By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune News Editor

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

FORMER State Minister for Legal Affairs Damian Gomez yesterday reflected on the life and legacy of his father, retired Anglican Archbishop Drexel Gomez, describing him as “everything” to his family and one of the region’s most influential church leaders.

“We are just recovering from yesterday,” Mr Gomez said. “I’ve started the plans for the funeral, and in due course, we will make a statement concerning the funeral and arrangements that will follow from that.”

He said his father, who died on Tuesday at 88, “lived a full life” and left an indelible mark on generations of clergy across the Caribbean.

“Almost 60 percent of the clergy in the region would have been tutored by him when he was Bishop of Barbados because he also taught at Codrington College, which was the main seminary for most of the Caribbean,” he said. “It was his alma mater, and he spent a lot of time making sure that that was a success.”

Mr Gomez noted that his father’s work in parish ministry and theological education shaped the region’s church leadership. After studying at the University of Durham, Archbishop Gomez returned to Codrington College as vice principal, following years of parish service in The Bahamas.

“His contribution to parochial worship is possibly the most significant contribution in his legacy,” Mr Gomez said.

He described his father’s final days as difficult, noting that he suffered from stomach cancer. “He was everything to me,” he said. “In his last days, he was very weak, and it was difficult for all of us. Talking was energy expensive, and he didn’t say very much. He would nod. We would ask him if he was in pain, and he’d shake his head no. He slept most of the time.”

Mr Gomez said the cancer eventually prevented food from reaching his father’s lower stomach, which ultimately caused his death.