In death, as in life, Roderick Broome got his wish: he did it his way.
So, when scores of relatives, close friends, professional colleagues and community activists gathered in a small chapel of the English Brothers Funeral home in Brooklyn recently, they said farewell to the 69-year-old professional in a fashion the prominent Barbadian journalist in New York had scripted shortly before he died in a Bronx hospital from congestive heart failure.
Actually, the event was a memorial service and when the Mighty Sparrow, a friend of Roddy’s, in a special telephone recording sang Frank Sinatra’s immortal hit, My Way, the audience nodded in approval as if to say the song capped it all, Roddy’s way.
“He didn’t want a traditional funeral service in a church, with a sermon and so on. He wanted his body cremated and the ashes distributed in accordance with his wishes,” explained his brother, Charles Philmore Broome, a vice president for regulatory projects at Scotiabank in Toronto.
“We followed his instructions. He asked that the service be low-tech but we used present day technology. For that I have to thank my son and Roddy’s nephew, Justin. He put the music together”.
The farewell was expressed in religious and secular music, prayers, poetry, a few reminisces and biblical readings that captured the many phases and moods of Broome’s fascinating life.
“I have attended several memorial services but none had been arranged like Roddy’s,” said Helen Walker, a retired banker in New York City who uses the Internet to keep Bajans abreast of social events in their communities.
Idalia Holder, a retired senior executive of the Carnegie Corporation, agreed.
“The service was very interesting and unusual,” Holder said. “The mix of religious and secular music, poetry and the recollections of Roddy’s life made it a soothing farewell worthy of emulation.”
With three urns containing his ashes resting on a mahogany table at the head of the chapel, the service began with a prayer said by the Rev. Canon Llewellyn Armstrong of St Leonard’s Church in Brooklyn.
Next were Keith Griffith’s reading of Psalms 23 and Walker’s presentation of several biblical verses, including the reminder: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race”, both requested by Roddy who, incidentally, was the original author of the popular Eff I Wuzz provocative column of innuendos now carried in the Saturday Sun.
Walter Edey, an educator and writer in New York, took the service in a different direction when he read a poem, Dark Reflections, which Roddy had also requested. But the crowning performance was when Mighty Sparrow sang the Lord’s Prayer and My Way as a special tribute to his friend.
Like Singing Francine, another friend, Sparrow was unable to attend because he was travelling the day of service. Hence, the telephone recording.
Then there was the playing of recorded music by George Harrison, My Sweet Lord; Carlyn Leacock’s Beautiful Barbados; Brook Benton’s Same One; Sam Cooke’s Summer Time; Lisa Minelli’s New York, New York, and Blessed Assurance by a church choir.
In a brief tribute, Dr Vincent Hutchinson recalled Roddy’s days at the Lodge School where they both represented the school at cricket and the physician recalled the passion “my friend” had for cricket, the school and Barbados.
“We met at The Lodge school more than 50 years ago and we maintained our links until his death,” said Hutchinson, a paediatrician.
“Roddy was a fighter and during his prolonged illness, he never gave up,” said his brother.
“He felt he could beat the illness. He was an excellent journalist. He cared very deeply about his family, cricket and Barbados.”
Harold Hoyte, founder of the Nation newspaper who worked with Broome at the Nation and the now defunct Daily News, agreed.
“I deeply mourn his death. Another pillar from among our newspaper fraternity has passed,” said Hoyte.
Tony Best is the NATION’s North American correspondent. Email Bestra@aol.com
