As we welcome the New Year, 2023, we do so with hopes of brighter days for everyone.

The last few years have been filled with challenges, and 2022 has been no exception. These difficulties have included the loss of loved ones, whom we remember and we pray for.

But, our faith in God and our strength as a people have enabled us to weather the storms, and I am confident that whatever the future brings, our indomitable Virgin Islands spirit will continue to see us through.

Our resilience comes from the perseverance of our fore parents. This is why our people have been able to achieve so much development over the years.

The Virgin Islands has been on a journey of nation building for more than 200 years, and our progress has been due to the strengths and abilities that are within each of us – which sometimes we forget that we have. In 2023 we continue this mission; and it requires that we rediscover, reconnect with and reawaken our dormant talent, and recommit to the sacred aspirations that Virgin Islanders have carried from generation to generation.

In 2023 our collective goal must be to ensure that we rise to our fullest potential as a Virgin Islands people, inspired by the great works of those who have served before us and motivated by our responsibilities to the next generation of Virgin Islanders.

Together, with keen focus on our mission, with hard work, and faith in our God, we will make 2023 our best year ever. The future will be what we make it, so let us press forward with confidence in ourselves.

On behalf of the Government of the Virgin Islands, and on behalf of my family and myself, I wish you all a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous 2023.