BOTH mom and dad are elated to be travelling back home today after their sudden departure from Guyana in early February. On Thursday, February 1st as I was getting dinner ready, I got a call from my sister Maria who told me “you need to call dad now,” he had a cardiac stress test done and further testing and possible intervention are needed.
Evidently, the call was made to discuss the options with my brother-in-law Dr Dustaff Persaud, who is a medical provider here in Lowa and who has been monitoring dad’s health over the years.

Our first reaction was that he needs to be with his family at a time like this, so needless to say we insisted that he and mom get on the first flight, so we are all together and we can deal with the situation as a family.
It was a blessing that my dad’s colleagues noticed he was ill and intervened when they did. We are extremely grateful to them and to the medical team in Guyana along with his health insurance company.

The day we took dad in for his bypass surgery seemed like the longest day of our lives. Maria, Adela, Ernesto, Dustaff and my in-laws Ralph and Zena Joseph sat there with my mom, whom we could tell was a bit nervous.

However, we remained positive as we waited patiently for the surgeon to come back with good news of a successful surgery; and so he did a few hours later. We feel blessed to be surrounded by good friends like the Josephs and for my brother-in-law Dustaff and his team at Mercy. My deepest appreciation and gratitude go towards my empathetic husband Tony Joseph, who has been kind and supportive. Having had a heart attack last year, he had first-hand experiences to share with dad. Tony helped with preparation of healthy meals on weekends and spent hours chatting about diet, exercise, good music and whatever else triggers dad’s interest.

It’s been a wonderful two months having my parents with us in Lowa and probably the longest time that our children have spent with their grandfather outside of Guyana. Between doctors’ appointments and rehab sessions, there was also time for family dinners, movies, storytelling, and kids’ activities along with the occasional photo opportunity.
More so, it was important that we were all around to assist and care for dad during the post-surgical /rehabilitation period. My dear friends in Guyana please know that my siblings, our spouses and children have taken great care of your prime minister and his wife Sita Nagamootoo, and we are sending them back to you, who we consider their loving extended Guyanese family. We are sending them back to you in good health, along with their great enthusiasm to resume duties and continue the struggles and good works for the betterment of all Guyanese. Please treasure your time with them and continue to take good care. We wish them both safe travel back home!

As with any child, we would love to have our parents with us to love and spend quality time with, and to have their grandchildren around them as they live out their lives. However, his children of all people understand his love and passion for his country and his longing dream and desire for a united and prosperous Guyana. We have accepted the fact that while we cannot have him with us, we know that his struggles and work in life will be better served as he continues to make Guyana a better place for all Guyanese.

Despite the recent setback with his health, it was truly a precious time for us to be around him and my mom for the last two months. However, we can see through him that nothing would make him happier than to be in his beloved country doing what he enjoys doing the most, and that is fighting for a united and prosperous Guyana. I honestly feel that his strong desire to get back to working for the Guyanese people, gave him the strength and motivation to get through his recovery successfully. We enjoyed the quality time spent together, and cherish the new memories we formed within the last two months and with that said, I will be accompanying my dad and mom home to their beloved country.

Yours sincerely,
Angela Nagamootoo-Joseph and Maria Nagamootoo
Daughters of Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo