PRESIDENT Donald Ramotar and First  Lady, Ms. Deolatchmee Ramotar, Prime Minister Samuel Hinds and  Mrs. Hinds , Ministers of Government, and members of the Disciplined Services, were among, scores of Guyanese, who paid their last respects at a funeral service for the late, Mr. Laurie Leland Lewis, former Commissioner of Police, yesterday. The funeral service at the St. Georges Cathedral was conducted by the Reverend Terry N. Davis with Dr. Wendy Rudder as the organist.
During the two-hour long event several speakers eulogized the late Mr. Lewis, describing him as an exemplary Guyanese and a great and outstanding patriot.
In a eulogy his close friend, Mr. Roshan Khan, of R.K’s Guyana Security Service described him as one of the most professional Commissioners of Police in Guyana ever; never vindictive, ever loving, who had left the living to join his God and his ancestors, having fulfilled destiny.

During his glowing tribute Roshan Khan said: “Laurie Leland Lewis will live in the hearts of professional policemen and women, and all good citizens for all times. His name will be etched in the annals of history, and he definitely leaves footprints in the sands of time.”
Another speaker, Mr. Leroy Brumell, Commissioner of Police (Ag), traced the history of the service of the former Commissioner from the date he joined the Police Force in 1961 to the date he became Commissioner of Police in 1990 and his eventual retirement in 2001.

Brumell disclosed that apart from his service to the Police Force, Lewis also served as Deputy Director General (DDG) of the Guyana National Service (GNS), and also served as Manager of the National Guard Service (NGS).

“He was an avid sportsman playing games such as cricket, volleyball, and badminton. He played a prominent role also in many organizations including the Guyana Badminton Association, the Guyana Amateur Boxing Association, National Sports Commission, the Rotary Club of Georgetown and the Queen’s College Old Students Association (QCOSA),” Brumell disclosed.

He credited Lewis with the establishment of the IMPACT programme, the Police Community Outreach programme, the Rosemary Lane Committee, the Police Force’s Benevolent Fund and the Juliet Griffith Day Care Centre for children of policemen, among others.

Brumell also credited Lewis with the decentralisation of the training of policemen, and the establishment of a monument to honour policemen who died in the line of duty.
Lewis attended Queen’s College from 1953 to 1961 as a member of Woolley House, and later joined the Old Students’ Association where he served as President from 1992 until 2008.
He was also appointed to the Queen’s College Board of Governors and eventually served as its chairman.

In what was felt by many to be a very poignant part of the funeral programme, several former students (Old Boys) of the Queen’s College Secondary School lustily sang the school song “Reginae Collegium” before the body was taken for its cremation at Good Hope, East Coast of Demerara.