Unveiling of headstone in Arima...Rain on Kitchener’s parade

Unveiling of headstone in Arima...Rain on Kitchener’s parade
By David Cuffy, Newsday June 30, 2003

MANY of those in attendance deemed it appropriate that a heavy rain shower accompanied the unveiling of a headstone on the grave of the late Lord Kitchener (Aldwin Roberts) in a ceremony at the Santa Rosa RC Cemetery in Arima last Saturday afternoon. They referred to the heavy downpour as “Rainorama,” one of Kitchener’s more popular compositions, and attributed the torrent’s seemingly well-timed arrival as a sign that the Grandmaster was signalling approval of the effort. The ceremony was organised by the Lord Kitchener Memorial Committee, led by Errol Peru and comprising Valerie Green (Kitch’s wife), Dr Iva Gloudon, Rawle Gibbon and Kernal and Quweina Roberts (Kitch’s children). In attendance were Minister of Culture and Tourism Penelope Beckles, Mayor of Arima Elvin Edwards and Honorary Consul to Guyana Angela Gouveia. Other notable personalities present included Carl “Jazzy” Pantin, manager of Kitchener’s Calypso Revue Tent; Frank Martineau of Spektakula Promotions International; popular impresario Holly Betaudier; Val Lewis, Curator of the National Museum and Art Gallery; Port-of-Spain City Councillor Mickey Greaves; calypsonians Luta (Morel Peters) and Striker (Percy Oblington); Fareed Emamali, Jit Samaroo, Alvin Daniell and National Flag carrier Peter Diaz. In delivering the feature address, Peru based his remarks on a passage of scripture from the Book of Ecclesiastes that states: “Let us now praise famous men, and our fathers such as begat us, such as found out musical tunes and recited verses in writing. All these were honoured in their generation and were the glory of their times.”

He said Kitchener’s fame came through the decades that he wrote and sang the songs of Carnival —songs that made his name into a household one, well beyond our own boundaries. “When we gather, as we have, to praise this famous man, we are acknowledging formally, and in a public way, that we recognise and appreciate what he has done and we want the country and the world at large to know, “ he said. Green announced that the Kitchener Memorial Committee was busy working on the Kitchener Museum to be housed in Rainorama Palace, Kitch’s home on the Diego Martin Main Road. She made an appeal to corporate TT to assist in the venture and invited contributions from persons who may have any artifacts relative to the undertaking and would wish to donate them to the museum. Curator Val Lewis will be assisting the committee. The monument was constructed and will be maintained by the Cemetery Management Company Ltd (Belgrove’s) of Coffee Street in San Fernando. Also contributing to the gravesite memorial was Shaun Jodhan of Clark and Battoo Ltd. His effort consisted of a plaque mounted on the wall at the entrance to the cemetery that reads: “The final resting place of Aldwin Roberts, Grandmaster of Calypso 1922-2000.” Providing musical interludes at the event were Lalchan Samaroo and the Caribbean Paradise Steel Orchestra.