COTC Board & Staff

Mr. Julien Adams and Mrs. Rosie Hodge-Adams, Founders

Julien and Rosie were born and raised on the Caribbean islands of St. Thomas and St. Kitts, respectively.  While Julien, a partner at the Law Firm Dovel & Luner, LLP (www.dovellaw.com), works long hours during the week and occasionally on weekends, Rosie is a stay-at-home mom who has dedicated her life to taking care of their three children – Justin, Julien and Jaida.

Julien and Rosie believe that all children should have access to the basic building blocks of life.  They believe that Caribbean children should have the same access to health and social care, education, vocational training, protection and support as children in other parts of the world.  They should have equal opportunities to live stimulating and fulfilling lives in communities alongside their peers.

The work of the Foundation reflects these beliefs — that every child deserves the chance to have a healthy and productive life.  Children of the Caribbean, Inc. reflects the optimism that Rosie and Julien feel about the future of Caribbean children.

Nia Long is an exceptional actress and devoted philanthropist. This three-time NAACP winner’s career spans genre and audience. Long’s success has afforded her the opportunity to give back to the communities that have long appreciated her work.

Long was last seen in Chris Rock’s “Good Hair,” which premiered at last year’s Sundance Film Festival and won Best Documentary. “Good Hair” was nominated for Best Documentary by the Gotham Independent Film Awards and NAACP awards.

Long will next appear in, “MOOZ-lum,” a story about an American-born Muslim youth who endures terrible abuse at his Islamic middle school and turns his back on his faith.  Long stars as ‘Safiyah,’ the boy’s mother who ultimately pulls him out of the school when she learns of the abuse.  The film will premiere at the 14th Annual Urban World Film Festival in New York City on September 17th. It will also be shown at the 2010 Chicago International Film Festival.

Recent big screen credits include “Gospel Hill” opposite Angela Bassett and Danny Glover, and “Are We Done Yet” opposite Ice Cube, the sequel to Brian Levant’s 2005 box office hit “Are We There Yet?” which grossed over 84 million dollars at the box office. She also starred in Sony’s “Premonition,” opposite Sandra Bullock.

Her other film credits include: “Big Momma’s House” and “Big Momma’s House 2” opposite Martin Lawrence; the former, having surpassed the 75 million dollar box office mark, resulted in a 2001 NAACP Image Award Nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture and a 2001 Blockbuster Award Nomination for Favorite Actress.  Long has also added “Alfie,” opposite Jude Law, Mario Van Peebles’ critically acclaimed film, “Baadasssss!,” “Boiler Room,” “The Best Man,” “The Broken Hearts Club,” “In Too Deep,” “Held Up,” “Stigmata,” “Soul Food,” “Made In America,” “Friday,” “Boyz In The Hood,” and “Love Jones” which won the prestigious Audience Award at Sundance, to her list of starring roles.

In addition to her success in film, Long has also made significant headway in advancing on the small screen. Long starred in the ABC dramas “Big Shots” and “Boston Legal” and was also seen on NBC’s drama “Third Watch.”  Long’s performance on “Third Watch” garnered a 2004 and 2005 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series. Long’s other television credits include: “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “Judging Amy,” “If These Walls Could Talk 2,” “ER,” and “Everwood.” Long performed the voice of Roberta for the first season of the Fox hit animation series, “ The Cleveland Show.”

Long made her directorial debut in 2004, directing music videos for Ashanti and Yolanda Adams.

In tandem with her evolving career, Long has also had the privilege of serving her community. Most recently, Long was honored at an event entitled “The Essence of Being Extraordinary” hosted by the HerShe Group; a non-profit organization, devoted to the development of young women in foster care, where Long serves as a member of the board. The event was held in Long’s honor for making a difference in the lives of many young girls in the Los Angeles community. Because of Long’s mentoring efforts, she has been named as the recipient of the 2008 College Access Award through the CO-OP of Westchester High School.

Nia Long was born in Brooklyn, NY, and currently resides in Los Angeles with her 9 year-old son, Massai, her best production yet.

Mrs. Desiree Underwood

Miss Universe 1998, entrepreneur, philanthropist, mother and author; Wendy Marcelle Fitzwilliam was born on October 4, 1972 in Diego Martin, Trinidad and Tobago to Juditha and Noel Fitzwilliam. Noel and Juditha (a fire officer and teacher respectively), raised Wendy and her younger sister Dionyse with staunch Christian beliefs and a penchant for merriment and steadfastness which they greatly attribute to their well rounded development and success. On May 12th 1998 in Honolulu Wendy made history when she became the third woman of colour and second Trinidadian woman to capture the Miss Universe Crown, (and remains the first and only black title holder to crown another Miss Universe of African descent). Her win, which came just two months before her final exams to qualify as an Attorney at Law, set her feet on the road to becoming one of the most known and celebrated personalities from the Caribbean. Little over 10 years have passed since Wendy’s beauty and intelligence, won her the Miss Universe Crown. In those years she has forged a fantastic career, having completed her legal education she was admitted to the Trinidad and Tobago Bar on May 31, 2000. Currently she holds the position of Vice President, Investment Promotion with Evolving TecKnologies and Enterprise Development Company Ltd. (eTecK) based in Trinidad and Tobago which is responsible for the development of the country’s economic diversity. Her dedication to hard work isn’t just limited to her career, over the years she has lent herself greatly to her passion for human and social development by championing various charitable causes both big and small. In June of 1998 she was honoured by the United Nations with the title of Goodwill Ambassador for HIV/AIDS, where she renewed her commitment to fighting this disease and the stereotypes associated with it. Her dedication to the HIV/AIDS cause also led her to found The Hibiscus Foundation (THF) in Trinidad and Tobago on the 6th of September 1998.  This organization was established to heighten AIDS awareness in Trinidad and Tobago and to give assistance, financialy and otherwise, to children’s homes in Trinidad. Another highlight of her social work came when she became appointed the Red Cross Ambassador of Youth for the Caribbean.  This is the first time the Red Cross has appointed anyone to this high honourary office.  In this capacity she has been afforded the opportunity to address the World’s Youth globally, most recently as the keynote speaker of the Summit of The Americas V in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. She is also is the international spokesperson for Clear Essence Skin Care and has made several notable television appearances having hosted segments of “Wild On…” for E! Entertainment Television and the Miss Universe Special for the same network.  She made appearances on “Live with Regis and Kathy Lee”, “The Magic Hour”, “Politically Incorrect”, “The O’Rielly Factor”, CNN’s “Talk Back Live”, Trinidad and Tobago Carnival” for BET, “The Johnny Cockran Show” on Court TV, Soca Monarch Finals for Synergy TV with Danny Glover and Chris Tucker, among others. Wendy currently resides in her native Trinidad and Tobago with her 3 year old son Ailan who became her muse for her first book, “Letters To Ailan” an ode to him and of her experience as a mother.  Her first publication hits stores in the Caribbean in October, 2009 and is scheduled to hit the bookshelves in North America in February 2010.

Writer-producer Yvette Lee Bowser was the first and youngest African-American woman to create and run her own television series.  She also has the distinction of executive producing and shepherding five series onto the primetime schedule.

A graduate of Stanford University, Bowser earned dual degrees in political science and psychology.  Upon the end of her senior year at Stanford, Bowser had a chance meeting with Bill Cosby, who subsequently invited her to be a part of his new series, A Different World. She progressed from apprentice writer to producer during her five-year tenure on the show.

Bowser proceeded to produce Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper at ABC before creating Living Single for FOX.  Living Single was the number one comedy in African-American and Latino households for its entire five-year run.  She also created the romantic comedy, For Your Love, for NBC and served as executive producer of the hit UPN series, Half & Half.  Most recently, Bowser worked as consulting producer for the NBC series, Lipstick Jungle.

Deeply committed to charitable causes, Bowser has lent her support to many organizations, including The St. Bernard Project, The Children’s Legal Defense Fund, The HollyRod Foundation, The American Cancer Society, The “I Have A Dream” Foundation, A Place Called Home, and Tree People.  In 2003, she founded The Butterfly Foundation to help disadvantaged children gain access to better education.   In 2007 she also joined forces with First Tuesday Media to combat apathy and encourage voter participation.  This past year, Bowser joined the Obama for America Campaign as a surrogate, speaking on behalf of Senator Obama in support of his candidacy for President.

Understanding the value of helping others, Bowser is dedicated to mentoring up-and-coming writers and women in particular.  Over the years, her guidance has empowered numerous writers to find work in the highly competitive television industry.  An industry veteran, Bowser helped spearhead the Writers Guild of America’s Showrunner Training Program.

Born in Philadelphia, Bowser was raised and currently resides in Los Angeles with her husband, producer Kyle Bowser, and their two sons, Evan and Drew.  She continues to strive to share her unique point-of-view and capture realities of our world with clarity, compassion, authenticity, and a generous amount of humor.

Erika Jackson

Keri Close

Coming from a family of social workers and educators, Keri has always had a desire to help people and communities in need. In her life before kids, Keri received her Masters in Clinical Social Work from the University of Southern California.  She worked at the VA hospital and then as a therapist with severely abused/neglected pre-adolescent girls. Then, she became a Mom.  It remains very important to Keri that children have the opportunity to grow in a safe and loving environment and she has made it a priority in her life to help make this happen. She and her husband partnered with the Africa Foundation to raise money to build a preschool in South Africa for children who were in desperate need. She continues to be involved with the Africa Foundation as well as volunteering her time to other various organizations. An entrepreneur at heart, Keri is constantly coming up with new ideas and plans to start her own business in the future. She also expresses her creativity through writing screenplays.

In her “free” time, Keri loves skiing, camping, reading and travelling the world.

Keri makes her priority her two beautiful daughters and her wonderful husband.

daughter. wife. mother. sister. cousin. auntie. friend. survivor. entrepreneur.

Simone I. Smith is all of those women.  By her own admission, she’s also a woman of strength, integrity and style…traits upon which she’s relied to keep her grounded as she’s traveled along her journey.  With the launch of her signature jewelry collection – aptly named, SIS – Smith is poised to transform her life-long affection for accessories into a thriving enterprise, one pair of dangling earrings at a time.

Back in the 80s, when hip-hop was just finding it’s footing, Smith was coming into her own as well.  Raised under the watchful eyes of her grandparents, the Queens, New York native grew up during an era when asymmetrical bobs and acid-washed denim were all the rage.  It was also a time when every girl on her block was wearing big, chunky earrings.  In fact, Smith still has the first pair of gold ‘doorknockers’ she received as a gift when she was a teenager.

“I was 17 years old when we met and I’ll always remember the day that he bought me those earrings,” she says of her husband, entertainment icon and fellow entrepreneur, LL Cool J.  These days, the self-proclaimed ‘accessory queen,’ confesses that her choice of earrings usually dictates the rest of her outfit.  Blessed with an out-of-the-box fashion sensibility, she has mastered the delicate art of blending high-end pieces with classic, everyday looks.  “I’m definitely a ‘hoop’ girl,” says Smith, who even admits to donning one of her favorite, wiry pairs to the gym.  “I’ve also been known to wear funky hoops on the red carpet, with a to-the-floor gown.”  Not surprisingly, she insists that the Simone I. Smith customer embodies the same level of confidence.

“She’s every woman, of every age and race,” Smith notes of her target customer.  “She’s fashionable, career-minded and comfortable with who she is.  She knows how to accessorize and she can rock a fly pair of earrings, with ease.  She’s also unafraid to defy tradition.”  Simply stated, Smith is intent on inspiring women to not only tap into their own personal style, but also, to be bold and open to switching things up a bit, too.  Along with earrings, she plans to expand the Simone I. Smith collection to include bangles and cuffs, necklaces and rings.

During the decade since she launched her first, successful venture, Ms. Got Rocks – a custom-made line of beaded bandanas – Smith, the proud mother of four, focused her attention on caring for her family, full-time.  Then in 2004, she endured a life-altering diagnosis of stage III chondorosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer, which required an invasive surgery, followed by two years of rehab and recovery.  Through it all, she held

her head up high and was rarely seen without her sparkly ballet flats or color-coordinated crutches, but the experience surely tested, and renewed, her faith.  It also sparked her desire to give back.  As such, she will donate a portion of sales from select pieces of the jewelry line to charities committed to the ongoing fight against cancer, in all its forms.  “Cancer affects so many people and so many families,” she says.  “I knew I wanted to do something to help.”

So, what keeps Smith inspired?  Her faith in God, first, and her family, always.  “My husband and children definitely keep me feeling inspired and motivated,” she says.  “We are a family who believes in working hard and pursing our dreams, so I’m excited about making my brand a reality.  Along with cultivating my philanthropic efforts, my mission for Simone I. Smith is to create a quality, fashion-forward product and represent for all of my SISters around the world who love accessories as much as I do.”

Thomas Hodge

Anne Coppin-Carter was born in St. Patrick’s Christ Church, Barbados to Joseph and Velda Coppin.  Educated at St. Patrick’s primary school, she attended secondary schools in New York before graduating from the University of Texas with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.  Anne is a Registered Nurse specializing in public health and high-risk pregnant teens.  An active volunteer and fundraiser, she serves as a board member for the California Black Women’s Health Project, The St Patrick’s Heritage and Community Association, The University of Texas Black Alumni Chapter and serves as a committee member with the Victoria Rowell’s Foster Care Positive Plan.  Furthering her passion for healthy communities and the youth, she also supports many projects and activities benefiting children with special needs as well as those in the foster care population. Her Caribbean roots coupled with her passion for making a difference in the lives of others have enriched her interaction with the international community. In 2008 she spearheaded the formation of the St Patrick’s Heritage and Community Organization 2010 Reunion and raised over $50,000. Approximately 700 residents from her former community came back to Barbados from the USA, London, UK, Canada, Jamaica, and Bermuda and gave back to their community in the form of scholarships, volunteerism, and donations to the Autism Association of Barbados. This effort was endorsed and attended by National Hockey League player Anson Carter, Movie Actress and philanthropist Anna Maria Horsford and Randy Jackson from the legendary Jackson family. Anne is one of the founding members who chartered the University of Texas Black Alumni chapter which was established to cultivate and maintain lifelong successful relations with alumni as leaders, volunteer’s advocates and donors of the University. She currently serves as the treasurer. She is a member of Century City Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. Anne currently resides in Beverly Hills, California with her husband Tracey and her 15-year-old son Tyler.  She enjoys traveling all over the country to attend her son’s basketball games, collecting Bajan art and entertaining friends.

Enga Mar

Cheryl Hodge, BSc, MBBS, DM.

Cheryl was born and raised in St Kitts – a tiny, English-speaking, Caribbean island.  She credits her mother for, very early in life, illustrating to her siblings and herself that there is nothing too small to share with those in need; a tenet (among many  learned from her mother) which today she adheres to, and passes on to others.  She deems it an honour to be able to work with ‘Children of the Caribbean’ and thus be granted the opportunity to reconnect with her roots and to give something back!

As an internist and endocrinologist, Cheryl has worked in Jamaica, the Cayman Islands and Ontario, Canada.  She lives with her family in Quebec, where she is the Medical Director of Clinique Modica – a new medical aesthetics enterprise which she has recently embarked upon.

Dr. Arthur W. Martin, COTC Chief Financial Officer

Dr. Arthur W. Martin was born on the island of St. Kitts which is located in the north eastern Caribbean. There he received most of his secondary education. In 1988 he attended the University of the Virgin Islands where he majored in Chemistry; in 1990 he transferred to the City College of New York to major in Chemical Engineering with a minor in Chemistry. He always believed that summer was a time to gain work experience. So in the summer of 1990 and 1991 he worked at Dolphus Milligan Research Institute with Dr. Henry McBay under an NSF-Undergraduate Research Grant. In the summers of 1992 and 1993 he was able to receive summer internships at Corning Incorporated due to the two previous summers of his academic summer internships. Arthur has had 13 years of industrial experience. He has contributed significantly to several cutting edge technologies. He began a cooperative employment at Corning Incorporated in 1994 before relocating to Morristown, New Jersey to work for Allied Signal in Liquid Crystal Display Technologies. In 1997 Dr. Martin accepted a position as a Development Scientist working on continuous wear hydrogel contact lens.  In 1998 he received his Masters Degree in Polymer Science & Engineering from NYU-Polytechnic University. In 2000 he was offered a position at IBM as an Advisory Scientist working on low-k polymeric materials for inter-level dielectrics for semi-conductors where he led the development effort to bring high speed computers. In 2003 Arthur decided to pursue his passion and enrolled in a PhD. Program at NYU-Polytechnic University where he worked on the Protein Engineering of cutinase enzyme for the degradation of polyesters and their application in drug delivery. In 2006 after completion of his PhD in Material Chemistry he joined Corning Incorporated as a Senior Research Scientist where he is working on a significant area that would impact this generation and future generations to come. Arthur is involved in designing novel chemistry and engineering in-vitro surfaces for stem cells for drug discovery and therapeutic value. He certainly thinks this would be a game changing technology that would revolutionize the health industry with huge global implications. Arthur has several scientific publications, 8 granted patents and has 11 published patent applications both United States and World in the area of biomaterials fro drug delivery and stem cell technology. Arthur has dedicated his life to mentoring young African American men and women in science & engineering and currently advices and supports historically black colleges and universities. In his spare time he enjoys political discussions, debating, spoken words poetry, tennis and basketball. He is an avid Jazz listener and collects jazz. Arthur is a proud father of four children, Charisse 13, Justin 10, Kaelin and Krisitin 4. He lives in Corning, New York and is married to Judene his wife of 7 years. Arthur enjoys life to the fullest and believes that the most important resource given to mankind are it’s people. That is why he cares about investing in our children, that is, the children of the caribbean.

Michelle Greene, COTC Bookkeeper

Aaron Joshua, COTC Accountant

Mick Horwitz is a native of Los Angeles.  He was raised in Boyle Heights until his family moved to the San Fernando Valley in 1952 when it was farm land and muddy roads.  He is a graduate of Cal State Northridge and received his lifetime teacher’s credential in 1967.

He discovered Camp JCA Barton Flats in the summer of 1964.  His camp experience that summer has impacted his life to this day.  Mick learned the philosophy of the group center approach, that is how to work with staff, children and their parents.  Mick became a teacher and worked for L.A. City Schools for ten years.  He taught elementary education in his home town of Pacoima.

Mick, along with his close friend Howard Wang, opened Sierra Canyon Day Camp which has served thousands of children in the San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Simi Valleys.  With the success of the day camp, Mick and Howard then opened Sierra Canyon School in 1978.  The school has been educating and challenging students (EK through 12th Grade) to achieve their highest goals.  The school currently has 900 students and is a landmark in the Chatsworth community.

Mick is retired from Sierra Canyon but is on their Board of Directors and is excited to be able to support Children of the Caribbean!

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Marsha de Vera is the longtime secretary and personal assistant to hotel magnate Barron Hilton.

She began her service to Hilton Hotels Corporation in 1993 as secretary to Mr. Hilton, who was the company’s Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.   Over the years, she gradually assumed greater responsibility, expanding her role to assist in virtually all of his day-to-day activities, supporting his various entities as well as his work with the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.

In 2006 and 2007, the corporation’s hotel and gaming interests were acquired by the Blackstone Group, thus ending Mr. Hilton’s formal participation in both industries.  At Mr. Hilton’s request, Marsha remained with him as his personal/administrative assistant.