Frankie has an abiding faith in people and never gives up on encouraging and building new friendships. It is the mark of his personality which has endeared him to so many. Continued from previous page Our friendship thrived in this environment as we shared long conversations about the future of the Caribbean. Such discussions persist until today. Our paths would continue to cross since though I left Montserrat; I ended up returning from time to time and visiting him and his family. We would stay in good touch as Frankie worked as a consultant to the government of the British Virgin Islands, and I had the pleasure of staying with him on my first visit. Barbados would be the next solid connection. Frankie and his family moved there after giving yeoman service to the island during the height of Montserrat's most challenging years with the Soufriere Hills volcano. Here I would visit him at CARICAD, where he served with distinction in a role which I am sure he enjoyed most. His position allowed him to pull together his regional experiences to mentor and build a new core of regional civil servants committed to the work required to drive development objectives. Frankie has an abiding faith in people and never gives up on encouraging and building new friendships. It is the mark of his personality which has endeared him to so many. At this stage, as Frankie contemplates retirement, I am reminded of the words of my father, who said that one should not retire unless you are ready to be fossilised. As an expert in agriculture, his first love, I am sure that Frankie will not likely become a relic of the past. I am sure that he will emerge as a new bloom from fresh seed planted in the ground of Caribbean development. And I expect to be assured of our continued friendship. 9
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