Don “Sir Don” Marshall was punctual, as usual, even for his funeral.
Entering on the stroke of 10, he was received by a full ballroom and as his mortal remains were wheeled in by pallbearers followed by family members, a celebratory mood seemed to prevail at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre this morning.
Sir Don was about to share the “stage” with vintage and current entertainers, pastors and others whose lives he had touched.
One by one artistes regaled the congregation, recalling the nigh-endless flow of social commentaries coming from Sir Don’s mighty pen.
Anthony “Gabby” Carter, his friend since 1965, sang Well Done and had mourners in stitches as he spoke of Don’s special tactics to win kaiso competitions, and his discipline and his wit; while reigning monarch MRBLOOD said “thank you” to his mentor by rendering an emotionally stirring number titled Ready (for the Lord) penned by Don himself.
Indeed it was a celebration of Sir Don’s life, for even as his mother Marie Phillips and wife Joan Marshall looked on tearfully, his grandsons Joshua and Shem Parris read words of hope from Psalm 84 and Revelation 21, and his daughter Juliet, known in kaiso circles as Windchaser, flashed a smile as she recalled his almost-perfectionist habits and the special bond he had with his mother.
In her eulogy detailing his birth to a Bajan mother and a kaiso-loving Trini father, his childhood in Bank Hall, the family’s years residing in the United States and returning home to Warrens Crescent, Juliet told of Don’s accolades from the National Cultural Foundation, the Barbados Association of Tent Managers, the Barbados Music Awards, Combermere School, and the popular Modern Living furniture store which he managed outstandingly until retirement. (RJ)