BACKGROUND

As the Panamanian population in the United States continued a steady growth over the last three decades, there was an upturn of organizations across the nation, mainly in New York, where the number was placed at about 45.

Those organizations served and continue to serve an important function in the development of the Panamanian-American Community in terms of social interactions, educational advancement and cultural enrichment.

However, there was a need for an umbrella structure to bring together and mobilize these organizational resources to serve as a centralized voice to effectively respond to the needs and advocate the concerns of the Panamanian Community here in the United States, as well as in the Republic of Panama.

Consequently the birth of the Panamanian Council of New York (PCNY) emerged from a meeting of the minds between Vernon Rex Archiblod, Waldaba Stewart and Jose Blackburn who were later joined by Marco Mason who was assigned to start up the organization. Those prime movers then approached Joseph "Charlie" Scott with the concept and the first meeting was held in September, 1984 at the home of V. Rex Archibold. Others at the meeting were Dosita Bryan, Alicia Cardenas, Mildred Archibold, Cecilio Leacock and Joselyn Evering.

What followed that first meeting was the establishment of the organizational structure and a membership campaign. One year later PCNY was incorporated, and was inaugurated at an Inaugural Ball at Terrace on the Park, in Flushing Meadow Park Queens, New York, on October 4, 1985.

FOUNDING MEMBERS

ANTONIO R. CAESAR
ADELINA FLEMING
ARTURO LeCONTE
DR. AMALIA JOSEPH
D. BARBARA JAMES
CYNTHIA BROWN FRANKLIN
CAROLA GITTENS
CECILIO LEACOCK
DOROTEA SMALL LYNCH
DANIEL BISHOP
DOSITA BRYAN
DAN DACRES
DAISY MILLER
EDGAR WALCOTT
EARL WILLIAMS
FERNANDO BRAMWELL
FRANCISCO PLANES
GEORGE TAYLOR
GEORGE TODD
IDA DAVIS
DR. JOSELYN EVERING
JOAN TITUS
JAMES CAMPBELL
JOSEPH A. SCOTT
JOSE BLACKBURN
LEONARDO JOHNSON, Esq.
LUISA MARTIN
DR. MARCO MASON
MILDRED ARCHIBOLD
ROBERTO DRUMMOND
RICARDO ARCHIBALD
RITA PLANES
DR. V. REX ARCHIBOLD
WILFRED CALENDAR, Esq.
DR. WALDABA STEWART