Ambassador Roy Austin receives Cadet Medal

Vincentian-born United States Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago Roy Austin was this week presented with the Caribbean Cadet Medal during a three-day visit to St. Vincent and the Grenadines.{{more}}

Austin, who was here to attend the100th anniversary celebrations of his Alma Mater, the St. Vincent Grammar School, was presented with the Medal on Monday by former Grammar School schoolmate Governor General Sir Frederick Ballantyne.

The Caribbean Cadet Medal is the highest award offered to cadets in the region, and was presented to Austin, who reached the rank of Company Sergeant Major (CSM).

As CSM, he was responsible for the administrative duties of the corps.

He is among one of the first individuals outside the regular cadet movement to receive the medal.

The former Rose Place resident attended Yale University, where he received a PhD in Sociology. Following that, Austin became a professor at Penn State University, where he taught Crime and Justice.

His life took another turn in 2001 when he was appointed United States Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago by his Yale University schoolmate, US President George W Bush. Ambassador Austin is among only a handful of persons born outside of the United States to be appointed to that position.

The father of two sons, Roy Jr., a Lawyer in Washington DC, and Roger, a student of Duke University in North Carolina, Ambassador Austin has been married to his wife Glynis for the past 40 years.

At Monday’s ceremony, Austin thanked the ones who nominated him for the award, and the local delegation which supported him.

He indicated that his tenure as a cadet moulded him in his personal and professional life. (JJ)