Katura?s clan ?bursting with pride?
The niece of three key Government figures enjoyed a spell in the US capital limelight when she caught up with a former First Lady.
The day after the Bermuda delegation departed Washington, DC after high-profile talks with White House officials, Katura Horton-Perinchief, niece of Home Affairs Minister Randy Horton, Permanent Secretary Robert Horton and Drugs Control Minister Wayne Perinchief picked up her master?s degree in fine style.
Ms Horton-Perinchief ? who represented Bermuda in diving at a string of worldwide contests, including the 2004 Athens Olympics ? made a splash when she presented former First Lady, Barbara Bush, with a public service award during a hectic weekend of ceremonies.
On May 20, Ms Horton-Perinchief received her public health degree from George Washington University, when she was graduate student speaker at the Medical Centre?s School of Public Health.
And next day, at the National Mall between the Capitol Building and Washington Monument, the 23-year-old had the honour of presenting Mrs. Bush with a public service honour in front of about 20,000 spectators.
The timing of the event proved handy for her uncles, the Hortons, who stayed behind in Washington when the rest of the Government delegation they were part of jetted back to Bermuda.
Minister Horton, a former student at George Washington University, told : ?I was extremely proud to see my niece not only graduate, but also play a major role in the ceremony.?
His brother, Permanent Secretary Robert Horton, said the event on National Mall took place just below the Capitol Building ? where Premier Alex Scott met with with Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, House Speaker Dennis Hastert and members of the Congressional Black Caucus just a few days earlier.
?We were bursting with pride as we watched her interacting so comfortably with former First Lady Barbara Bush, before a gathering of thousands.? Katura?s mother, Ms Ellen-Kate Horton, grandmother Dorothea Horton and aunts June Dill and Carmen Mitchell were among the relatives and friends who flew to Washington.
