Amelia Island Festival of Stories and Song

Written By Dr. Emme Devonish

Dr. Emme Devonish is an author and a poet. In April 2022 she participated in the Metanoia Retreat for Writers and Right Whales at Story and Song where she met Candis Whitney and became an Amelia Island Whale Ambassador.  

Candis landed on Amelia Island as her home in 2015 and has served as a Director for the Amelia Island Whale Ambassadors since its inception in 2021. Previously, she owned and operated a 114-slip marina in Florida for 30 years, sharing her passion for offshore sailing and island cruising. She has had several memorable encounters with the North Atlantic Right Whale and collaborated with Dr. Devonish on sharing her story, “Whale Eyes” at the Amelia Island Festival of Stories and Strong. After reading Candis’s story, Dr. Devonish presented “Breathe” as a tribute to Candis, the Amelia Island Whale Ambassadors, and the North Atlantic Right Whale.

Breathe

Candis sails, whales come near

to enjoy freedom here

on Amelia Island birthing place

where calves nurse, learn, and play

alongside their mothers.

Whale Ambassadors raise awareness,

educate, and advocate

to protect North Atlantic Right Whales,

ask fishermen, “please use ropeless gear.”

OCEANA lobbies Congress,

requests mariners, “go slow, whales below,”

ten knots, speed not when it’s calving season.


In shallow waters like giant dark logs 

mothers and calves swim.

Deep down they dive,

eat copepods and krill.

Resurface to poop, 

that plankton bloom fertilizes. 

Sunlight, photosynthesis, 

phytoplankton absorbs carbon,

releases oxygen humans breathe, 

fish feed,

ecosystem in harmony.

Dr. Emme Devonish

January 31, 2026

Presented at Festival Storytelling – Amelia Island: Where the Wild Things Are at the Spring Hill Suites in Fernandina Beach, January 31, 2026, in partnership with  Story and Song Bistro and Bookstore , and featured in the Amelia Islander Magazine January 2026 issue.

See the links below to learn about the North Atlantic Right Whale:

Dr. Devonish earned a PhD in Film Studies from the University of Sydney and an MFA in Creative Writing from Carlow University.

Dr. Emme Devonish

Emme Devonish is Principal and Executive Consultant at Creative Compliance Communication Services, LLC. She provides strategic advice, executive coaching, corporate governance guidance, compliance risk assessments and program evaluations, and leadership training on ethics and organizational culture to organizations across multiple sectors. Her work focuses on delivering tailored services that respond to client specifications, emerging industry trends, and regulatory requirements. 

Dr. Devonish is a Certified Compliance & Ethics Professional and a SHRM Certified Professional. She maintains a license to practice law in the State of New York and retired from the Bar of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 2012. She began her career as an Attorney-Adviser at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Later she worked as a Director in the Compliance Department at The Prudential Insurance Company of America and then as a Vice President at Nomura IBJ Global Investment Advisors before joining the Corporate Department at Kelley Drye & Warren as a Senior Associate.

Her knowledge of securities law and regulatory compliance best practices led her to several high-level project-based roles, including as International Legal Counsel at Crédit Lyonnais Asset Management and as Finance Counsel at the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations in Paris, France. Upon her return to the United States, she served as Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer at Transamerica Investment Management in Los Angeles, and thereafter formed her consulting practice, Creative Compliance Communication Services, LLC.

Dr. Devonish is certified in Distance Education and has taught online, hybrid, and face-to-face courses in Law, Communication, English, Literature, Writing, and Film at various universities across the United States and abroad. She holds PhD in Film Studies from The University of Sydney, an MFA in Creative Writing from Carlow University, a JD/MA in Law and International Affairs from The American University, and a BA in French and International Relations from Syracuse University.

http://www.emmedevonish.com
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