Talk show host and actuary Walter Blackman was celebrated as a national treasure during an emotional farewell at St Barnabas Church, where mourners honoured his legacy as “the voice of the people”.
In a thanksgiving service, friends, family, and fans came out in their numbers to pay tributes.
Opposition Leader Ralph Thorne shared heartfelt memories of Blackman, recalling their bond that began at the University of the West Indies. Thorne described Blackman as a man with a profound sense of justice, coupled with a keen awareness of injustice.
He said: “Walter had a deep sense of justice, and when one has a deep sense of justice, one also has an awareness of injustice. His contributions on the public radio station were memorable, because he always presented with this deep sense of what is right, and he had a resistance always to wrongdoing.”
Thorne further highlighted Blackman’s role in advocating for the professionalisation of sports in Barbados. He credited Blackman as the driving force behind promoting the national lottery, not for personal gain but to uplift young athletes and dignify sports in the nation.
“It was Walter more than any individual in this country who promoted the lottery not to enrich a few nor to corrupt a few, but to professionalise sports in Barbados,” he said. “So if there is any legacy that Walter has left with this country, it is that legacy of having promoted the national lottery to professionalise sports and to give dignity to young sports people across Barbados.
“I hope that Walter’s dream for justice in this country would never die.”
Trevor Ifill, Blackman’s brother, reflected on the unique qualities that defined his sibling, painting a picture of a man who overcame life’s pitfalls through education and empathy for his fellow man.
Ifill said: “When we weave all of these threads together, having experienced in his teenage years the pitfalls that would derail a growing man’s life, he knew what to avoid. Having read widely and deeply, understanding and valuing education highly, his strong empathic nature which made him accessible to and approachable by everyone, and his ability to present any solution logically and convincingly, when all these threads are woven together, we get the tapestry, the series of characteristics that define Walter.”
Rector of St Barnabas, Reverend Canon Dr Monrelle Williams paid tribute to Blackman’s courage in speaking truth to power in a society often marked by silence and fear: “Let us thank God for the unique gift that Walter was to us. In a society when all is not well and when there seems to be a conspiracy of silence and a fear to speak up, Walter was able to provide a voice for those who have lost their voice, and those who are afraid to speak. In a nation where we are told that we complain too much and how fortunate we are, and how much we have to be grateful for, Walter was that voice that was unafraid to say all was not well.”
“In a society where it seems that crime and violence has taken over us, Walter was able to provide a perspective of hope. In a sense, Walter was prepared to put country above self.”
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