The idea came about during the ten days of mourning after Sir Lynden’s passing when people of all walks of life in The Bahamas quite candidly and openly celebrated the life and work of Lynden Pindling. People sent cards, letters, food and flowers said prayers  held memorial services, a junkanoo parade and a special sitting of the House of Assembly, there were newspaper supplements, news reports and talk shows, people came to visit and  expressed warm and sincere wishes all in tribute to a man who the Prime Minister of this country has described as the “Architect of the Modern Bahamas.” Therefore, in acknowledgment of those sentiments, Sir Lynden’s many triumphs and as a tribute to our father, we thought it fitting to establish the SIR LYNDEN PINDLING FOUNDATION.

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The Foundation is incorporated under the Companies Act, 1992 as a non-profit company.  It will be limited by guarantee which is the more usual form for non-profit companies. 



For the purpose of incorporation, the Foundation will have as its first members Lady Marguerite Pindling, L. Obafemi Pindling, Leslie O. Pindling, Michelle M. Pindling-Sands and Monique Pindling-Johnson.  These first members will also be the first directors of the Foundation.
 

The Foundation is managed by a Board of which will comprise family members as well as other persons.  The first members of the Board are:-
 

     • Mr. Edward St. George, Chairman of The Grand Bahama Port Authority;
     • Honourable Arthur D. Hanna, long time friend, political colleague and a founding father of this Commonwealth;
     • Lady Patricia Isaacs, a school friend of Sir Lynden;
     • Professor Rex Nettleford, Vice Chancellor of the University of the West Indies;
     • Mr. Normon S. Solomon, President of The Solomon Group of Companies;
     • Dr. William Thompson, President of The Bahamas National Baptist Convention;
     • Mr. Carlton Williams, Businessman.
 

The Foundation has an Advisory Board whose terms of reference will include among others matters concerning the general policy direction and management of the Foundation.  We are also in consultation with persons who will serve on the Advisory Board.
 

The primary object and purpose of the Foundation is to promote the legacy of Sir Lynden Pindling “by developing programmes and projects for the benefit of the people of The Bahamas which are geared to enhance national pride, social responsibility, historical and environmental awareness and preservation, cultural creativity and socially constructive recreation, mutual respect, understanding, positive interaction and social concord enhancing self-sufficiency, positive and healthy self-expression, community upliftment, and industry.”
 

There is no one sentence or phrase that could adequately describe Sir Lynden’s legacy but you may have noticed that there is a common theme to what we have attempted to define as his legacy; that theme is one of community, empowerment, and upliftment.  Sir Lynden had a “vision” of a Bahamas that is “wealthy and proud, brave and sovereign; a country where every Bahamian stands tall, independent and free; a country where there is opportunity for all and a secure future for each soul bold enough to grasp it; a land where excellence is cherished and hard work is a thing of pride; a Nation disciplined and strong.”  It is our hope therefore, that the work of the Foundation will endeavour to create opportunities by reaching out through its programmes and touch all Bahamians so that they too could share Sir Lynden’s “vision” to build “a Nation disciplined and strong”.  Or, as Sean McWeeney so eloquently put it in his tribute to Sir Lynden at his funeral in August last year, may the opportunities which the Foundation hopes to provide continue to “free the Bahamian spirit and allow it to fly”.
 

One of the long term goals of the Foundation would be to acquire a parcel of land on which it would build or cause to have built a library or historical museum or educational center or institute much along the lines of a Presidential library in the United States.   Such a facility could be a center for research and further education.  It could house historical papers and documents such as the Independence Constitutional Documents, Sir Lynden’s speech to the United Nations in 1965 on Decolonisation and other important speeches.   Such a facility could house and display gifts given to the people of The Bahamas from other nations in recognition of Bahamian sovereignty.  Such a facility could perhaps house personal memorabilia of Sir Lynden say, a “polka-dot tie” or even a “plaid jacket”, and generally information of and from the Pindling era on all of the founding fathers of this great Commonwealth.  Ours is a rich history that should be preserved and information about which should be easily accessible so that all Bahamians particularly school children could learn more about the history of The Bahamas and about themselves first hand. Sir Lynden also had a thing for education in that he felt that education “liberates people” and in the months leading up to Independence when teaching Bahamians about why he thought Independence would be good for The Bahamas, his basic tenet was  “In order for a people to understand where they are headed it is important for them to understand from whence they came” and so a library or historical institute of this nature would in addition to preserving our heritage also be one way of educating Bahamians for their future development.

The Foundation has been approached to lend its support to a programme at the College of The Bahamas that will celebrate the legacy of Sir Lynden with a view to raising funds to create an endowment fund at the college in his honor.  As you all know this institution of higher learning was one of Sir Lynden’s proud achievements because in his view “ investing in human development is not only sound economically and smart politically; morally it is the right thing to do.”  
 

The Foundation will seek to fund its projects and programmes through fundraising efforts and by way of donations.  The first donation to the Foundation was made by Mr. Sol Kerzner in November 2000 at the reception given to launch Sir Lynden’s first book, “The Vision of Sir Lynden Pindling: In His Own Words”.  Mr. Kerzner donated the sum of $25,000.00 to the Foundation in recognition of Sir Lynden’s contribution to the social and economic development of The Bahamas and we hope that others would be encouraged to follow suit.
 

Since its inception the Foundation’s primary fundraising efforts is through introduction of the annual “Legacy Ball”.  The first beneficiary of funds raised was the College of the Bahamas who to date has received $350,000 which funds were to be earmarked for a dedicated space in the new Harry C. Moore library at COB.  Sir Lynden felt that education “liberates people” and so a library or historical institute of this nature, in addition to preserving our heritage, would also be one way of educating Bahamians for their future development.  
 

In keeping with its promotion and support of education and educational programmes, the only other beneficiary of funds from the Foundation; has been to the Red Cross Centre for the Deaf who received five (5) “whiteboards” as a teaching aid.
 

Through the Legacy Ball, the Foundation has introduced the Sir Lynden Pindling Award for Excellence which is presented to outstanding Bahamians in their field of expertise and whose service and contribution to The Bahamas is deserving of recognition and celebration. Some of the recipients include:
 

• The Golden Girls for their Olympic Medal performance in the 2000 Summer Olympics;
• In celebration of the 30th anniversary of Independence, the late Timothy Gibson, the composer of the National Anthem, E. Clement Bethel, the first Director of Culture and composer, Rev. Dr. Hervis L. Bain, designer of the Coat of Arms and the Flag, Melvern Bowe and Viviann Moultire who created the National Motto “Forward, Upward, Onward, Together” and Rev. Dr. Phillip Rahming, author of the Pledge of Allegiance;
• Dr. Trevor Jupp in the field of medicine
• The Hon. Arthur Dion Hanna, former Deputy Prime Minister and Governor General for implementing the policy known as “Bahamianisation;
• Business persons such as the late Richard Herbert Roberts, former owner and proprietor of Home Furniture, Mrs. Nancy Kelly, owner and proprietor of kellys Home Center, Mr. Fred Hazelwood, owner and proprietor of Johnbull group of companies and Mr. Henry Storr, owner and proprietor of Storrs’s Electric;
• Gail Saunders, Ph. D., historian
• Dr. Perry Gomez in the field of medicine, the mind behind the Bahamas’s strategies in the fight against HIV/AIDS
• Nurse Rosamae Bain in the field of medicine,
 

The Foundation is a non-profit company incorporated under the Companies Act of the Bahamas and is managed by a Board of Directors