Port of Harlem artist Karen Jenkins went to Suriname, a small multi-cultural country in South America, to celebrate the life of Dokter Sophie Redmond. Dokter is the correct spelling of her title in Dutch.

The Netherlands is the former colonizer of the territory and the home of many Dutch-Surinamese, including event organizer Anita Powell. "I did not know Suriname existed before I started painting Sophie Redmond," said Jenkins before leaving her Myrtle Beach, South Carolina home and representing Port of Harlem at the Sophie Redmond en Wij (The Sophie Redmond and We) event.

"There is a need to inform and inspire young people by sharing similar life stories," says Sophie Redmond en Wij organizer Powell of Amsterdam. The conference addressed this need through workshops, an exhibition, and a writing competition on Redmond.

Jenkins' portrait of Redmond hangs in the Port of Harlem Gambian Education Partnership's "From These Shores" permanent exhibit in The Gambia, West Africa. Powell was so happy that her fellow countrywoman was in the exhibit that she invited Port of Harlem to participate in this year's conference in Suriname. The conference is usually held annually in Amsterdam, but the event was "at home this year."

One of the highlights of Jenkins' visit to Suriname was meeting a descendant of Redmond, Carol Redmond, of Paramaribo, the capital city. In English, she told Jenkins she loved the painting and that meeting her was an honor. Like Redmond, even the kids at the event spoke Dutch and English.

 "There is such a mixture of people there," continued Jenkins, who spent time with an array of artists, including art teacher Leon, a member of the Maroon community, and Noémi, who teaches art in Amsterdam most of the year and teaches in Paramaribo about four months a year, and Monique, who is of Lebanese descent and director of the Readytex Art Gallery.

Similar to Jenkins' work, artist Rinaldo Klas uses color to express himself. She purchased his "The Look," a painting that reminded Jenkins of her deceased mom. The painting is of a woman "with the look," which includes a bird and a butterfly. My mom, Florence Guy Morgan, loved birds and butterflies, and like moms in all cultures, she could give you "the look." Jenkins also stopped by two school art programs and the Art Academy.

After the abolition of slavery in 1863, former enslavers contracted Chinese to work the Surinamese plantations, followed by Indians and Javanese. (Similarly, planters brought Chinese to the American South after Emancipation: The Mississippi Chinese: Between Black and White.)

Consequently, the Surinamese population has a very diverse composition, with about 27.4% people identifying as Hindus, 17.7% Creoles, 14.7% Maroons, 14.6% Javanese, 12.5% Mixed Race, 6.5% Other groups, and 6.6% no data.

In 1954, the Netherlands recognized Suriname as an overseas territory, which later became part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. On November 25, 1975, Suriname became an independent republic: the Republic of Suriname.

Accompanied by her husband, Tony, Jenkins says even the food was multi-cultural. "The flavors were so good." Before leaving the South American country, Jenkins bought an angisa, a traditional Suriname African-style head covering that was a favorite of Redmond. She got it at the Koto Museum, which presented various designs, from weddings to high society wear.

See American Jenkins on Suriname TV News:
Nalatenschap dr. Sophie Redmond mag nooit vergeten worden (Dr Sophie Redmond's legacy must never be forgotten)