Luce Hodge-Smith Wins CMEx Leadership Award
BVI's Hon Luce D. Hodge-Smith was honoured with a CMEx 2025 Leadership Award at the Caribbean Media Exchange ceremony on December 7, 2025. In a Facebook post, she thanked supporters and pledged to continue serving her community with purpose and integrity.
Hodge-Smith was presented with a CMEx 2025 Leadership Award at the Caribbean Media Exchange (CMEx) Leadership Awards ceremony held on December 7, 2025. Hodge-Smith acknowledged the recognition in a Facebook post on December 5, 2025, writing: "I’m truly honoured to be recognised by CMEx for the 2025 Leadership Awards.
This acknowledgement means a great deal to me, and I am deeply grateful to everyone who has supported, encouraged, and uplifted me throughout my journey. I remain committed to serving with purpose, integrity, and a genuine love for my community. Thank you, CMEx, for this incredible honour." The annual CMEx event brings together cultural figures, tourism professionals, media leaders and community advocates from across the Caribbean and its Diaspora.
For BVI residents, Hodge-Smith’s recognition raises the territory’s profile regionally and underscores the importance of strong leadership in community development and tourism partnerships. The 2025 awards night also acknowledged a wide cross-section of Caribbean leaders. Among the other honourees were Carole Alexis (Martinique), Dave Chang (Carnival Cruise Line), May-Ling Chun (St Maarten), Ronella Croes (Aruba Tourism Authority), and Marcus Simmonds (Tortuga International Holdings, Cayman Islands).
The ceremony introduced the CMEx Lifetime Achievement Award for the first time, with Sir Baltron Bethel — a tourism pioneer and Bahamian national hero — receiving the inaugural accolade. A number of senior regional officials and tourism directors attended the ceremony, pointing to the event’s significance for regional collaboration.
Confirmed guests included Lady Betty Hopkin (Grenada), Jennifer Matarangas-King (USVI Commissioner of Tourism), Cardigan Connor (Anguilla Minister of Health, Sports and Tourism), Dona Regis-Prosper (Caribbean Tourism Organisation), Latia Duncombe (Bahamas Ministry of Tourism), Joy Jibrilu (Nassau Paradise Island), Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace (former Bahamas Minister of Tourism), Vanessa Ladesma (Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association), Wendy McDonald (Royal Caribbean Group), and Dr Lisa Indar (Caribbean Public Health Agency).
Additional participants included tourism directors from Anguilla, the Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica and Grenada. For the Virgin Islands, such gatherings offer opportunities to forge partnerships that can support recovery, product development and increased visibility in key source markets.
Hodge-Smith is both a personal milestone and a reminder of the potential benefits when BVI leaders engage on regional platforms. Local stakeholders and tourism entities may look to build on this recognition to attract collaboration and investment that benefit residents and the territory’s visitor economy.
Primary source: VINO