. Frederick has 30 years of experience working with physically and mentally disabled adults. Before returning home to St. Croix, she managed Adult Services in Rowan County, North Carolina.

“Since we launched, they have touched base with at least 25 people,” she said, adding they would like to hire two more professionals to work with clients.

Residents or agencies who are aware of people being unhoused can contact ACAT for help. Individuals at risk of losing housing can call 340-719-4357 or visit www.libertyplacestx.org.

When contacted, VIHFA officials said, “VIHFA is actively working with Liberty Place on its future. We are currently in negotiations regarding its sale, and we’re committed to ensuring the best possible outcome. Although we cannot share specific details until the sale is finalized, we want our community to know that reopening remains our priority in collaboration with Liberty Place. We appreciate the patience and understanding as we navigate through the process towards recovery.”

Allahwe is funded by private donors, such as the St. Croix Foundation for Community Development and the Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands. The project began with the Safe Space Saturday morning clinic. In four years, chronically unhoused patients received hot meals, medical, dental and psychiatric exams, free prescriptions, showers, new shoes and clean clothes.

The Villa Morales Restaurant had been owned and operated by Angela Morales and J.T. Torres since 1975. The popular restaurant was known for its local dishes and Spanish cuisine. The New Year’s Eve party was legendary, often lasting until daybreak. The seven-acre property was financed with a $600,000 Community Development Block Grant.

Esther E. Joseph has died

Mat Probasco
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Esther E. Joseph has died

Relatives and friends are advised of the passing of Esther E. Joseph of Estate LaReine, who died in Miramar, FL on Nov. 2.

She is survived by her brother, Robert Johnson; niece, Harriet Williams both of St. Croix; daughters, Ruthlyn Joseph and Winifred Sweeney; son, Irving Joseph; grandson Kai Thomas plus many other families and friends.
Funeral Service will be held Friday, Nov. 15 at 10 a.m. at the Miami Ridgeway Church of God of Prophecy, 5901 NW 22nd Avenue, Miami, FL 33142

Animal Welfare Hosts Free Dog Food Giveaway

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Animal Welfare Hosts Free Dog Food Giveaway

The St. Croix Animal Welfare Center is hosting a community dog food bank Friday with free 40-pound bags of dog food to the first people to drive into the shelter at Five Corners. The event starts at 2 p.m., and SCAWC staff will help load bags of dog food.

The Pet Project, a Florida charity, has recently joined forces with SCAWC and donated 2,000 pounds of dog chow. The two organizations plan to hold more food bank events.

One bag per car. First-come-first served. No breeders.

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