Porky’s Service Station occupies part of a 60-acre tract developed by Porky’s father, Neville “Big Dorsett”, a land developer who understood property not merely as acreage, but as possibility. In an era when ownership was itself an act of progress, the elder Dorsett’s work contributed to the slow but determined reshaping of opportunity for Black Bahamians. Porky inherited that vision early, absorbing the idea that business was not only about profit, but about service and continuity.
That philosophy would guide a lifetime of enterprise. Alongside the service station, Porky built Porky’s Trucking, extending the family’s reach into logistics and transport – industries that quietly underpin national development. Yet his entrepreneurial instincts were never confined to one sector. From 1999 to 2013, Porky also turned his attention to agriculture, establishing a substantial farming operation in Abaco. There, he raised pigs and cattle, including prized Angus beef, a line of which still live in Abaco today.
Porky has never been a stranger to ambition. When considering his family line, the reasons become clear. Porky’s grandfather William Edward Dorsett was among the notable Black Bahamians of his time, a figure of influence in the Over-the-Hill community when opportunity was sharply circumscribed by race and class. As president of the Bahamas Friendly Society in the 1940s, W E Dorsett helped chart a new course in national politics. At a time when the white merchant class held a firm grip on the voting system, he worked to organize Black societies to fund Black political candidates, advocate for the secret ballot, and establish loan associations to support families and businesses. These efforts were not violent revolutions, but strategic, patient acts that laid groundwork for broader democratic participation.
Porky’s father Big Dorsett was a businessman, running Big Dorsett’s Chicken Shack, opposite East Street Gospel Chapel. Serving traditional chicken-in-the-bag, Big Dorsett’s opened in 1956 with Porky’s parents running the restaurant for over a decade.
Porky’s mother, Nora Louise Dorsett, was an educator, remembered for her commitment to learning and community. Together with Neville, she raised nine children – five boys and four girls – each charting a path of contribution across architecture, education, agriculture, healthcare, ministry, technology, and linguistics. Porky’s brother Patrick Rahming became a national icon known for his excellence in music and architecture. Arnold Dorsett is an expert agriculturalist; Philip is a noted educator, currently at Kingsway Academy; Edmund is the pastor of East Street Gospel Chapel; Camille Dorsett-Munroe is a speech therapist; Elaine is a skilled nurse; June is a professor; and Adette is a linguist.
Always extending their hand in service, the family home itself would later be transformed into another expression of that ethic. Now known as the Neville & Nora Dorsett Community Center, the former residence on Lewis Street was renovated through Lend a Hand Bahamas to serve Bain and Grants Town. The center hosts after-school programs and senior initiatives, including a computer literacy program led by Porky’s younger sister June Wilson, a computer science lecturer at the University of The Bahamas. Porky’s brother Edmund on the board of the community center, maintaining a direct link between private success and community service. Before their mother passed, she gave a lifetime lease to Lend a Hand for as long as the community center exists.
For Juanianne, this commitment to community comes naturally. A former parliamentarian herself, she served in the House of Assembly as the member of parliament for Fox Hill. As a breast cancer survivor, she is active in civic circles raising funds and awareness for those persons and families affected by the disease. Having originally met Porky when they both attended The Government High School, it wasn’t until their 20th high school reunion that they truly found each other, and a love that has endured more than four decades. Living lives dedicated to leaving an impact, Porky and his wife were both honored recently with the Phoenix Award presented by the Government High School Alumni Association for members who demonstrate true excellence in service.
For Porky, service always extends beyond business. He sits as chairman of the One Family Junkanoo Group, which secured a double victory in the recent Boxing Day and New Year’s Day Parades.
From goatskin to pigskin, Porky’s love of competition also earned him a place as a pioneer in Bahamian Football. As a player for the Nassau Jets, Porky was among the first Bahamians to officially play the sport.
Closer to his profession, Porky is also an avid hot rod and racing enthusiast, reflecting his passion for precision machinery. He undoubtedly also inherited skill and enterprise from his great grandfather, Captain William F Dorsett, a wreckmaster who was recorded by a Court Justice in Rum Cay in 1896 as having led a rescue mission, saving the lives of a captain and crew on board the British vessel “Varuna”.
As Bernard “Porky” Dorsett approaches 80 years of life, the station that bears his name stands as a living archive of Bahamian resilience and enterprise. It is a reminder to take the lead, the road less traveled, and forge a meaningful path such that others would take note, and find fuel for their own dreams.
