Kind-hearted Froggy laid to rest

Grace Levy Chin, affectionately called 'Froggy', died on March 3, 2018.

This son of Edwin and Elizabeth Chin, he was born on October 12, 1942, in Rose Hall, St James.

Froggy, a Cornwall College old boy, grew up in Falmouth immersed in his parents' shop, which he later turned into a supermarket.

A skilled footballer, he got his nickname from the bow legs he had. Opponents found it difficult to tackle this baller, who would get by defenders with a shake of the famous bow legs.

His son, Andre, remembered him as one from the old generation, who struggled with verbal expression.

"I cannot remember him saying 'I love you' to me," he said.

Biting his lips to hold back the tears, he said, "I made the effort to tell him I loved him because his actions told me he did. He was a keen mathematician who would amaze others with this skill. My dad enjoyed playing dominoes and would tell stories of his game in his own dry sense of humour. Dad's jokes could be described as 'long distance'. Long after they were told, you would get the punchline."

Spirit of kindness

At his thanksgiving service at the Falmouth United Church on Saturday, the tributes spoke to his kindness to the Falmouth community in various forms, from sponsoring football teams to feeding several families.

His wife of 41 years, Marjorie, remembered this shy Chinese man who, in 1971, wanted to tell her he loved her, but just couldn't say the words.

"On one occasion, he came to visit me. I said to him, 'Come inside, mi nuh tan up a road talk to man'. He sheepishly came inside, and I knew then he loved me," she said.

Marjorie described Froggy as having an unquestionable spirit of kindness.

"People would come trust the goods, promise to pay. Even when they didn't pay and came back, he would still trust them. We have piles of unpaid receipts, which are testimonies to his kindness to the people of Falmouth," she said.

Froggy's grandson, Tiger, silenced the congregation with an emotional piano rendition of You Raise Me Up.

Froggy was buried in the Martha Brae Cemetery.