Legacy cast in stone

Grief and pride converged in a deeply moving moment last Thursday, as families stood in solemn silence, their hearts heavy with loss yet filled with gratitude, for the unveiling of a monument honouring the country’s fallen soldiers. Located at Up Park Camp in St Andrew, the fallen soldier monument, officially named ‘The Parade’, stands in tribute to 26 members of the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) who lost their lives in the line of duty. The Parade features an arrangement of towering concrete columns representing service members of the JDF, standing shoulder to shoulder in formation on a parade ground. Interspersed among them are empty, open spaces — “deliberate voids left in the formation”, according to Captain Hugh Douse. “These voids symbolise our fallen heroes, those who have passed away as a result of their answer to duty’s call, and those whose absence is deeply felt within the ranks. The monument features a wide curved concrete bench shaped as arms outstretched for embrace on which loved ones and grateful Jamaicans may sit and peacefully reflect on these heroes and their service. The Parade transforms grief into concrete geometry,” Douse told guests at the opening ceremony.

Elaine Blackstock, who accompanied her teenage granddaughter to lay a wreath at her father’s memorial plaque at the fallen soldiers monument, named The Parade, shares her appreciation for the gesture by the Jamaica Defence Force.

According to Douse, the JDF has long cherished the names of its fallen in memory, through the memorialisation of their names on the north-eastern wall of Garrison Church of the Ascension on the army base; however, there was a greater need for a single space where “We as a force and as a grateful nation could stand and remember those service members who have made the heroic, ultimate sacrifice for our country”. According to Douse, “Each part was chosen so that a child who has never heard these names can stand here and understand that the ultimate sacrifice was given by those we honour. So today, here is a place where a mother can bring flowers, where a daughter can find her father’s name, and where a young soldier can stand and know the lineage he now walks in. The nation has a place in which to say they were here, they served, and they are not forgotten.” Speaking with the Jamaica Observer after accompanying her teenage granddaughter to lay a wreath at her father’s memorial plaque, Elaine Blackstock shared that the moment was bittersweet for her. “My granddaughter lost her dad in 2008. She didn’t know him. Her mother is my daughter, she was three months pregnant when he died. In one breath I feel good that they are honouring his memory, but on the other side when I look back it causes sadness, because he was someone that I love like a son. He cared so much for my daughter. So I have that passion for him. But that’s life,” Blackstock said, fighting back tears.

Mitchel Russel lays wreath for her son at the fallen soldier monument at Up Park Camp last Thursday.

“It’s a sad moment, but it also shows that they really care for them. Even though they passed, someone still cares. And that’s the beauty of it. And also, the fact that his daughter can come, if she wishes, to lay a wreath whenever. She might not be doing it now, but in the long run, when she gets more mature, she will understand more than now. So we hope to come again,” Blackstock added. In the case of Mitchel Russel, her grief was palpable. She told the Sunday Observer that although her son did not get the opportunity to serve the JDF for a long period, his death in 2020 while on an operation in Milk River, Clarendon, has remained with her. “I have mixed feelings coming here today, doing all of this. It brought back memories. And obviously, I wasn’t doing well. I wasn’t taking it well. But I respect this move, because I believe that they should do something for them. Because it’s a life that was lost so they’re supposed to honour them,” she said. For Nadine Tucker, time has not healed the pain of losing her children’s father in 1991.

Nadine Tucker, who lost her children’s father in 1991, speaking with the Jamaica Observer at the unveiling of the fallen soldiers monument at Up Park Camp last Thursday.

“My first child for him is 39 years old, the second one is 38. Words cannot even explain how I am feeling today. Everything seems like yesterday, it all came back to me. I appreciate what they are doing. because my kids are away. My son is in the Navy in the United States, and my daughter is in the Cayman Islands, so they asked me to come and represent them,” an emotional Tucker told the Sunday Observer as she hastened to add that more emotional support is needed for bereaved relatives. “The family members who have lost their loved ones, they’re supposed to reach out to them more, provide more support, because it’s hard sometimes. Sometimes you’ll be out and you’ll be looking at soldiers passing, and then you are haunted by your own memories, so they’re supposed to do more to support,” Tucker argued. Chief of Defence Staff Vice Admiral Antonette Wemyss-Gorman noted that the fallen soldiers will be remembered with pride and gratitude for their contributions to the nation. “The circumstances under which they lost their lives vary, but today we honour them together and remember the lives they led in service. They have contributed to Jamaica’s security and that will endure through those they left behind. Through their courage, commitment, honour, integrity, loyalty, and discipline, they helped shape the JDF we serve in today. To the families here, thank you for joining us. Thank you for lending us your family to become a part of our family. We remember our fallen service members. You remember the people you loved, the lives you shared, and the moments that shaped each of them,” the chief of defence staff said.