At a press briefing convened at Government House on St. Thomas Wednesday morning, Governor Mapp announced Vivian Ebbesen-Fludd as Commissioner of Human Services, replacing Christopher E. Finch, who led the department during the de Jongh administration. Mapp also revealed his picks for the Department of Agriculture, Director of Fire Service, Veterans Affairs and more.
While making the announcements, Mapp stressed the importance of the positions he has asked the various appointees to head, stating that he expected nothing but quality and strong leadership from those at the helm.
In relation to the Department of Human Services, Mapp said he required that residents who visit the department be treated with care and compassion.
“We are looking for Mrs. Fludd to bring a new dimension to the Department of Human Services and to take the department to a place where it was in our history in this territory, where it is proud to serve the most needy of this community,” he said.”But, again, we must concentrate on caring and being empathetic to the needs of those in our community.”
Ebbesen-Fludd famously resigned her position as health commissioner in the de Jongh administration at the former governor’s request days after it became public that HIV drugs supplied by the department had once again run out due to paperwork failures, according to previously published reports.
“Our economy is at its worst level, unemployment decline and folks who cannot afford to leave have not left and are relying on the Department of Human Services for some level of care, support and comfort,” Mapp said today.
The governor continued, “And I am charging you [Fludd] as the Commissioner of the department to deliver that with a great degree of care and dignity, so that when folks leave the Department of Human Services, they feel a little better coming out the door than they felt when coming in the door.”
On agriculture, Mapp said the cost of living in the Virgin Islands can be significantly reduced if the territory grows its own food. He gave an example of creating a structure that allows farmers to work with the Department of Education to see local farmers producing food for the territory’s school lunch program. Mapp also stressed the need for children to eat healthier.
The governor expressed his vision for every department to which appointees were named today, including the Virgin Islands Energy Office, which will be headed by Elmo Roebuck, Jr. Mapp made mention of the territory’s high cost of energy and why it is important that residents begin seeing savings in their WAPA bills as soon as possible.
The Cabinet-level appointees announced at today’s press briefing are as follows:
Department of Human Services — Vivian Ebbesen-Fludd
Department Of Agriculture — Carlos Robles
Assistant Commissioner and Acting Commissioner of Health — Dwayne Howell
Office Of Management and Budget — Nellon L. Bowry (for one year)
Department of Finance — Valdamier Collens
Dir. of V.I. Energy Office — Elmo Roebuck, Jr.
Dir. of Veterans Affairs — Sgt. Patrick D. Farrell
Dir. of Fire Services — Eugene Farrell
Previous appointees, including Health and Public Works, can be found here and here.
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