With so many incredible women living in the tropics, often going unnoticed on their little islands by the rest of the world, I wanted to take the opportunity to share their stories here. This series, Women Who Rock Their Rock, features island women in all their glory, inspiring others with the work they do and how they’re making a difference on their islands.

If you missed some of the first posts in this series, be sure to check them out here, herehere, here, and here.

The woman featured in this addition to the series is committed to building up the students and educators on her island, exposing students to options and choices for their future that they did not have before.

 

MEET KELLY ANN SEBREE

Kelly Sebree Andros Island Bahamas counselor

Kelly and students arriving to Nassau for the Annual Girls Leadership Conference.

 

ISLAND: Andros Island, Bahamas

ORGANIZATION: Central Andros High School

NOMINATED BY: The Central Andros High School Team – originally just her professional peers and now, genuine friends!

 

The Central Andros High School team and community, having worked with Kelly for the past 12 years, reached out to nominate this “exceptional American woman” who they believe deserves recognition for all she’s done in her time with the school.

Kelly came to Andros Island, Bahamas begging for a job at the high school, hoping to create the first Guidance Counselor position at Central Andros High School where, before her arrival, there had never been any type of counseling program. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Psychologist. Before arriving to Andros, she had a private Psychotherapy practice in Palm Beach, Florida, and was also a clinical supervisor for the school counseling program facilitated in the Palm Beach schools. Kelly brought with her a wealth of experience and a genuine desire to help the island’s children and families. After about a year and a half of persistence advocating with the Ministry of Education to let her develop and grow a new program for the local children, she succeeded. Kelly fearlessly pursued those in charge and she never gave up.

 

Kelly Ann Sebree Andros Island Bahamas

Kelly, pilot, and students traveling to the big city of Nassau, Bahamas for students exposure at the Annual Girls Leadership Conference. Yes, they all fly to the conference – life on a rock!

 

Kelly’s knowledge, diversity, compassion, and strength have been a resource for students, parents, and her colleagues. She has blended into the island’s culture without barriers and has become a force who advocates on behalf of the students. On an island where students may not have even finished high school in the past, they are now graduating with diplomas. At a school where grade point averages didn’t mean anything, students are now applying to colleges. In an academic environment where government workers attended their job simply for a paycheck, they now teach with compassion. And the fearful parents and guardians who used to dread receiving a call from school administrators are now actively involved in their children’s academic world.

 

Kelly Ann Sebree Central Andros High School Bahamas

Kelly and student at the Career Fair she puts together every year at Central Andros High School

 

Such is due to the incredible support and nurturing presence of this guidance counsellor, who has developed a safe environment, exhibits a humbling support system, and demonstrates a professional persona of passion, compassion, kindness, and character to all she works with at Central Andros High School and the Andros community.

 

Kelly Ann Sebree Central Andros High School Bahamas

Kelly and students at the AIDS/HIV Educational Seminar

 

Kelly Ann Sebree, LCSW and Guidance Counselor, is a blessing to the island of Andros, committed to exposing students to options and choices, and validating their struggles throughout vulnerable developmental milestones – and she does so with grace, etiquette, and commitment, while being grateful for the opportunity to serve – and always with a smile on her face!

 

Kelly Ann Sebree Central Andros High School Bahamas

Kelly, her students, and the Cougar mascot preparing for the “Character Counts” Assembly at Central Andros High School

 

When she’s not helping students, Kelly and her husband Steve are the ever-hospitable hosts of Big Bamboo Villa, welcoming tourists and wellness groups to their Andros retreat.  

 

Kelly Ann and Steve Sebree Big Bamboo Villa Andros Island Bahamas

Kelly and her husband, Steve

 

Thank you, Kelly Ann, for all you do for the youth on your island. Rock on!!

 

— — —

 

If you’d like to support Kelly’s efforts, you can follow her on

Do you know of an amazing woman on your island who deserves recognition for the difference she’s making on her rock? Send us an email and nominate her for a chance to have her featured in this series.

Written By:

Current Rock of Residence:

Virgin Gorda, BVI

Island Girl Since:

2006

Originally Hails From:

California

Chrissann’s home rock in the British Virgin Islands feels bigger to her than it actually is. Though after spending five years on a teensy one acre island, the current 13-mile long rock she’s residing on now IS ginormous, at least by comparison. As with everything in the tropics, it’s all about perspective.

Once upon a time she used to care about things like matching her purse to her pumps but these days, any activities that require a bra and shoes go under careful, is-this-even-worth-it consideration. If island life has taught her anything at all, it’s that few things are more rewarding than time spent in the pool with a cocktail in hand.

As the Editor in Chief of this site, she spends her days working from home with her blue-eyed sidekick, Island Dog Diego, writing, editing, and cultivating content in the hopes of bringing some laughter and lightness to her fellow island souls. She recently published her first children’s book, When You’re a Baby Who Lives on a Rock, and is pretty pumped to share it with all of the island mamas out there. Her days off are typically spent boating, hiking, and meeting up with the neighborhood’s imperious roadside goats, who she shamelessly bribes into friendship. While normalcy was never listed as one of her special skills, Caribbean life may indeed be responsible for new levels of madness. She attributes at least a smidge of her insanity to the amount of time she spends talking to drunk people.

If you’re somehow still reading this and feel inclined to find out more about this “Chrissann” of which we speak, you can also take a gander at her eponymous website or follow her daily escapades on Instagram @womanonarock.

Want to read more posts by this writer? Click here.

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