Eulogy for Garth Ewart McKenzie Saunders

by Shaun Saunders

Abraham Maslow, famous American Psychologist once said, “What a man can be, he must be. A musician must make music, an artist must make art, a poet must write.”

Garth Saunders was a problem-solver. And that is exactly what he did- solve problems. Not just professionally, but real life conundrums. It explains the scores of persons I know (and some I personally don’t really know) who have expressed their deep admiration for a man they consider a great leader and mentor.

GEMS was remarkable, yet he was a simple man. He was a Jack of all trades, master of EACH. It is no surprise that he was Libra, able to balance the scales of life and find greater perspective in every situation. He was not one for pomp and circumstance. He would absolutely loathe the idea of upsetting the apple-cart just to honor his name. His legacy is cemented and will outlive us all. Fittingly so, as he believed that your reputation and good name were paramount. See Proverbs 22- verse one. Now, there is a distinction between reputation and character. A reputation is based off perception, but character is the fundamental reality of a person. With Garth Saunders, his reputation and character align beautifully. I know, pretty rare, right?

Garth Saunders (right), with wife Simone, sons Aaron (left) and Shaun

I only had to venture a couple steps into Kingstown, or any major town or village in the country for that matter, to hear, “Aye, you are Garth Saunders’ son? Yeah, I know Garth long time – a good man that! Or, “your father is a top engineer and manager – young man, you have big shoes to fill.” Oh, don’t I know it! The pressure, I tell you. As I perused all the thoughtful, kind and considerate condolences from loved ones, friends and colleagues, I felt a deep sense of gratitude and pride, given the recurring theme within all those messages – “..your father was a man of tremendous integrity and good character.” How could I let sadness be the prevailing emotion today, when Mom, Aaron and I feel a sense of immense pride upon hearing the glowing reviews of her husband and our Dad, which provide validation of everything we have always known about that special man. We travelled all over the Caribbean and North America together, as a family, many a summer vacation. He ensured that we had a happy, safe and loving home and that we understood the value of family life.

Professionally, my father provided 39 years of distinguished service to St Vincent and the Grenadines. He joined the Civil Service as a Civil Engineer with the Ministry of Communications and Works in October of 1983. After two years he was seconded to St Vincent Electricity Services in October 1985, and served for three years as a resident civil engineer on the Cumberland Hydro Project. After his service to VINLEC, Dad was approached by the CWSA in October of 1988 – to be employed as senior water engineer. He then served the CWSA for the next five years, up until 1993, including several stints as acting General Manager, beginning as early as age 31.

He was then requested to rejoin the Civil Service in 1993 to take up the role of Deputy Chief Engineer at the Ministry of Works. This appointment, however, never materialized, when for the first time, a junior telecommunications engineer was instead appointed as Deputy Chief Engineer. Dad eventually ended an unbroken 13-year period of service to the State in 1996, when he completed a masters degree in business administration, specializing in Finance and graduating with distinction. He then opted for service to the private sector for the next eight years as a manager within the local Goddard Group of Companies.

I would be remiss if I did not mention his contribution to Sports – particularly to track & field. Dad was also a former national athlete, athletics coach and Vice President of the Athletic Association when SVG first became a member of the International Olympic Committee in 1987. He also served as a member of the National Sports Council between 1994 and 2001, and was eventually appointed Chairman of the Board in 2001. He was also later appointed Chairman of the National Stadium Project Board in 2003, and over the next five years, oversaw the site development and design of what is today, the Diamond Athletics Track.

In 2002, Cabinet appointed him to the airport development oversight committee, and in 2006, he became a director of the new International Airport Development Company (IADC), where he served for 10 years as engineering advisor to the Board – during the design and construction of the Argyle International Airport (AIA). In 2016, following the completion of the construction of the AIA, Mr Saunders was appointed Chairman of the Board of the AIA Inc. to oversee the genesis of what is today, the management company of our new international airport. In 2020, Mr. Saunders was appointed as a member of the new Kingstown Port Advisory Board.

His most recent and well-known contribution to national development, however, came during his second stint of service at the CWSA. This stint, which began in 2004, saw my father, in his 18th year of service, achieve the distinction of being the longest serving CEO of that State enterprise. At the CWSA, he presided over a period of significant customer service improvements and financial stability and growth. He also initiated the implementation of important capital investment projects, including, equipment and technological upgrades, water supply and solid waste improvement projects, aimed at building resilience and improving the response to the increasing number of natural disasters.

Garth Saunders was the consummate professional. He was dedicated to his craft and held extremely high standards for himself and anyone he encountered with the ambition and willingness to learn and grow. He once explained to me that the reason he worked so tirelessly was because he strived to be the best engineer in SVG. He was never just working for a paycheck or even just to provide for his family. He went above and beyond because he truly cared about the quality of his work and improving the lives of the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines.

As I grapple with the fact that my father has passed away six-odd years shy of the proverbial ‘three score and ten’, I take solace from a couple things. The first is that, he was always a man of faith. He ensured that his family was raised in the church and centered our beliefs around serving God. He knew his maker, and he had frequent conversations with Him, and because of that I take solace, always believing that God knows best. Secondly, I take solace from the fact that his was a life well-lived. His 63 years might as well have been 126, given the fact that he made the most of, and got the maximum out of his talent and potential. I am eternally grateful to him for being a doting and dedicated husband and father, who by his love, care, protection and provision, adequately prepared us for this moment- never mind the overwhelming sadness. As it was famously said in the original Black Panther movie, “A father who has not prepared his children for his own death has failed as a father.” And just in case you haven’t gotten the picture yet, my father failed at NOTHING! Thank you, Dad.