Kathleen Ruth Carrega

Soon it will be one year since you passed, Mom. May 3, 2018 will live in our hearts forever. Not a day goes by without thinking about you and how much you touched the lives of everyone around you. You are really and truly missed.

My favorite memories of you Mom have to be during the Christmas Seasons when we lived in Guyana. Sherene, Junior, and I always struggled to fall asleep on Christmas Eve, as we knew when we got up on Christmas Day the entire house would be transformed, and we always tried to stay up late to see how you did what you did. I never knew where you got the strength and energy to change the curtains, rip up and replace the linoleum (before we got a rug), decorate the Christmas Tree and the window panes, and cook all kinds of dishes. When we woke up on Christmas Morning it was as though we moved to another house while we were sleeping. I still remember that Christmas smell that wafted through the house.

As kids we didn’t get much because you and Dad could not afford to buy lots of toys. But the toys that you selected made me so very happy. One year it was a military jeep, and many Christmases you bought me a caps gun. Perhaps, that is the reason that to this day I still collect caps guns. I remember one Christmas, when we lived on Garnett Street, in New Town Village, you took us to Mrs. Bankay’s Drug Store on Middleton Street to choose what we wanted for Christmas.

Cowboy hats were the rage in Guyana, thanks to all those Western movies we saw in the 1950s. Mrs. Bankay had 3 cowboy hats: a Lone Ranger hat that Junior claimed, and there were two other “Mexican” sombrero hats – a red one and a black one - with those pom poms around the stiff brims. Since I never saw one before I was reluctant to tell you I wanted one for Christmas. Anyway, you bought all three hats: Junior had the Lone Ranger hat, you gave Sherene the red sombrero and to me you gave the black sombrero. I was reluctant to wear that sombrero and I was totally embarrassed since I never saw another kid wearing a sombrero.

I fell in love with my sombrero when one day you took us for a walk as you usually did when we were growing up. Coming from the opposite direction on Garnett Street was a young mother and her child. As we got nearer I noticed the young child staring at me. Suddenly the child blurted out in a very excited voice, “Mom: Look at that hat. It has guinea pigs on it,” as she pointed to my sombrero. That was it. That sombrero became my favorite hat, and I wore it proudly … until my head outgrew it.

Mom: Your church Family will be having a memorial Service for you on May 4, 2019 and I will be flying over from Mississauga, Ontario to join them at Lehigh Seventh Day Adventist Church in Fort Myers, Florida. I will spend a week with Dad to take him wherever he wants to go.

Lovingly remembered by Aubrey and Bernadette; Greg, Jenny, Quentin and Saige; Nick, Colleen, Nicholas, Alyssa, Markhell and Jayce; and Chris and Angelina.

5/28/20

Another year has passed without your being with us Mom. Not a day goes by that I don’t think of you, but I have accepted that you couldn’t be with us forever - no one can.

The countries of the world are on partial lockdown or total lockdown because of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) which has taken many lives throughout the world.

Dad has move into Page Rehab Centre since last November, and it is very difficult to get through to him on the phone because the telephone service at Page is not of the best standard. It took me over two months to get thorough and when I finally did, Dad told the attendant that he did not want to speak with anyone. He had shared a room with another guy who contracted COVID-19, so Page moved him to another room and according to Junie he is being monitored closely. Unfortunately, today May 5th, Dad has tested positive for the COVID-19 and has been transferred to Fort Myers Rehabilitation Health Care. We are all hoping that he recovers.

Junie’s wife, Evadne, tested positive but she is ok now. Sherene and Michael used to go to see Dad periodically but now because of the COVID-19 they are not allowed to visit him

On my side of the family: Greg and Jenny are doing alright. Greg is still Head of Guidance at his school; Jenny is still busy writing - she has to produce several chapters every month. Their son Quentin - our fourth grandchild - seems to be a natural artist. I saw him draw a complex cartoon without any reference material. He will be ten years of age in July 2020. He is doing well in school and is sharp looking. Their daughter Saige - our sixth grandchild - is still good at gymnastics. In February she won Gold, Silver, and a Bronze at a gymnastic competition, in Hamilton, Ontario. She is always doing back flips, splits and other gymnastic moves. She too is doing well in school. She turned eight years of age in March 2020, but is not looking so much like Bernadette, but more like her Mom but nevertheless still very pretty.

Nick and Colleen are off work because of COVID-19. Nick was reluctant to work with people who were coughing, spitting and not maintaining distance of at least 6 ft 5 inches from him, so he quit his job. Colleen’s workplace is on lockdown. The two of them are good parents to Jayce - our seventh grandchild - who will be turning five years of age in June, and is still very handsome. He is in Kindergarten and is enjoying school. Nick’s eldest child, Nicholas - our eldest grandchild - is doing well and is still polite and mannerly. He and Arlene are still together. He will be twenty three years of age this coming August (2020). He is working as a welder and he said he is learning new skills. Guess what? Bernadette and I are now great grandparents. Nick’s second son, Adrian - our second eldest grandchild - and his wife, Kaleeah, got a handsome baby boy on January 13, 2020. You would have spoiled him. He is adorable. They live in Alberta so Bernadette and I do not known when we will see him and his father and mother. Adrian works as a welder with an oil company in Alberta. Nick’s only daughter - our third grandchild is keeping well. She too has quit her job because of fear of contracting COVID-19. She doesn’t keep in touch with us that often because of work.

Chris is still a proud and devoted father to his only child Angelina - our fifth grandchild. She turned nine years of age last April and is now at her other grandparents, who live not too far from us right here in Malton. Angelina is passing all of her subjects in school. Chris is doing well and about a month ago he secured a job just opposite our condo. He walks to work.

Your children Sherene, her husband Mike; Junie, his wife Evadne; Bernadette and I (Aubrey) were there for your final farewell at your Church on May 13, 2018. Azis was a no-show. Shevonne and Zeke; Sean and Maya; Auntie Aggie, Auntie Doris; your Church Family, and friends were there. Lloyd, Sarah, Terry and Isaac attended your services but Jan and Elizabeth could not make it.

Sarah and Terry got married on June 29, 2019. No kids yet. Sarah came for your memorial service on May 4, 2019. She stayed at Sis Bromfield. Elizabeth and her husband got a baby boy last November.

I drove Dad to the Embassy in Miami on May 7, 2019 to get this life certificates that Bernadette and I took to Guyana to get his pension. I was successful in getting his entire pension deposited in his bank back home and then they transferred it to his bank in Florida. But all of the money that this back home bank transferred to Florida went to Page Rehab.

Lovingly remembered by Aubrey and Bernadette; Greg, Jenny, Quentin and Saige; Nick, Colleen, Nicholas, Alyssa, Markhell and Jayce; and Chris and Angelina.

Today, May 3, 2021, is the 3rd anniversary since you left us, Mom. And the pain of your transition still hurts. I still remember how numb I felt when that dreaded call came from your helper, Sister Bromfield. Never a day goes by without my thinking of you, Mom. I think I have to deal with that emotion until I, in turn, check out. I have included a link to "Mother's Love" by the late Trinidadian singer Sundar Popo. Hope in Heaven you have access to YouTube so that you could listen to that song. Whenever we get together at Indo-Caribbean Golden Age Association to celebrate Mother's Day, we always play that song. Love you always, Mom, Grandma, Great Grandma and Great Great Grandma. From Aubrey, Bernadette, Greg, Jenny, Nick, Colleen, Chris, Nicholas, Arlene, Adrian, Stefan, Alyssa, Quentin, Alyssa, Quentin, Angelina, Saige, Jayce and Harrison.

https://youtu.be/-jZpXpSjIIw

May 3, 2022

Today marks the fourth anniversary of your transition Mom, and I still find it hard to accept that you are gone. Sometimes I think you are on a holiday somewhere and you’ll return soon.

I hope you and Dad are catching up since he joined you on December 11, 2021. I am sure he’s talking your ears off about Guyana – his favourite topic.

Greg, Jenny, Quentin and Saige are all well. Jenny will be visiting her Mom in Korean next month. Greg and Quentin are not going. According to Quentin, Korea is too hot for him. I guess he is accustomed to our Canadian temperatures. Saige will accompany Jenny and Saige is trying to learn some new Korean words every day so that she could communicate with her other grandmother. Saige is still into gymnastics and just after her 10th birthday last month, she won several Gold Medals in a competition, in Hamilton. Quentin is back into creating spectacular stuffed toys. Quentin also has an eye for colour and makes beautiful abstract art, but he prefers to be on his iPad playing games with his friends. He will be twelve in two months. Greg’s wife Jenny is still writing Korean stories. She is doing well at it.

Nick and all of his adult children – Nicholas, Adrian, Alyssa – have new employers now. They are now in their 20s. The lockdown, because of COVID-19, struck long and hard. Nick’s youngest son, Jayce, will be six on June 18th. He is really into toy cars. He has well over a thousand of them and Nick had to make a large toy car organizer to store them. Jayce knows the model names of all his cars. It is remarkable that he remembers those names. Whenever Jayce visits, he and I have toy car races. I have a small collection of about 100 cars. Whenever Jayce visits, he comes with a big smile on his face, and he whips out his fastest cars that he brings with him. The smile on his face tells me he is ready to race my cars. Most times his cars are faster than mine. But the smallest of my cars is the fastest of my lot, and sometimes my car beats his. Nick’s grandson, Harrison had his second birthday on January 13th last. He is a Capricorn like you and me. He is just adorable. We have not yet seen him in person, as he lives far away in Alberta. However, we speak to him and his father through a program on our cellphones.

Chris is still in his job which is across the street. He just walks over. His daughter Angelina is doing her schooling from home. She and her cousin are learning to skate and are proceeding nicely. She told me a few days ago that she has a new iPad which has a program to make cartoons. I can’t wait to see it. When next she visits she will bring it over and teach me the technique of drawing cartoons. Angelina had her 11th birthday two weeks ago. She is growing very tall.

Sherene, Junie, Michael, their spouses, grands and great grands are doing well.

Sarah and Terry have a daughter whom they named after you. Her name is Norah Ruth Constantine Roland. She will be two on the 17th of October this year. If you saw her you could not help thinking how much she looks like Shirley Temple with her red, curly hair. You would love her so much as you dearly wanted Sarah and Terry to have a baby before you left us.

Bernadette and I are taking it one day at a time.

Much Love,

From: Aubrey, Bernadette, Greg, Jenny, Nick, Chris, Nicholas, Arlene, Adrian, Stefan, Alyssa, Quentin, Alyssa, Quentin, Angelina, Saige, Jayce and Harrison.