To the Source:
It is a great loss, indeed, for the Virgin Islands, losing a man such as Sam Boynes.
I remember when he started the Japanese Cultural Society when he worked at Frenchman's Reef, and I called him to come teach the staff at Louis Vuitton how to greet Japanese visitors to the Virgin Islands. The staff learned a lot. This was the late 1980s or early '90s. Sam foresaw the potential of this tourist trade to the V.I., and he was right. During those times that the Japanese came to the territory, Sam's lessons on Japanese culture were a great success!
Imagine the faces of the Japanese when they were greeted and engaged in conversation by a West Indian staff speaking their own language! Thanks to his help, we were the No. 9 store of Louis Vuitton in the United States and Canada.
Sam had the tourism industry in his heart. He always thought of ways to bring visitors to the island and make their stay memorable. Later, when he bought The Mark St. Thomas and renamed it L'Hotel Boynes, he again foresaw the potential in marketing St. Thomas as a historical destination, and again he was right.
I will always remember Sam as an upbeat, energetic ambassador of the Virgin Islands.
Joyce Bolanos
West Hartford, CT
