Richter Edwards and sister, Hilda, were born 95 years ago at Hopetown Village, West Coast Berbice. They still live there today; in fact, they live next door to each other. But as Leroy Smith found out, they have not seen each other in years.
On February 25, 1921, the hardworking woman Rosaline McAlmont gave birth to twins Richter and Hilda on the planation now known as Hopetown. The freed African slaves had bought the plantation some eight decades earlier, and it was developing into a well-organized community.

Before the twins, Rosaline had two other children, and she later bore two others. What seemed like one of the happy families looking to build Hopetown was shattered when the father, Emanuel, just walked away one day and never returned.
Whether it was fate that blew her a cruel blow or not, Rosaline had no time to consider; she had to own up to the reality that she had six mouths to feed.
Richter, who was born a few moments before his sister, recalls that as children, they grew up on the northern section of the village next to what he described as the old Chapel Church and their family name was derived from “the old mission church.”
On a visit to Hopetown this week, we found him in his yard, sitting outside on a bench which also can be converted into a lazy-boy chair. His old transistor radio was on, but he didn’t mind us interrupting him listening to the news.
His feet were a bit swollen and he wore glasses to aid his vision. Next to him was also his walking stick.
The rigours of old age have taken a toll on him, but not so much that he would forget how his mother toiled to bring the family up, and to send the children to school.
He spoke of her doing whatever job she could find to feed the family, be it in the rice fields, the sugar plantation and at times, even more hard work.
“She bruck brick; all around my mother wuk fu keep we going” he said, talking to us in Guyanese Creole. He was referring to the job of crushing bricks which would later be used on road projects and the like.
The schooling Richter received allowed him to develop his love for Mathematics, and even today, with poor eyesight, he could quickly come up with figures and do calculations without the use of a paper and pen.
Both Richter and Hilda spent most of their lives in the same village, except for when they sought employment outside of the village in order to make ends meet in the family.
Richter contributed much towards helping the family, until he left to have a family of his own. And he did. He got married and went on to have four children with his wife.
Richter worked as carpenter and with that skill he helped construct several of the existing structures within Hopetown and nearby villages. At times, however, he worked outside of the village, such as Linden and Kwakwani.
He reflects with fondness on his younger years, and would speak of no “bad memories.”

As a youngster, Richter considers that he was ambitious. He lives in his own house, which he built on land purchased in 1942 for $15. He started off with what he calls an 18×12 shack until he earned enough to build his present home.
Today, despite health challenges, Richter can still do many things on his own, including cooking his favorite dish, mixed cook-up rice.
Because of his poor vision and poor mobility, Richter does not venture out of the yard, which explains why he hasn’t seen his twin sister in years.
The two have never really separated since their birth except when he was away from the community working.
The last time the two saw each other was in February 2010 when their children and grandchildren held a Thanksgiving Service to celebrate their 90th birthday. At that Thanksgiving Service the two hugged, kissed and chatted for a very lengthy period.
Their birthdays are still marked by Thanksgiving services, but are held separately, though simultaneously. Guests would visit each of twins individually. Like Richter, Hilda is limited in her mobility, and so getting across to each other’s house has proven to be a challenge.
Hilda spends most of her day in her bedroom, where she willingly accommodated us.
Her voice is not as strong as that of her brother nor is she as alert.
We were told by relatives that she also favors cook-up rice as her favorite dish, like her twin brother, and she would ask for him very regularly. We were told that there is not a day that passes without Hilda asking about her brother and how he was doing.
Her daughter, Pauline McPherson, said Hilda insists on taking care of herself, at least for some things, but they prefer not to leave her up to it.
Hilda suffers from cataract and glaucoma and so even if she is positioned in such a way to see the house next door, they will not be able to see each other.
Hilda has six children like her mother and she also worked in the cane and rice field to look after her children. In addition she has cared for several children from the community who are all now grown up and would sometimes keep in touch with the family.
In addition, her daughter told us that when Hilda was young, she helped take care of several elderly persons in the village.
In her school days, Hilda was said to be a top athlete, ranking first or second in races she took part in. Just like Richter, Hilda is cared for by her grandchildren and children.
Richter and Hilda are thought to be the oldest twins alive in Guyana, and they are among the oldest persons in Hopetown.