Sharleen’s father, Cyril “Mickey” DaBreo, came to the Virgin Islands in the late 1960’s and worked for local plumbing and electrical company Clarence Thomas Ltd. He then moved on to work in the mechanical engineering field on Peter Island for many years, and that’s when her mother, Jennie, joined him here. Mr. and Mrs. DaBreo both worked at Peter Island until 1989 before returning home to St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

It was while living and working on Peter Island that Sharleen was born, in 1972. At the tender age of 3 months, she went to live with her grandparents in St. Vincent. “I spent my very young days in St. Vincent and the Grenadines in a very relaxed, safe and exploratory area in the countryside and I have very fond memories of that time.  I was back and forth between St. Vincent and Tortola until 1979 when the La Soufriere volcano erupted and I moved back to Tortola,” she reminisced.

On Tortola, she attended “Fishy School”, a well known pre-school in Pasea at the time. During that period, the DaBreos lived on Peter Island and Sharleen jokes that she can recount lots of interesting episodes about commuting daily via boat to attend school on Tortola. It was during these journeys that she met hundreds of people, many who to this day connect her with that daily commute. She also recalled feeling disconnected from activities and friends on the mainland, a factor which was secondary to the reality that her parents really loved Peter Island.

However, she said living in that environment and out of a yearning for activity on the island, there were a few things that she had the privilege to do as a child that were quite beneficial – she learnt to swim and horseback ride very early.  She recalls the many lessons she received from Mr. Alwyn Dawson, how easy it came to her to be able to saddle a horse and take off along the beach, always knowing that Mr. Dawson had a careful eye on her.  Sharleen recalls that there were very few children on the island and those who were there made close connections with each other and with persons like Mr. Dawson.

Between pre-school and her early primary school years, she lived between both Caribbean islands, a decision which was as a result of the bonds formed between herself and her grandparents.  A number of years were spent at the St. Georges School here, but St. Vincent was where she completed her final year of primary school at Georgetown Government School. She completed her secondary education at the St. Vincent Girls High School, from where she graduated in 1989.

Returning to the Virgin Islands in 1990, her first ‘real’ job was at International Trust. She said: “While the developing Corporate Trust area intrigued me, I had a yearning for work that allowed me to become more involved with the community. Helping people and making a difference in the lives of others was important to me, so I left the corporate field and went to Sunsail, where I would interact more directly with people. That may have been a natural move for me because of my parents’ involvement in the hospitality industry for many years.”

Sharleen nurtured a yearning to pursue the sciences, and as a result she joined the Natural Sciences Programme at the University of the West Indies in Barbados in 1992. In 1994, she returned home with the hope of getting financial support to continue her studies. However, she was placed in the Office of Disaster Preparedness, which at the time was located upstairs the Post Office on Main Street and headed by Jennifer Worrell of Trinidad and Tobago.

She said: “I had never heard of the place, but to be honest with you, the timing was right, and I believe it fulfilled God’s vision for my talents. I learned a lot from Jennifer; she was very encouraging in terms of getting me to remain and advance in the position. I also met a lot of influential people in the international arena, worked on a number of important regional projects and, over the years, was able to assist in providing much needed aid to a number of countries affected by disasters.”

Some of the individuals who have had a positive impact on her career include Mr. Elton Georges, her direct supervisor in the government of the Virgin Islands; Mr. Paul Bell, then head of OFDA/USAID; Dr. Dana VanAlphen, then head of PAHO Emergency Preparedness Programme; and Mr. Jeremy Collymore, who headed CDERA (now CDEMA).

Not to be content with her academic achievements thus far, Sharleen wanted to get professional qualifications in her newfound area of interest. She attended Arkansas Tech University, achieved Student of the Year Honours and graduated suma cum laude with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Emergency Administration and Management. When she returned home, she collabrated with the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College to develop an Associate’s Degree Programme, which is now in its ninth year of offering. Later on, she pursued courses in management and completed an Executive Diploma at the Chartered Management Institute through HLSCC, then went on to complete a Master of Science Degree in Business Management from  Manchester Metropolitan University, again graduating with honours. She recently began to pursue a Doctorate of Philosophy in Public Safety, with a concentration in Emergency Management.

Sharleen remains extremely passionate about her work, which focuses on ensuring that the Territory is prepared for the impact of disasters. Since taking up the leadership role at the Department of Disaster Management (DDM), (began acting in 1999, formally appointed as Director in 2002), she said she has spent a lot of time creating a greater awareness among young people about how they can contribute to the field of disaster management. Today, she has a fulltime staff of 12 – ten are highly qualified locals and only two are on contract. “I have no hesitation in allowing a young, experienced Virgin Islander like myself take charge of the organization in the near future, because I think that is the natural progression, and succession planning is something that every leader should give priority to. There are now people in the DDM who are very capable of managing that department when that time comes.”

She said her interest at the moment is in the area of Strategic Management and Organizational Effectiveness. The department has the appropriate supportive legislation, has completed a policy document approved by Cabinet, and has a Strategic Plan and programming framework, based on achieving defined results. “Our newest management approach is the creation of a monitoring and evaluation mechanism which will tie in with performance management, administration, legal issues, and technical responsibilities within the organization. This is an innovative process, being developed with a local company, and will provide a definitive way of assessing the effectiveness and reliability of the DDM.”

In terms of her personal life, Sharleen recalls a conversation with her father when he was visiting and she came home from work around 11pm. He drew her attention to a trend that he himself had been guilty of, where family time had been sacrificed for work. She said she dismissed it then, as she was engrossed with leading the DDM at that particular time.

But then . . . . along came Skye. For the past three years, being a mother has totally changed Sharleen’s life. She said the biggest change was adjusting from a working professional to being a mother and being responsible for a life that needed her attention 24/7.

“Now, I am no longer coming home at 11 o’clock, because that time has been allocated to Skye,” she quipped. “My daughter balances everything I do now. I come home and the work has to be put away, for it’s all about her. Our weekends are spent at the beach, attending birthday parties, engaging in toddler activities or travelling somewhere. My patience and tolerance levels have achieved heights that I never imagined they could.”

Looking back on her life, if she could change anything, she would have preferred to remain in one place longer, in order to maintain long lasting friendships, either in the VI or in St. Vincent

There is still a long list of things Sharleen would like to achieve in life. These include spending more time with the grandmother who raised her, documenting more of her family history, completing her doctorate, getting involved in more humanitarian work and, most importantly, being a good mother.

Sharleen remains grateful to a host of people in her life, including her family, colleagues and mentors, for guidance and the opportunities she has been afforded over the years.

She says: “All in all, I am very happy, very content with my life. God has been good to me, and I expect that he will continue to lead me and to bless me. There are things in everyone’s life that you would like to change. For me, I look at them as lessons; some were very hard, some I passed, some I failed, but I have learned, and moved on. Because of my professional attitude at work, some persons regard me as unapproachable, but that is far from the truth. After all, business is business. However, I have always genuinely loved and cared for people, and I have always enjoyed a good laugh.”