Valentina Medina, aka Iere (May 6, 1933 - April 23, 2011), born in Mount Pleasant, Arima, was the fifth

Carib Queen The Carib Queen is the leader of the indigenous community in Trinidad and Tobago. The Queen, whose title was established in 1875, is based at the Santa Rosa First Peoples Community in Arima, Trinidad and Tobago. The position is a lifetime appoin ...

since the introduction of the title in 1875. On 26 March 2000, Valentina Medina, aged 66, of Mausica Lands,

Arima Arima, officially The Royal Chartered Borough of Arima is the easternmost and second largest in area of the three boroughs of Trinidad and Tobago. It is geographically adjacent to Sangre Grande and Arouca at the south central foothills of th ...

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

, was named Carib Queen for life, at an election at the Santa Rosa Carib Community Centre in Arima. Medina, the fifth Queen, was named as the successor after Justa Werges, queen for the previous 11 years, died in January 2000. Medina was installed as Queen on May 6, 2000. Though she embraced the Carib way of life since childhood, after her marriage at 18 in 1952 to John Medina, she was called on by then Queen (Edith Martinez) to be more active in traditional Carib life. She was named queen for a day three different times and her husband was named king for the day as well.

References

1933 births 2011 deaths Carib Queens People from Arima {{Trinidad-bio-stub