A TIME TO BE BORN On the beautiful 21st of April 1937, a marvelous child was born to the late David Wright and Anita Royal-Wright, in St. Catherine, Jamaica. She was Elsie Rodesha Gillespie, “Aunty” as she was commonly called. She was the first of the union between them, but the fourth of eight children: four sisters and three brothers, with one brother pre-deceased. A TIME TO DEVELOP Aunty was an industrious child. She received her education at Ludford Mount All Age School and completed 12th grade. She was a homemaker for her entire life. She was baptized at the Wright’s Temple AME church, at a young age, and served in many capacities, until she migrated to the Unites States. She was an Evangelist, the church treasurer, and the Main Steward. A TIME TO LOVE Aunty was married once on December 31, 1967, to Archibald R. Gillespie (deceased 2009), and from that union, produced ten children, three of whom pre-deceased her at birth. A TIME TO REMEMBER If you knew anything about Aunty, it was that she was a virtuous woman. She was God-fearing and worked hard to raise and care for her family. She was always there for us when we needed her. She was up early to help get us ready for school, was there to wait for the early bus, to take us on her back to and from school when we were sick and could not walk, to make dinner for us, clean up after us while we did our homework, and put us to bed. Although she had no formal training, Aunty was a domestic woman who cooked, entertained, sewed, and made a lot of our clothes and uniforms. In the community, she visited the sick and fed the poor, and, in the political arena, worked as a census taker and an enumerator for the Jamaica Labor Party. Most of all, to her children, she was a provider when our father was absent doing his “thing.” She was a peacemaker. Her passing will leave an unfillable void in our hearts and minds. A TIME TO MOURN Aunty developed hypertension and diabetes while in Jamaica, and migrated to the United States permanently about ten years ago to live with her children. While living in the United States, her health deteriorated. She suffered at least two strokes, a heart attack, end stage renal failure, and, consequently, was on dialysis. She braved her illness, embraced it with unwavering faith, and on April 27, 2020, she succumbed to complications of her illness. She was brave; she fought a good fight. She was not afraid to die, and on multiple occasions said, “I am ready.” She sang, she prayed, and she cried with joy. She was at peace with her Maker and decided, before COVID-19 could get her, to meet her Maker peacefully in her sleep, while in the care of hospice. She is survived by seven children: Alice (Clive) Gillespie-Clarke, Patricia Gillespie, Dr. Marjorie Gillespie, Errol Gillespie, Devon Gillespie, Fredrick Gillespie, and her wash-belly, Shawn (Tamisha) Gillespie. She leaves ten grandchildren, twelve great-grandchildren, five stepchildren, four sisters, two brothers, and a host of nieces, and nephews, and community children. As one family friend put it: “Our Loss is God’s gain, as He welcomed an angel in heaven.” May her soul rest in Peace.