‘The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh’ - Mother speaks after son’s tragic bus fall

With grief plastered over her face, Andrea Williams sits with her back to a rusty zinc fence in the tight-knit community of Gulf, located in Gregory Park, St Catherine.

Her heart is heavy. She had left Gulf in a jubilant mood on Sunday to show solidarity with the People's National Party (PNP) as it held a motorcade in Portmore to whip up support for its candidates in next Monday's local government elections. Williams' 15-year-old son, despite not being qualified to vote because he was not year 18, was with her as she left the community.

However, as fate would have it, the boy, Lamar Grey, did not make it home. He died after falling from a bus as the motorcade passed through the Southboro Division.

"Him always said to me, 'Mommy, you a strong black woman, so a him a keep me strong right now different from God, suh mi have fi hold it like a 'G'," Williams said.

Gray was the last of nine children for Williams. He weighed a staggering 15 pounds at birth, and in his short time had a profound impact of the lives of people, his mother said.

"Him jovial, love give joke and love laugh after people," the grieving mother said as a smile forced its way from behind the dark clouds and appeared on her face.

"Don't look nuh way and pass him 'cause him a guh laugh after yuh," she grinned. "[But] other than that, if him see yuh down, him a help you".

PNP president Mark Golding along with St Catherine East Central caretaker Raymond Pryce and councillor candidate for the Gregory Park Division, Oral Gunning, visited Williams yesterday where they expressed their condolences.

"It is a very, very sad day for me, personally, and obviously for the family to have lost this fine young man who I gather was a very enthusiastic supporter of our party," Golding said.

The PNP president used the opportunity to appeal to persons on the campaign trail to be careful while on the road.

"The campaign is not over, and there will be other situations where we are driving around. I will just encourage everybody just to calm down and not to take any unnecessary risk on the road. Think about your safety and the safety of others," he said.

Amid the tears and condolences, Williams recounted her last moments with her son. She said he was distributing water on the bus in which they were passengers and she urged him to save one for her. Soon afterwards, he hopped off that bus and boarded another on which music was being played.

"Him just want to go pon the bus wey the music deh, mi tell him to sit beside me, but you know how these young people stay, they love music," Williams told THE STAR.

"Him come off and mi see him and a try fi call him, but it was like something hold mi and I just couldn't call him back," the mother said.

Williams said a few minutes later she heard that a boy fell off the bus in front, and right away she figured it was him. Her worse fears were confirmed when the painful news was relayed to her. As she grieves her 'wash-belly' Williams has sought solace in the Christian faith.

"Me a tek it easy because me know seh a so it guh. It's life and death. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. Everybody a talk weh dem fi talk. A God work, me cah do nuttin, what is to be must be," she said.