The legacy of Anguilla’s celebrated legal luminary, the late Dame Bernice Lake, will continue long after her departure from this life as was seen on Tuesday this week. The manifestation of this wastwo-fold.

First, it was the formal presentation of the Dame Dr. Bernice V. Lake QC Memorial Award to the Top CAPE Law Student in Anguilla for 2012. The recipient is Miss MikeelaSkellekie, a brilliant graduate of the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School. Secondly, it was the unveiling of “the emblems of mortality of Dame Bernice” to be a permanent memorial at the library.

Justice Louise Blenman

The presentation ceremony, at which Miss Skellekie and her parents were in attendance, was held at the Edison L. Hughes Library and Education Complex. It was arranged by the Anguilla Bar Association.

Secretary of the Bar Association, Miss Jean Dyer, who gave the welcome address, said the Bar took a decision in July 2011 to honour Dame Bernice, an outstanding jurist in the Caribbean who served the region, including her home territories of Anguilla and Antigua, well.In particular, it was decided that there should be a special sitting of the High Court which was held on July 22, 2011 and that there should be a public display at the library highlighting some of her achievements. The Bar also decided to grant two scholarships – one to be awarded to a student for the most outstanding performance in CAPE Law at the Comprehensive School in Anguilla; and the other scholarship was for the most outstanding regional student to attend the Faculty of Law at the University of the West Indies to study Constitutional Law.

President of the Bar Association, Ms Yvette Wallace, gave a rundown of the life, service and achievements of Dame Bernice, topped by her study of law – the field in which she made her outstanding contribution to the region as a fearless advocate and public intellectual.

Ms Wallace said she had the privilege of launching the Dame Dr Bernice Lake QC Scholarship Fund to finance the scholarship and the memorial award. She continued: “The scholarship is open to nationals of the Commonwealth Caribbean, who have gained admission to the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, to read for a degree in law, and who has completed the first year of the programme including the course Constitutional Law.

“The award of the scholarship is based on academic merit and is awarded to the student who attained the best mark in Constitutional Law and who attains and maintains a minimum GPA of 3.0. The scholarship is for a period of up two years and is valued at US$2,500 per annum. The first recipient of the Dame Dr Bernice Lake QC Scholarship for the academic year 2011-2012 is Ms Joycelyn Phillip of Trinidad and Tobago.”

Vice President of the Bar Association, Mrs Josephine Gumbs-Connor, spoke mainly of the Memorial Award to Miss Skellekie. “The person who is going to be the recipient gained, very early in her educational life, twelve CXC subjects and attained all ones which we commonly refer to as distinctions,” Mrs Gumbs-Connor said.

“She also, in pursuit of her A-level subjects, gained seven distinctions – gaining a two and one and a three which means that she studied and completed quite successfully ten A-levels. The young lady…was also a very avid debater and participated even recently in the Fortieth Leeward Islands Debating Competition in which Anguilla was successful…and she gained best speaker.” Mrs Gumbs Connor also spoke of Miss Skellekie as a vivid footballer showing her as a well-rounded person.

“I have great pleasure in being able to mention that Miss Mikeela Skellekie is our very first awardee of the Dame Dr. Bernice V. Lake QC Memorial Award,” she went on. “Miss Skellekie has told me that so far her interest is in Psychology and Foreign Languages. Dame Bernice was never a single dimension person but was very multi-faceted, very multi-dimensional. What we would like to see of you…is that whatever is the career that you choose, we would like to see you being able to be a leader because that is what Dame Bernice was.”

Replying, Miss Skellekie said she was truly humbled and honoured to have been named as the first recipient of the Memorial Award. She was also grateful to her parents and teachers who ensured her success. She singled out for special thanks her Law Instructor, Justice Don Mitchell, and others who assisted him in the tutoring of law.

“I wish to thank and commend the Anguilla Bar Association for this commemorative award,” she further stated. “Dame Bernice Lake was truly a phenomenal woman. She was very instrumental in the development of this island and I admire most her invaluable contribution to the Constitution.”

The unveiling of Dame Bernice’s display of achievements was performed by her brother, Dr. Cuthwin Lake, and her niece, Mrs Joyce Kentish-Egan. Both of them spoke in praise of the Bar Association for honouring the life, service and memory of Dame Bernice in the manner outlined above.

The Vote of Thanks was delivered by Miss Merline Barrett, Council Member of the Anguilla Bar Association. She thanked, in particular, all those who gave their support to the scholarship fund and to arrangements relating to the unveiling and presentation ceremonies.