By Lincoln DePradine

The Grenada Association in Toronto (GAT) has elected a new president, Unison Joseph, who is calling for collaboration on accomplishing a major project he envisions. Joseph, originally from St John and a graduate of Happy Hill Secondary School, would like Grenadian nationals in the City of Toronto to work together on owning a community building.

“We should have a place to call our home away from home here. If we collectively put our resources together, I think it’s achievable,’’ Joseph told GAT members.

“We will attempt, with this new executive, to put a team together. Persons may not necessarily be from within this organization. We have to look out and see what is feasible and what we can do,’’ Joseph said following his election as president at the GAT annual general meeting.

Joseph replaces Sandra Pierre, who did not seek re-election but remains on the GAT executive as immediate past president.

GAT is the longest-serving Grenadian community group in Toronto, founded by nationals such as former Canadian government minister Dr Jean Augustine, who is cousin to Opposition Leader Dr Keith Mitchell.

Augustine, 85, is a former school principal who served as Canada’s Minister of State for Multiculturalism and the Status of Women from 2002 to 2004. She  also was Parliamentary Secretary to Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien. Augustine retired from frontline politics in 2006.

The Grenada Association’s activities in Toronto include scholarship awards and spearheading an annual gala and awards commemorating Grenada’s independence anniversary in February.

Joseph was the recipient of a community service award at this year’s gala.

At the AGM, he urged greater GAT unity and appealed to other Grenada organizations in Toronto to “come together to pool resources. We’re going to move in one direction’’.

The approach of the Grenada Association will be to work with other groups “in a collective and friendly manner’’, Joseph promised.

“One of the things we want to push is togetherness. We cannot do things in silos,’’ he said. “We all have a part to play. We all have different ideas to move Grenada forward and Grenadians in the Diaspora forward.’’