Official funeral for Oswald Harding on July 27

Cabinet submission on Monday for Dean Peart to be accorded official funeral

The official funeral for the late Professor Oswald Gaskell Harding will be held on July 27 at the University Chapel, University of the West Indies (UWI) Mona Campus in St. Andrew.

Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Olivia Grange, made the disclosure during the sitting of the House of Representatives on Tuesday (July 14). Professor Harding, the longest-serving senator in Jamaica’s history and the first person to serve two non-consecutive terms as President of the Senate, died on June 24. 

Minister Grange disclosed that a submission will be taken to Cabinet this Monday (July 20) for former Cabinet Minister Dean Peart to receive an official funeral. Not all former Cabinet Ministers automatically receive an official funeral. 

The Jamaican Cabinet grants official funerals on a case-by-case basis. Approval requires a formal submission to and agreement by the Cabinet, which assesses the deceased’s distinguished service and overall contribution to public life in Jamaica

Stephen Francis’ life will be celebrated on August 15

The Minister told parliament that a celebration of life for late head coach and founder of the MVP Track Club, Stephen Francis, will be held on August 15 at the National Indoor Sports Centre. Grange acknowledged that Francis’s untimely departure has left a void not only in the track and field community but also in the soul of the nation.

According to her, “Franno was not just a coach; he was a master architect of human potential who redefined the boundaries of what Jamaican athletes could achieve on the global stage. His journey, characterised by an uncompromising commitment to excellence and a fierce, almost stubborn belief in local talent, transformed the landscape of sprinting forever.”