BASSETERRE St. Kitts, September 21st 2011 (CUOPM) – The Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis was represented last week at the funeral service in Antigua of the late prominent jurist, Dame Bernice Lake.
Minister of Health, Culture, Community and Social Development and Gender Affairs, the Hon. Marcella Liburd was among hundreds of mourners from across the region and Antigua and Barbuda who attended the Official Funeral at St. Peters Parish Church.
Antigua and Barbuda Governor General Her Excellency Dame Louise Lake Tack; Prime Minister Dr. the Hon. Baldwin Spencer, Antigua and Barbuda Cabinet Ministers and opposition MPs and scores of regional legal luminaries were among those paying their last respects.
According to the Antigua Observer, the mood of those attending the funeral was somber but not overwhelmingly so, as they had come to give thanks for the life of the woman, whom Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer described as a “legal giant.”
Glowing tributes flowed, most forcefully capturing the essence of Dame Bernice as the consummate professional who had achieved many firsts as a woman and who championed for the under-privileged.
But it was during his eulogy that her brother Dr. Cuthwyn Lake gave those who had only met the Dame as an adult, a glimpse of a young Bernice who “did not take last lick and “had an indomitable spirit even as a child.”
His anecdote-punctuated tribute elicited bouts of laughter as he reminisced that his sister exhibited qualities of justice and fair play from young, spoke her mind no matter the consequences and was afraid of no one.
“Because she was bright and pretty and ‘red,’ she had many challenges from early. She constantly fought her way through that early period…and she got quite a lot of lashes for it. She was very strong and early you could see that impenetrable personality.”
Dame Bernice has been lauded for her sterling contribution to the legal profession; her scholarship and intellect; her passion for justice for all and her fearless battle to uphold the constitutional rights of all, was how close colleague and personal friend Sir Gerald Watt QC began his tribute.
He, however, painted a picture of a Bernice who butted heads, in a “respectful” manner with judges, was “fiery, passionate and argumentative,” but not rude or obnoxious.
“Bernice was not easy at all”, was how Sir Gerald summed it up, noting that she always had a twinkle in her eye, could pull and take a hard joke, was outspoken to the point of bluntness but bore no malice.
Apart from family members, several mourners from Anguilla where Dame Bernice was born attended the funeral.
Among them Minister of Home Affairs, Walcott Richardson who said the Chief Minister Hubert Hughes could not be present due to previous commitments.
Richardson zeroed in on the QC’s “exceptional ability to defend her beliefs without fear or favour and was outspoken on many matters regardless of repercussions to her personally.”
Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer reminiscing on the life of Dame Bernice said she was an inspiration to him and exhibited an extraordinary sense of commitment to duty; was a no-nonsense woman who brought urgency to every case.
He posited that the OECS fully embracing the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) would be the most significant way in which to honour the late jurist.
“We owe this to ourselves as a people and now at her passing let us move with precision and in haste to bring to life her dream for the region in this regard,” Spencer said.
And he has pledged to champion this cause, noting that the CCJ is one of the institutions that must be established, in both jurisdictions in furtherance of regional goals.
Musical tributes included Sir Maclean “King Short Shirt,” Emmanuel’s rendition of his song “Pledge” which was a favourite of the late Dame Bernice.
Following the communion service, she was interred in the churchyard of which she was a member.
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