‘One of the best villages’
Randolph Mitchell poses with his many trophies (Carl Croker photos)
Randolph Mitchell poses with his many trophies (Carl Croker photos)

Lichfied elders enjoy their home

ONE of the many elders in Lichfield Village, West Coast Berbice, is Randolph Mitchell, a retired Regional Education Officer who taught at schools outside his village for many years before he retired.

The 75-year-old stated that his teaching career started on May 4, 1964, and he taught at many schools in the region and he retired in 2001 as Regional Education Officer.

Mitchell, who has established a cricket club in the village, was known as a sports enthusiast and was vibrant in horseracing too, said the village produced a lot of important people, intellectuals and sportspeople and among them was Ian Archibald and Grewon Grant.

He also spoke briefly of what he called ‘important people,’ including Wolsey Semple, a renowned engineer in Washington, DC in the USA. Semple was the founder of the very popular Semple Family Reunion held in the village every two years.

Lichfield, he said, is also known for producing quite a few talented doctors, among them Dr. Edward Belle, known as Nedd, who was a professor of medicine at an overseas university and a microbiologist.

Mitchell reported that attorney-at-law Darren Wade is from Lichfield and was a disciplined member of his cricket club, back in the days; a home-grown young man who made the village proud through his achievement.

The elder disclosed that over the years there have been a lot of changes in the village. Of those changes includes a great difference in the attitude of the young people as compared to their younger days.

He viewed this change as disturbing and growing up, any elder in the village was respected and greeted with much appreciation, but sadly, today, that is not so.

Mitchell pointed out too that farming is neglected in the village and the young people hardly ever want to get their hands dirty as farmers and some have resorted to narcotics abuse.

He stated that Lichfield is the village with many men and women in the police force and the army and teachers, including retired headmistress Cynthia Nicholson, who is in her early 80s.

Giving a little background on the village, Mitchell stated that Lichfield was bought by one person, Cudjoe Mc Pherson, for $3,000; and he later divided the plantation into 12 sections, which he sold to other Africans for a profit as transported lands.

By this time, the planters had realised that many Africans had accumulated much savings, so they immediately raised land prices.

The Anglicans once controlled the Lichfield Primary School before it became government-owned and controlled. There are a few other churches in the village and a health centre and a library, which was established in April 2004.

The elders
Meanwhile, two other elders in the village are Julian Semple and his friend, Thomas Davis.

These stalwarts were employed with the bauxite company and worked in the interior in their youthful days and are locals who still reside in Lichfield.

Julian Semple, who is a double amputee due to his severe diabetic condition, was sitting in his verandah enjoying the cool breeze while chatting with his fellow villager/friend, Thomas Davis.

Julian Semple

Both men said they worked all over the country but returned to their home village of Lichfield, which has the best playground; as boys they enjoyed many games there, but today it is fenced and just sitting there with a lot of cow holes.

The playground sits on a large plot of land aback the village, down a dusty dam and before you can reach it there is a muddy pasture where many cows were grazing.

The children would hardly go there since it is some distance away and near the village cemetery.

The children would utilise the playground in the primary school compound for games and recreation.

Thomas Davis

Semple said that as a youth, he spent a lot of time at the playground with others playing cricket, basketball, and football, among other games.

He added that the village produced a lot of sportsmen and women and youths in their time were active in sports and the playground was the meeting place.

Thomas Davis stated that Lichfield was one of the best villages on that corridor, but these days not much takes place and they have lost a lot of elders this year.

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