Newly appointed Chief Executive Officer of CIBC FirstCaribbean, Mark St. Hill has been unanimously elected as the next Chair of the bank’s charitable arm, the FirstCaribbean International ComTrust Foundation at recent board meeting of the trustees.
St. Hill who assumed leadership of the regional bank on November 1, following the retirement of Colette Delaney who was also chair of the foundation, previously served as a trustee.
Along with his election as Chair Olivia Burnett, one of the Bank’s Legal Officers, was also elected as a trustee. The other trustees are: Trudy King, Chief Accountant, Ladesa James-Williams, Country Head in Antigua, Debra King, Director, Corporate Communications and retired bankers, Lynda Goodridge and Clenell Goodman.
St. Hill said he was “very excited to be leading the foundation which has been doing really impactful work around the region. Whether it is our work with SickKids Caribbean Initiative, Healthy Caribbean Coalition, YMCA, UWI or our leading Caribbean cancer-fundraiser and awareness drive, Walk for the Cure, which has raised over USD$3 million in its first 10 years, our foundation has been making a real difference in the lives of thousands across our region.”
He thanked immediate past Chair and retired CEO Colette Delaney for her “inspiring leadership” over her four years at the helm of the foundation.
He pledged that the foundation would continue to be “fully engaged in all our communities where we have a presence.”
The FirstCaribbean International ComTrust Foundation was established as a registered charity back in 2002 and over the years has committed over USD$30 million in support of projects and activities in communities across the bank’s business footprint in the English and Dutch Caribbean.
The foundation offers support and partnership under three primary areas: Youth and Education, Health and Wellness and Community and the Environment.
At the centre of those areas of support is the uplifting and empowering of people in communities where the bank has a presence. This is done through formal Memoranda of Understanding or through a host of other community-based projects and programmes.