HARD PILL TO SWALLOW - Glenmuir-destined child died before realising PEP dream

Reinard Bryan wanted his daughter, Reimarie, to attend Glenmuir High School in Clarendon. He attended the school and suggested to her that she makes it her first choice secondary institution to transition into after the Primary Exit Profile (PEP). However, a cruel twist of fate robbed the Bryans the joy of declaring mission accomplished for that phase of their educational journey.

Reimarie, 11, of Portland Cottage in Clarendon, died last December, two months before taking the grade six ability test. Her family members are convinced that her death is dengue-related. On Friday, when PEP results were released on the island, Reinard posted on social media that he "would've booked my ticket to come home and celebrate with you, no matter the school."

Reimarie, who attended the St Margaret Catholic Preparatory School in Lionel Town in the parish, died before she got a chance to serve in her role as head girl.

"It's not easy but I'm proud of all her friends. I'm proud seeing her friends achieve. All her friends know me ... I'm like a father to them. But this would have been one of my turning points seeing that I would be proud to see that I said Glenmuir and Glenmuir it is. That was one thing I was looking forward to, it's not the greatest feeling," the father told THE STAR.

Only child

Reinard described his only child as a beam of light that was golden, special, passionate, outspoken and spiritual, adding, "She was always outstanding in school, she was always first or second place." He told THE STAR that his daughter's name is a combination of his and that of his mother Marie, who died when he was two years old. "She was more than a daughter to me, she was like the reincarnation of my mother."

"I don't refer to her in the past tense. I don't use death when it comes to her ... I use transition 'cause I don't think my daughter is dead. She's no longer here in the physical but I don't use dead or death."

Adamant to keep his daughter's legacy alive, Bryan launched an online campaign dubbed #ReimarieForever. The Facebook page, 'Reimarie Forever' has garnered over 800 likes since its January inception. "The purpose of the page is to keep others uplifted so they can feel and see the love she lived and to heal others that are going through similar pain. The life she lived was exemplary for an 11-year-old. I told her she was a black queen. She called herself Queen Reimi; I instilled that in her and she stood by that and lived by that."

"She had expressed to me that her aim was to change the world because she thought the world was lacking love. She was love, she was an example of love. She embodied loved. When you saw her, you saw love."

He lauded Reimarie's mother, Shena Ramsaroup, as a strong emotional support for their daughter, stating that the daddy's girl had a good relationship with her mother.

Bryan, who is also a recording artiste, said Reimarie was also a music enthusiast who accompanied him on his studio visits and was included in all his musical projects.