HIS EXCELLENCY President David Granger was among hundreds who, on Monday, converged at the St. Anthony Roman Catholic Church at Friendship Village, East Coast Demerara for a service of thanksgiving for the life of the late William Arnold Lennox Parris, former Deputy Prime Minister of Guyana.Having celebrated his 75th birth anniversary just three weeks ago, Parris died on March 27, following a brief illness. Among the distinguished others who joined the bereaved family members in paying their last respects to the fallen political stalwart were: Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo; Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr Barton Scotland; former President, Donald Ramotar; former Prime Minister, Samuel Hinds, as well as several members of Cabinet and other officials.

Celebrant was the Rev. Father Jerri Dias, SJ; the Organist was Dr. Wendy Rudder, and the Emcee was Mr. Clem Duncan, a cousin of the deceased.

The eulogy was read by daughter of the deceased, Sarah Parris, and sons Damani and Yerodin Parris.

Amid the glowing tributes, Parris was remembered for his deep commitment to family, friends and colleagues; his generosity; his work on the Constitutional Committee, bringing benefit to Guyana and all Guyanese, as alluded to in a tribute by his close friend Tommy Payne, former Chief Archivist.

And Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo alluded to Parris as a very meticulous person. In a comment to the media at the Merriman’s Funeral Home, the Prime Minister recalled working with Parris on the Constitutional Reform process during the period 1999/2001.

“He was the Executive Secretary and I was the Chairperson… What we did was to bring the recommendations that were made and bring them into a legislative drafting by experts, and brought those to Parliament. In all, we’ve done about 154 or 157 changes that were proposed to the Constitution.

“He has always been a person with a very meticulous method of work, and he insisted on the research; and when we couldn’t complete the research by ourselves, he insisted on us getting experts. And that was the reason why, in 2001, he produced a book: “What it Looks Like”, and so he was able to reformulate the 1980 Constitution into a modified version,” Prime Minister Nagamootoo said.

The Prime Minister recalled it was for that reason he had invited Parris, when he became Prime Minister, to serve on a new Steering Committee on Constitutional Reform. Mr. Parris served as a member of that Committee until the time of his death, the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister disclosed that they were to bring, under Chairperson Nigel Hughes, recommendations on how to proceed with the Constitutional Reform Process, to deal with some specific issues that they were going to deal with during the last election campaign.

Duncan, in brief remarks, spoke of Mr. Parris’s analytical skills, literary objectives, logic and philosophy.

A relative, Joy Briggs, remembered Mr Parris as a gem — talented and affectionate; one who was the perfect father to his children; lifetime mate for his spouse, and was well loved and respected in the family. Deeming him a patriotic son of the soil, she also spoke of his invaluable contributions to Guyana.

A respected academic and man of many talents, Mr. Parris was eulogized by Minister of State Joseph Harmon as having touched the lives of many; as one who placed a high premium on assisting in satisfying the needs of others, and indeed, the people of Buxton and Guyana. “The gifts that God gave him were utilised for the benefit of his people,” Minister Harmon proudly attested, adding as his farewell commendation, “You have marked well.”

Celebrant Fr. Jerri Dias declared: “He has left a legacy in the hearts of each of us.”

Another son of Buxton’s soil, Mr. Weygand Gardner, who had come to be accepted as brother to the late Haslyn Parris and was well received in the Parris family, shared stories of the late Haslyn’s many skills and talents: His love for the trumpet; his excellence on the piano; his obsession with the Mighty Sparrow; his love for Jazz, and the prolific short story writer he was. Touching on Mr. Parris’s humanitarian nature, Gardner recalled he had helped many people in diverse ways, but had said nothing about it. In fact, so concerned had he been about other people’s welfare that he had eventually became a Justice of the Peace and Commissioner of Oaths to Affidavits, so as to be able to represent people’s causes.

And in the eulogy jointly presented by Sarah, Damani and Yerodin Parris, Mr Parris was hailed as one who had had a lifelong interest in music. They recalled how he had regaled the family on the trumpet on Boxing Day holidays and had them clamouring for more.

That apart, having grown up in the countryside community of Buxton, Mr Parris had been handy as a cook, was a master with woodworking tools, carpentry, joinery, photography and even ceramics; and while at Linden, had ventured into fishing and hunting as part-time hobbies.

Sarah has pleasant and cherished memories of her father’s involvement in games such as chess, checkers, draughts, table tennis, among others for which he had a passion, and very often played with the family. Born to Jack and Rhoda Parris, Haslyn, whilst growing up in Buxton, was baptized at St. Anthony of Padua R.C. church at the tender age of four. As a teenager, he attended Queen’s College, and later secured two scholarships: The University College of the West Indies Scholarship, through which he pursued studies as a Trumpeter in Jamaica and secured a BS degree in Mathematics.

He later returned to teach Mathematics at his alma mater, Queen’s College.

He was later to pursue studies at the London School of Economics, and by 1967 had successfully completed a Master’s Degree in Economics and Statistics. Parris, who was later to become Deputy Prime Minister of Guyana in the 1980s, demitted that office in May, 1991 and served on many Boards and Commissions, among which were the Herdmanston Commission and the Constitutional Reform Commission.

He has also written many books since 1991.