Dr. Fontaine Leaves his Footprints in The Sand of South Sudan

“Lives of great men all remind us, we can make our lives sublime, and, departing, leave  behind us, footprints on the sands of time.” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

   Our very own Dr. Thomson Fontaine will be leaving his footprints in the sand of South Sudan. This is a remarkable and noteworthy accomplishment. On behalf of the people of the South East which includes the village of Grand Fond I pay homage to my brother Thomson Fonatine. We are so proud of your accomplishments. And to the people of South Sudan I say embrace and nurture your peace. Coming from humble beginnings make your accomplishment even more amazing.  

Sometimes our calling is destined for us, greatness is  just waiting to be explored. Few people get the opportunity to show our worth, the not so great squander the opportunities they get to be great. But when that opportunity comes for the great, they do great things.  Dr. Fontaine’s greatness was rejected by his own people and his own country but it blooms in the deserts of South Sudan..

What great things our Dr. Fontaine could have accomplished in his country Dominica? But when he presented himself for service to his country he was ridiculed, mocked, humiliated, denigrated, disrespected. They tried to destroy his reputation and made him a fugitive in his own homeland for no good reason except that he was feared. Dominicans chose mediocrity instead of excellence. 

Others from far away lands saw the value and greatness in Dr. Fontaine and they embraced him and he proved himself. I know him personally, and I know that if he had a choice he would rather serve his country with his vast amount of expertise and experience.

To understand the magnitude of this accomplishment here is a brief history leading up to this achievement of peace and unity in South Sudan. See it here: https://www.cnn.com/2013/07/10/world/africa/south-sudan-fast-facts/index.html

Until very recently South Sudanse were locked in a deadly war that took millions of lives. Now they are working on being unified. 1500 each from government and opposition South Sudanese soldiers are being trained to form the VIP protection unit for the South Sudan unity government as reported. Our Dr. Thomson Fontaine from the little village of Grand Fond in the commonwealth of Dominica is playing a pivotal role in this unity pact, and helping to bring economic stability and prosperity to South Sudan.

Even when Dr. Fontaine had decided to take up that task he was maligned with statements like this one from Tony Astaphan “So it’s no wonder you abandoned this country to work for the most murderous and corrupt regime in the world. To me this was the biggest joke of them all, comprising self to work for blood money.”

And my response to that was “Dr. Fontaine keep shining on your horse! Ride into the skies”  As an advocate of world peace and justice I could not be more proud of you. History will see your footprints in the sand of South Sudan, even if you were denied making history in your own homeland.