Mini flags of the different [tag]Caribbean island[/tag] nations sat on a table at the front of the room – Antigua, St. Kitts, St. Vincent, Jamaica, Barbados, Haiti, the Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago. More than 50 people were seated in the meeting room at the Copperstone meeting facility in Land O’Lakes. Among them were mortgage brokers, real estate developers, dentists, doctors, accountants, lawyers, chiropractors, doctors. Business folks. The Wednesday evening gathering was the first general meeting of the [tag]Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce[/tag] of [tag]Tampa Bay[/tag].

The Caribbean business flavor is sprinkled throughout Tampa, with small grocery stores and restaurants. You can also find Caribbean businesses and business folks in Pasco, Citrus and Hernando counties. For those who know what to look for and listen to, the presence is unmistakable. It usually starts with a casual conversation and a recognition of the telltale accent. I hear from Caribbean folks whenever I, an immigrant from Montserrat, write anything about island life. While the number of Caribbean immigrants in Tampa Bay still lags far behind the numbers in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and even Orlando, their presence is growing

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