Verona Anita Carter, exudes a simplicity and gentleness of spirit that defies her demanding and high-flying role as the Ritz-Carlton's regional director of public relations.
Four years ago she started out as Director of Public and vommunity relations for the Ritz-Carlton in Montego Bay. Last year August she was promoted to the position of regional director of public relations and more recently the company has relocated her to its regional head office in Coconut Grove, Miami, as part of the team spearheading the pre-opening public relations campaign of the Grand Cayman hotel. A new unit set to be opened in the Turks and Caicos islands also has her attention.
Her job means that she's often in Rome one week, London the next, followed by New York, Portugal, and so on. However, for the young woman with an eye for beauty, and a simple, yet sophisticated taste, it's her passion for serving people, not her admitted wanderlust, that keeps her in love with her job.
"For me to be successful is to have authentic success -- achieving without hurting others in the process to get there and while still remaining at peace with self and others. I live with my heart wide open going through the journey of life, as there is no destination, the joy is in the journey."
Last week before heading off to Europe -- Rome and London -- Carter spoke with Flair about the path her life has taken, her loves and her passion.
I GREW UP... in Bounty Hall, Trelawny, with my mother as an only child. I best remember my mother's warmth and pride at the tiniest success.
"My mother always had a passion for me to excel. She really taught me to believe in myself and to be self-sufficient. She made me feel whole and complete and taught me that I didn't need 'company' to validate myself. One of her favourite lines was, 'show me your company and I'll tell you who you are, and it has stuck with me even today."
AFTER HIGH SCHOOL... (William Knibb Memorial) an opportunity arose and I went to London, and promptly enrolled in a finishing school (Lucy Clayton, Gloucester Road).
"It was something I did for me. Coming from Jamaica, with the height (5 feet 11), one wanted to be equipped with as much as possible. We were taught etiquette and deportment (I used to slouch) -- how to walk, how to take an interview, shopping, things like that.
To a large extent that helped me to (develop) from a young girl to a young lady."
I MOVED ON TO...Kensington College where I earned a degree in finance and marketing, while working part-time at Kensington High Street's Russell and Bromley (a leading retailer of high quality footwear).
"I worked five hours a day - with full hours (all day) on Saturday. I really had no time to muck around.
NOT BEING BORN INTO MONEY...I knew I had to work hard at everything. I stayed in England for four and a half years, returning home in 1993.
"I started out helping Eliabeth Hall with fund raising for the West Haven Childrens' Home, and also worked at fund-raising for CUMI in Montego Bay. A few months later (1994) I started out at the Jamaica Money Market Brokers (JMMB), helping to set up the MoBay branch and I really enjoyed it."
A six year tenure as director at the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce ended with a chance meeting with the Ritz-Carlton (Jamaica's) opening General Manager who offered her a position in the community relations department.
WHEN I CAME TO THE RITZ...the hotel's public relations policy was a complete novelty to me. Coupled with the kind of world class company that the Ritz-Carlton represented locally and internationally, it was overwhelming so I came in for quite a bit of pressure.
"I believe in the core principle (of the Ritz) to create a work environment where employees excel. The hotel fosters a work environment where diversity is valued, quality of life enhanced, individual aspirations are fulfilled and the Ritz-Carlton mystique is strengthened. I find that manifested in me. The motto is something I truly believe -- ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen. I have learnt that we all, regardless of what we do, serve each other and administer to the human condition. (However) it's the attitude which we bring to it that makes the difference."
I'M A VERY SPIRITUAL PERSON...I believe that whatever I want I can manifest it. I believe that the Divinity resides within me and that I have infinite possibilities. I believe in coming from a love consciousness, and doing unto others what you would have done onto you, because whatever you put out you get back in, and just being in union - mind, heart, body and spirit. I am also a very focused person. I have a passion to do well at whatever I do.
I'M A VERY OLD-FASHIONEDgirl at heart. I love fashion but I do like to have my own sense of style.
"I can be just at ease shopping for something on Petty Coat Lane (London), Bend Down market in Falmouth (Trelawny), a bazaar in Jaipur (India) or going into a Cartier's store in New York. I'm not boxed in by fashion. I can just as easily find something that I love and would wear at any of these places."
I LOVE THE PRAYER OF ST. FRANCIS ASSISI..., it is my favourite. I have had it framed and take it everywhere I go. Poems are my favourite too, especially from RUMI the Sufi poet.
I LOVE CRYSTALS...and stones like amethyst and rose quartz.
YOGA IS MY PASTTIME..., it's what I do to relax. I started yoga seven years ago after being introduced to it by a friend. Since then I have been trained and certified as a yoga teacher. I go on retreats for spiritual renewal. I also have a yoga guru whose name is Yogi Amritdesai.
I LOVE RED WINE... I love reading. I just finished the 'Da Vinci Code'.
I REALLY LOVE TO HAVE FUN...and have a good laugh. I love persons with a sense of humour and old-fashioned bantering.
"I've always been curious about cultures, people, and how they live. I love travelling, I love art -- just love to visit cathedrals."
LOVE INTEREST? "That divine relationship has not yet manifested itself, but I do believe that when the time is right it will happen. In the meantime I am whole and complete just as I am. However, one of the key ingredients for me is what I call the 'Twinkle Factor' -- that chemistry, that old-fashioned energetic connection between persons.
That must be there."
