Former SVG UN envoy, Speaker of the House Dennie Wilson dies of cardiac arrest

Dennie Wilson, a former St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) ambassador to the United Nations, and erstwhile senator and speaker of the House of Assembly in SVG, died on Good Friday, April 7, 2023, his wife, Idica, confirmed.

Mrs. Wilson said her husband died of cardiac arrest. He was 67.

The Wilsons, who lived in Queens, NY, hailed from Union Island in the southern St. Vincent Grenadines.

Wilson was also executive secretary of the St. Vincent Progressive Organization of New York (SPOONY), the New York arm of the main opposition New Democratic Party (NDP) in SVG.

He was deputy ambassador, then ambassador, to the UN, from 1995-2001, under the New Democratic Party (NDP) administration of the late Prime Minister Sir James F. Mitchell.

Wilson was Speaker of the House of Assembly in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, under the Labor Party administration of late Prime Minister Robert Milton Cato, from Aug. 17, 1982 to April 12, 1984.

During his tenure in the House, Wilson also served as a representative of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.
Additionally, Wilson was an administrator with New York City’s Department of Education (NYCDOE), and was founder and chief executive officer of the Rockaway (Queens, New York) Community Stem Charter School (RCSCC).

Wilson — who possessed extensive background in public policy, diplomacy and real estate management, and served on the board of trustees of Spartan Medical College in St. Lucia — had two master’s degrees – a Master of Science in Education (Queen’s College, CUNY) and a Master of Science in Administration and Leadership (College of St. Rose at Albany, New York).

He also held certificates in School Building Leadership and School District Leadership, and an advanced Certificate in Education. He earned his Bachelor’s degree in political science from Fordham University in New York.

He was also a customs/revenue officer in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, in the mid-1970s, from where he launched into politics.

In addition, Wilson was a school teacher in Union Island and Bequia, the most northern of the St. Vincent Grenadine islands, in the early 1970s.

Dr. Anthony Stewart – who, along with physicians Stephen Dallas and Bernard Lewis, were scouts on Union Island – said Wilson was the local scout master.

Dr. Stewart told Caribbean Life that Wilson attended Mary Hutchinson Primary School on Union Island and Bishop’s College in nearby Carriacou, the largest of Grenada’s two sister isles; the other is Petite Martinique.

Wilson was also a lay reader at St. Matthias Anglican Church, Union Island, and “was instrumental in acquisition of lands to build the Ashton Hard Court,” Dr. Stewart said.

In July 2014, the Brooklyn-based Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CACCI) honored Wilson, among 11 honorees, at a gala ceremony, marking the organization’s 29th anniversary, at the then Tropical Paradise Ballroom on Utica Avenue in Brooklyn.

“I am deeply honored and humbled to be in the presence of such distinguished honorees,” said Wilson then after receiving the award. “Awards are special, but this one is a very special one.”

At the time, Wilson joined a “long line of distinguished men and women” who had received CACCI’s Community Service Award.

He then lauded his childhood sweetheart and wife of 33 years, at the time, Idica, a St. Vincent and the Grenadines Girls High School and Grammar School alumna, whom he described as “a solid rock of support and strength” for him and their two daughters, Denica and Tedra.

“Without her, my life would not have been the balance in which to function properly,” Wilson said. The Wilsons are originally from Campbell Village in Ashton, Union Island.

Mrs. Wilson had been an adjunct professor in International Finance and Marketing at York College in Queens, City University of New York (CUNY), since 2012.

Stephen “Scombo” John, Spoony president, told Caribbean Life over the weekend that he was shocked on hearing about Wilson’s sudden death.

“The news of Amb. Wilson’s passing shocked me greatly,” said the former unsuccessful NDP candidate for the South Windward constituency in SVG. “We communicated a few days ago, and he was in excellent spirits.

“He was excited about work and other activities he was engaged in,” John added. “So, his death was surprising.”

Frank Montgomery Clarke, a former diplomat at the SVG Mission to the United States and Organization of American States, in Washington, D.C., said, during his early years, Wilson served as a Grenadines representative on the National Youth Council (NYC) and a lay preacher of his “beloved” St. Mathias Anglican Church, Ashton, Union Island.

Clarke also said Wilson was “a devout member” of the Anglican (Episcopal) congregations both in Queens, NY and Union Island.

“May his soul rest in peace!” Clarke said.

Erlene Williams-King, who served as an aide at the Mission of St. Vincent and the Grenadines to the UN, which also served the dual role of Consulate General, described Wilson as “the consummate diplomat and a true St. Vincent and the Grenadines son, especially when it pertained to Union Island and his beloved St. Mathias Anglican Church.

“It was a pleasure working with him at the Consulate of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, as we worked very closely, and developed a mutual trust and respect for each other,” Williams-King said.

“He was very articulate in speech and forceful in delivery, and his stature commanded respect wherever he went,” she added. “He loved his family and was very proud of his girls.

“Dennie will be missed!” Williams-King continued. “May his soul rest in peace!”

Funeral arrangements are yet to be finalized.