While Ritter-Freeman was born and raised in St. Thomas in the neighbouring US Virgin Islands, she considers herself a British Virgin Islander with both of her parents, grandparents and most of her relatives being BVIslanders.

As a little girl, Ritter-Freeman recalled that she would come every summer to Tortola and enjoyed spending time in Long Look with her cousins, aunts and grandparents. It was her love for her second home that motivated her to jump at the opportunity in 1998 to take up a job as News Director for ZROD radio station and making the BVI her permanent home.

She is the daughter of Axel Ritter and Adora Malone who hails from Fat Hog’s Bay, but relocated to the USVI in the early 60s as many BVIslanders did in search for better opportunities.

Looking back at her early life in the USVI and her career path, the Chief Information Officer of the BVI’s Government Information Service is pleased with her accomplishments thus far and reiterated that all of her achievements are because of her faith in God.

Her early education began at the Apostolic Faith School in St. Thomas where she continued up to 8^th grade and then moved on to the Ivanna Eudora Kean High School where she completed the 11^th grade.

Due to Hurricane Hugo which caused devastating damage to the USVI, Ritter-Freeman relocated to Bronx, New York with her dad where she completed her secondary schooling at the William Howard Taft, High School and graduated in 1990.  While in New York she also graduated from the Barbizon modeling school on Fashion Avenue.

The focused young woman then went on to attend Norfolk State University in Virginia and obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Mass Communications in 1994.  While at Norfolk State she was crowned Miss Norfolk State University and was featured in Ebony Magazine.  She also appeared in the 1990 Who’s Who publication which highlighted high achievers on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) campuses.

Ritter-Freeman then returned to the USVI to take up her first employment as a news reporter for WSVI TV Channel 8 of St. Croix¸ and was the news correspondent on St. Thomas where she spent about two years reporting on local events including politics, social issues, crime, natural phenomenon and varying topical issues.

The passage of Hurricane Marylin on the island in 1995, again forced the young journalist to relocate to the United States where she worked with various companies with the most notable being Walt Disney World as a customer service representative.

“Disney is known worldwide for its customer service and I think that experience impacted me heavily on how I view business and the importance of the customer,” said the outspoken Ritter-Freeman.

Ritter-Freeman eventually returned to WSVI TV, and also worked as a news reporter for several other media houses in St. Thomas including The Independent Newspaper and WSTA radio station.

Then in 1998, she took up the job as News Director at ZROD where she produced and read the news for about a year and a half before accepting a position at GIS as an Information Officer I.

Within a five-year period, Ritter-Freeman was promoted three times, with her last promotion taking her to the top of the ladder as the Chief Information Officer of the Department.  She also obtained her Masters in Business Administration/Public Sector Management from the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus during this time. 

As CIO, she manages a staff of twenty plus employees with oversight of a Graphics, Photography, Audio/Video Production/ Public Relations and Administration Units.  She has also hosted the Government’s Public Eye television programme consistently for 11 years.

Recently, Ritter-Freeman was selected to take up a year secondment at the BVI London Office where she would be assisting the Director, Mr. Kedrick Malone.

“It’s an opportunity for me to get more exposure as a senior public officer and broaden my knowledge on regional and international relations with the hope of advancing my career in the public service.  I am looking forward to the experience,” she stated.

She added, “As it relates to my career I have been on radio and television between the USVI and BVI for the past 15 years and have managed for the past five years. Some people may look at what I do and think it is easy but it requires fortitude, training, discipline and passion.”

She said she looks forward to growing and developing as a manager and she is always preparing herself for the next opportunity.

On the lighter side, Ritter-Freeman is a member of the Rotary Club of Tortola, and the New Testament Church of God.  She also enjoys modeling with UMI Fashions and takes the opportunity to do so whenever she can.

Sources of Inspiration

Ritter-Freeman has been blessed to have her now deceased brother Ashley Ritter and her mom Adora Malone as her main sources of inspiration throughout her life.

“I knew from a very early age what I wanted to be and that was to be a television presenter. My brother who was a fashion designer and tailor, introduced me to the world of pageants, these experiences helped me to be a confident and self assured young woman as I pursued my career. I’ve competed in about eight pageants in my life,” said Ritter-Freeman.

Her mother has also been very instrumental in Ritter-Freeman’s zeal and focus, “I grew up in a single parent home in the projects in St. Thomas along with my five siblings and though my mom owned land in the BVI, she made that sacrifice to make a better living for her children and was focused to ensure it happened. It is this tenacity and discipline that I believed I inherited.”

Today, all of Malone’s children have claim to land she bought or inherited in the BVI and the USVI.

Looking back at her accomplishments over the years, Ritter-Freeman said she feels she has achieved most of what she set out to achieve career wise and feels she is now positioned to have a greater influence in her community and on her children. 

“I want to serve and give back to my community.  I want to work with children and have a significant impact on their lives as well,” said the mother of two girls, Adorya Baly, 17 and Olivia Freeman, 7.

Her advice to young upcoming professionals is: “Life is what you make it and God has blessed us all with gifts, talent and skills and though there are obstacles and challenges that will come your way the decisions you make will ultimately decide how far you will go.”

“There is also something to be said about a good attitude,” she explained in her advice to young people, “as a manager when people come to my department seeking employment my tendency is to look for those with a good attitude.  I would rather work with someone with a good attitude than someone with a great resume and a bad attitude”.