The Caribbean morns the loss of CTO Director of resource mobilization and development, Bonita Morgan

​The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) and the region have lost a great representative with the untimely passing of Bonita Morgan, director of resource mobilization and development, who died on Friday morning 6th April in the United States, where she was undergoing treatment for cancer. Bonita, who had been with the CTO since April 1996, was described as a consummate professional who had a profoundly positive impact on those with whom she worked or interacted, and touched hearts in the most fundamental ways.
 
Her calm and comforting demeanor, her penchant for providing a listening ear, her respect for colleagues, her welcoming embrace, and her selflessness were exemplary. A hard-working, dedicated and committed member of the CTO family, She had a great passion for development of Caribbean youth & world class service, and she dedicated the best part of her working life to helping release the potential of Caribbean people through education, training and professional development.
 
She introduced many impactful projects and programs during her tenure at the CTO, including the development of harmonized curricula for the associate degree tourism/hospitality program across the region, tourism education materials for primary and secondary schools, showcasing careers in tourism through a variety of media, organizing an annual tourism youth congress and biennial tourism human resources conference, and being the driving force behind the CTO Foundation – the program which provides scholarships and grants to Caribbean nationals pursuing post-secondary studies in tourism, hospitality and language training, and which she administered from its inception in 1997.
 
Bonita was also very instrumental in bringing to the Caribbean in 2007 the internationally recognized Hospitality Assured certification program, which promotes a culture of quality, service excellence and continuous improvement within the tourism and hospitality sector in the region. Bonita was a person of strong faith. She had a big heart and compassion for the less fortunate in the community, throughout her battle with cancer, Bonita displayed her characteristic determination and bravery.
 
Never was her spirit crushed, her will weakened or her resolved shattered. She faced the challenge without a complaint and with an upbeat attitude.