Tears flow for Haile Clacken

WESTERN BUREAU:

There was no shortage of tears and sorrow as family members, friends and former schoolmates of Haile Clacken gathered to say their final goodbyes during his funeral at the Munro College's Richard B. Roper Auditorium in St Elizabeth yesterday.

Clacken, who taught at Munro College and Hampton School for Girls and also worked for The Gleaner before being stricken by bipolar disorder, was shot and killed by a security guard when he climbed on to an armoured truck in St Elizabeth on June 23. The guard, Shawn Cole, has since been charged with murder.

During the funeral, Clacken - the only son of five children for former People's National Party councillor Tony Clacken and his wife Lilieth Clacken - was remembered as having been a role model during his days as a student of Munro College, and who was highly optimistic even after his mental illness first developed in 2001.

Lasting impact

Among those who paid tributes were Floyd Green, state minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information and a former schoolmate of Clacken's, and Custos of St Elizabeth, Beryl Rochester.

In presenting the eulogy, his sister, Shashu Clacken, gave thanks for the lasting impact her brother had on her and the rest of the family.

"He was my first and longest friend, and there was a depth of connection that is indescribable," she said her brother. "For everything he was and did, we are tremendously proud of him. Thank you, Haile, for blessing us with the treasure of your life."