Collin Nash will tell you he’s always been a late bloomer. 

Nash, the former spokesman for the Town of North Hempstead, began college at age 38, accepted his first reporting job in his early 40s, and became North Hempstead’s communications director in his 60s. 

But now, a year removed from founding his own travel agency and on the cusp of 70, he may have finally blossomed.

In early 2014, after leaving as communications director following the election of Town Supervisor Judi Bosworth, Nash started Inkwell Travels, an agency that specializes in coordinating group vacations to Jamaica and Cuba. 

In particular, Nash provides travellers with culturally and artistically immersive alternatives to popular hotel resorts. 

“Most people go to a resort and only see the pool,” he said. “That’s not the way to see Jamaica.”

Nash, a Jamaican native, says he always felt a personal connection to the country that he tries to relate to his clients. He frequently books trips to Kingston’s ghettos and Jamaica’s less developed Southern shore in lieu of the more standard vacation to Dunn’s River Falls and the Sandals Royal Plantation.  

“They get to see the island in all its glory,” he said. “My goal is to show the people the authentic Jamaica.” 

Saying he left Jamaica “kicking and screaming” at age 13, Nash remembers vowing then that he would go back one day. 

“It’s sort of surreal now that I’ve come full circle,” he said.

From Jamaica, Nash moved to England and later to New York, where at age 38, he began taking classes at New York University, working as a bicycle messenger on the side.

In 1991, he accepted a job as a reporter for Newsday, where he spent the next 15 years. 

He was first approached about working for the Town of North Hempstead in 2006, shortly after he had accepted a buyout from Newsday. 

Initially, Nash recalls being skeptical, saying the jump from journalism to public relations is like joining “the dark side.” 

Despite this, he decided to accept the position.

But in 2013, Nash left during a wave of personnel changes when Bosworth took over for Jon Kaiman as town supervisor. At age 68, it was time for another new beginning.

Nash says his desire to show people the real Jamaica – its culture and its people – led him to the travel industry. The freedom to be his own was boss another perk.

“If I’m sitting on the beach with my toes in the water, I wanted to do it from there,” Nash said about considering his next career move after North Hempstead. 

Technically, Nash’s retirement home in Robin’s Bay, Jamaica is expected to be finished in the next few months. 

But, Nash said, he never sees himself fully retiring. 

Instead, he plans to spend his winters in Jamaica, splitting his time between Inkwell Travels and practicing the saxophone. He also hopes to write a book, though he hasn’t settled on a topic. 

Last year, Nash expanded his focus to include Cuba after he booked a trip for a group of musicians from the New York Jazz Academy (where Nash also studies) to attend the Havana Jazz Festival in December.

Nash talks frequently of his passion for Caribbean music: the “vibrant music scene” in Jamaica, his love for Latin jazz and his hope to collaborate with other musicians in the area. 

Like many things, Nash picked up the saxophone later in life.