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Literacy is empowerment!

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The Issue

Improving literacy unlocks the potential of individuals, families, and businesses.

Our basic quality of life depends on our ability to read, write, and comprehend. Studies have shown that literacy rates are directly tied to every aspect of life. Low literacy rates create barriers to success and often overlap with increased risk of unemployment. While Cayman is lucky to have a strong literacy rate, much work needs to be done to maintain this.

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Our Programmes

Learn about how our programmes support literacy across home, school and community.

Dad Daughter

Thrive by Five
SJACPS 2

Paired Reading
Monty Larrew Library

Book Donations
Ogier Airport Crew

Community Outreach
Education For Everyone Laptop Image

Education For Everyone
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Partners in Print

Board Members & Officers

LIFE is governed by a trustee and an independent board of directors. Our directors and officers come from diverse backgrounds and have a wealth of varied experience and expertise. They are united by their passion for literacy and their shared commitment to achieving LIFE’s mission.

Woody Foster
Woody Foster

Woody Foster

Chairman
Andrea Bryan
Andrea Bryan

Andrea Bryan

MBE - Director
Kevin Butler
Kevin Butler

Kevin Butler

Director
Anthony Cowell
Anthony Cowell

Anthony Cowell

Director
Reina Jefferson
Reina D. Jefferson

Reina D. Jefferson

Director
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Pauline McGettigan

Pauline McGettigan

Director
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J. Paul Drake

J. Paul Drake

Director and Treasurer
Lynne headshot NOV2021
Lynne Byles

Lynne Byles

Director
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Sam Nehra

Sam Nehra

Director

Sponsors

Our LIFE Support! Thank you to all of our generous sponsors.

Woody Foster

Woody Foster

Chairman

Woody is the Managing Director of Foster’s Food Fair-IGA and a member of the Board of Directors of the Foster Group of companies. Woody attended St. Ignatius Catholic Primary School and Triple C School in Grand Cayman, followed by Florida Air Academy and Louisiana State University where he pursued studies in business. Woody began his career in the grocery business at Foster’s Food Fair-IGA in 1987 when he returned to Grand Cayman.

Woody is a former member of the Education Council and is passionate about and committed to the future of education in the Cayman Islands. He has served on numerous boards throughout his career and currently sits on the Minimum Wage Advisory Committee and the CUC Board. Woody is a Past President of Rotary Club of Grand Cayman Sunrise and a former Director of their Literacy Committee.

Andrea Bryan

Andrea Bryan

MBE - Director

Andrea qualified as a teacher in 1972 and has taught at Cayman Brac High School and Cayman Islands Middle School. After attaining an Advanced Diploma in Curriculum Development from the Cambridge Institute of Education (UK), she was appointed Deputy Principal, Cayman Islands Middle School.

In 1986, Andrea attained a Masters in Education Management and Administration from Bristol University (UK) and was appointed Deputy Chief Education Officer in the Cayman Islands Education Department. She was Chief Education Officer from 1989 to 1994.

In 1994, Andrea was appointed Permanent Secretary (Chief Officer) in the Cayman Islands Ministry of Health. She was awarded an MBE in 2002 “for exceptional achievement and tireless leadership as the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health.” She retired from the civil service in 2006. Andrea is a Past President of the Rotary Sunrise Club and a former Director of their Literacy Committee.

Kevin Butler

Kevin Butler

Director

Kevin is a shareholder and Head of the Cayman Islands office of off-shore law firm Conyers Dill & Pearman. Kevin joined Conyers in Bermuda in 1997 and moved to the Cayman Islands in 2004. Kevin grew up in Canada and holds a BA in Economics from the University of Western Ontario (1987) and an LLB from the University of British Columbia (1993). Kevin has been admitted to the Bar as an Attorney-at-Law in British Columbia (1994, non-practising), Bermuda (1998) and the Cayman Islands (2004).

Kevin has a keen interest in literacy and education having been raised by teachers (his mother and grandmother). He is the Vice President of the Cayman Islands Law Society and an Alternate Director of Cayman Finance. Kevin was formerly a member of the Rotary Club of Grand Cayman Sunrise.

Anthony Cowell

Anthony Cowell

Director

Anthony is the Head of Alternative Investments and Head of Corporate Social Responsibility (‘CSR’) at KPMG Cayman Islands. Anthony moved to Cayman in 1999, and has been a member of the Rotary Club of Grand Cayman Sunrise for over 10 years. He is a member of KPMG’s Global Alternative Investments Leadership Team and KPMG’s European Council for Investment Management. Anthony is a qualified Chartered Accountant and is passionate about the need for good literacy and numeracy skills.

Anthony leads KPMG’s Cayman Islands CSR programme which facilitates the implementation of KPMG’s global CSR ambitions. In 2013, he led the launch of KPMG’s first cross-border CSR programme, the BRIGHT programme, which involved working alongside the COO Childline International to help build capacity in their operations in Zambia. Anthony is the Chairman of the Cayman Islands Alternative Investment Summit.

Reina Jefferson

Reina D. Jefferson

Director

Reina has over 40 years’ teaching experience at primary and secondary level in both public and private schools in the Cayman Islands. She strongly believes that education is the key to success. She began her teaching career at Sir John A. Cumber Primary School in Grand Cayman in 1973 after attaining a BA in Early Childhood Education from City University, New York. She holds a Masters in Education (with an emphasis in Reading) from Virginia Commonwealth University, USA (1979).

Reina owned and operated a child care centre at her home in Cayman for a decade and taught specialist literacy to children and adults. She returned to full–time teaching in 2002 at Savannah Primary School, then John Gray High School. Reina retired in 2011 but undertakes supply teaching in the public schools. Reina is a former President of the CI Early Childhood Association and Education Council.

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Pauline McGettigan

Director

Pauline has 22 years' experience in primary school education as a classroom teacher, Head of Department, and Principal in both public and private schools in Ireland, Turks & Caicos, and the Cayman Islands. She holds a B.Ed in Education from Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland, and is passionate about literacy. She has lived in the Cayman Islands for over 20 years and is a member of the Rotary Club of Grand Cayman Sunrise and a former Director of their Literacy Committee (2012-2013). She was instrumental in starting the first Reading Partner programmes in George Town Primary School & Sir John A. Cumber Primary School.

Pauline currently works in finance & administration at Crown Global Insurance. She continues to enjoy volunteering her time to help improve literacy in the Cayman Islands.

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J. Paul Drake

Director and Treasurer

Paul is the Managing Director of Genesis Trust & Corporate Services Ltd. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1995 and worked for KPMG Cayman Islands from 1997 to 2004. In 2004, Paul orchestrated the management buyout of Genesis Trust from KPMG and has subsequently transformed the firm into a leading corporate service provider in the Cayman Islands, where he has lived for over 20 years.

Paul has been the Treasurer of LIFE Ltd. since its incorporation in 2012. He is passionate about the importance of a good education and, having previously assisted teaching math in a government school, he has experienced first-hand the challenges faced by teachers. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales and a member of the Cayman Islands Society of Professional Accountants. He is also a Notary Public and was a member of Rotary Sunrise for 10 years.

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Lynne Byles

Director

Lynne is the founder, leader, and strategic brain behind Tower Marketing, a creative strategic communications agency in the Cayman Islands.

Although now leading a team of great talent, she remains hands-on with clients and there’s not much work that leaves the office without having had her savvy eye glance over it.

When she’s not knee-deep in client meetings, she helps drive Tower’s products and services, client relationships, and overall strategic direction.

She was the top UK performer in the Chartered Institute of Marketing Professional Exams, received her BSc (Hons) from Durham University, earned an MSc in HR Management, and has a post-graduate diploma in Marketing. She has been an account manager at a leading London agency working with big brands like Shell and the BBC, and was previously a publicity manager for the UK Department of Health, developing nationwide campaigns and publications.

Lynne is the former Chair of the Cayman Islands Marketing Professional’s Association (CIMPA) and also sits on the Executive Committee for Leadership Cayman.

When she’s not running this company, she’s running her other – a busy family of one husband, and three active boys. She likes sushi, clever ads, and has a special relationship with her iPhone.

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Sam Nehra

Director

Sam came to Cayman in 2003, as Manager of Learning & Development for Butterfield Bank where she worked strategically with executive directors to ensure organisational and business objectives were being achieved for all levels of employees by introducing a competency framework for recruitment and selection, performance management, and goal setting and succession planning.

Since, she has worked for multiple companies and the Ministry of Education, Training and Employment, acted as President of the Cayman Islands Society for HR Professionals, served as adjunct lecturer at the University College of the Cayman Islands, and even started her own business, Psyched Freelance, to engage with a wide network of trusted partners and consultants locally and in Canada, the US, and the UK, to offer specialist assistance and global innovations in leadership, organisational performance, and processes.

Sam is an NLP Practitioner and Executive Coach, Certified Leadership Trainer and not-your-run-of-the-mill HR guru who understands how to get people moving in the right direction. She now works as Chief of Staff at Real Vision, amplifying the efforts of the CEO with a focus on management discipline, business process effectiveness, and project management with, she says, “a sprinkling of Jedi mind control!”

Proving that she is a bold woman of vision, crazy ideas and dreams, Sam and her family headed off on a ‘Radical Sabbatical’ of laughter and learning in 2016, exploring Europe by ‘tin can/camper van’ and home schooling as she went.

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