National Hero The Right Excellent Sir Garfield Sobers will receive a standing ovation today like no other, as a thankful Barbados gathers at the historic Kensington Oval to bid farewell to one of its greatest sons in a state funeral expected to draw cricket legends, dignitaries, members of the international sporting community and media from around the world.
The procession will begin with Sir Garry’s casket being taken from Lyndhurst Funeral Home on Passage Road, St Michael, at 8:15 a.m. to Parliament.
There it will be transferred to a military gun carriage and escorted down Broad Street via slow march, along Cheapside and Fontabelle, on the way to the Oval.
Before reaching the historic ground known as “The Mecca”, the carriage will pause along Fontabelle to be joined by Sir Garry’s family and members of Cabinet, and then move off again in the midst of a 19-gun salute by members of the Barbados Defence Force (BDF).
The route will mark a symbolic connection between the seat of national Government and the cricket ground where Sir Garry proudly represented Barbados and West Indies until he retired in 1974 at the age of 38, playing his final Test against England in March that year.
Organisers are providing seating for more than 10 000 people expected to flood the Oval to be part of the historic occasion.
Chairman of Kensington Oval Management Inc., Damien Gaskin, said yesterday they were 95 per cent ready with their preparations.
A who’s who of regional and international names associated with the gentleman’s game are expected to attend the second state funeral for a former living National Hero, the other being Sir Frank Walcott’s in 1999.
The service, being held under the theme Barbados’ Standing Ovation, will feature full ceremonial honours as the country pays tribute to the lefthanded batting genius, brilliant all-rounder and former West Indies captain whose career placed this little island at the centre of world cricket.
Sir Garry’s body lay in state in the House of Assembly on Monday and at Kensington Oval yesterday. There were also condolence books available for mourners to sign on both days.
Today’s state funeral, to climax with the interment at Coral Ridge Memorial Gardens in Christ Church, will be a final passage for a National Hero who carried Barbados’ name across the world and returned home to receive the country’s gratitude. (BA)