A cool wind swept through the sun-kissed family plot located beside the house where Grace Scott, affectionately called ‘Miss Scotty’, spent virtually all her life.
Her stillness in a pink and white casket starkly contradicted the life she lived – doing daily chores and tilling the soil around her family’s home, which is nestled on Juan-de Bolas mountain, Lluidas Vale Division, St. Catherine.
Miss Scotty, 76, passed away on 24 April 2021, ending her decades-long battle with illnesses.
Her body was interred beside her mother’s grave on Friday (May 14) amid national restrictions aimed at curbing the COVID-19 pandemic.
During a ceremony at the graveside, Miss Scotty was hailed as a person who lived the true meaning of her first name – Grace.
Her relative, Desrene Fearon-Calloo, in the remembrance, told the gathering: “Miss Scotty was always smiling; I have never seen her with an unpleasant look. I can vividly recall Aunt as one of the most quiet, peaceful and humblest women ever lived in this community.”
Fearon-Calloo further stated that Miss Scotty was industrious in executing her duties as a mother and a farmer.
She planted sugarcane, yams, bananas, and just about any other crop she could find.
Fearon-Calloo recalled: “Aunt was a very dedicated and industrious woman who cared for her family – a woman who liked to see and keep her surrounding clean.”
In the meantime, Fitzroy Bennett, a family friend who presented the eulogy, portrayed Miss Scotty as a disciplinarian who had a big heart.
Bennett said: “Miss Scotty wore a pleasing countenance day in, day out. It is surprising to know that from the year 1970 she fell ill, but, when you come to look for her, you wouldn’t find her in bed. She was in the field planting yams, banana… When it is time for harvesting, she gave almost everything away.
“Her health worsened, but she would not give up easily. She encouraged almost everyone that visited her, and that pleasing countenance never left her,” Bennett further commented.
Miss Scotty, born 12 January 1945, attended Juan-de Bolas All Age School, now Juan-de Bolas Primary.
She later gained employment as a domestic helper – showcasing her virtual perfection in washing, cooking and ironing.
“When it comes on to cooking, Scotty was second to none,” Bennett said.
One of Miss Scotty’s nieces, Loraine Messam, who spoke highly of her aunt, tried to provide solace.
“None of us is here to stay; we are only here for a time; we are sojourners; we are pilgrims on a journey. Her pilgrim has come to an end,” Messam said.
Miss Scotty, in the meantime, is survived by eight children, 17 grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren, three sisters, and two brothers who all will miss her sorely.
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