May 24, 2022
May 24, 2022
The year 1967 will always be a memorable time in the life of many of us, people of the Caribbean residing in Canada. Celebrating 100 years as a nation in Expo ’67, Canada, was the focus of world attention. Just the year before, I met Romain when a group of us, primarily of Caribbean background, banded together to create and present the first Caribana Festival governed by The Caribbean Community for Cultural Advancement (CCC), later known as The Caribana Arts Group (CAG). From the onset, one could see that Romain was an insightful thinker whose foresight we depended on and whose dedication we admired. Romain refused to take ‘no’ for an answer when dealing with legal, administrative, business matters and bureaucracies when many of us were ready to give up. With respect to Caribana, Romain said ”It was my idea to have a very large board of directors.” “People could become easily burdened and throw in the towel.” He also strongly felt that women should be involved at the board level as they were “critical to the success of every endeavour”.
We all battled through the ground-laying days challenged by limited financial resources. Determined to see our dream through, we often supported the festival with personal funds and guarantees. Solana Cain in The Official 2017 Festival Guide quotes Romain:
“I recall writing probably 500 letters to businesses asking for support. I think we got one contribution from the Bank of Nova Scotia. I can’t think of any other money we got from business over the years. The government’s ambivalent attitude towards the Caribana event, notwithstanding the immense economic impact Caribana had on the city, made me pessimistic.”
Even though it took many twists, turns, and even detours around what we originally envisioned, indeed it was a delight to see our dream grow year by year. We could feel satisfied that this came to be North America’s largest festival which also reached international acclaim.
As committed as Romain was to his work and family, he still dedicated time and resources to Caribana. As a lawyer, Romain and his legal partner, Eric Lindsay, would often provide pro bono legal services. They remained loyal to Caribana and to each other throughout. Romain had a keen legal mind and was brilliant at analysing cases. According to Eric they would spend many enjoyable hours after work discussing legal matters and world affairs. This routine continued by telephone for many years afterward when they were both presiding as judges.
Personality- wise, Romain was incredibly humble and down to earth. As my lawyer, he always made himself available when I needed consultation. He entrusted his children’s dental care to me. We exchanged these business services and were friends for over 50 years. As a strong, tall, and physically fit young attorney, I can remember Romain walking to work daily instead of driving or even using ‘the better way’. He never backed down from a confrontation and always stood his ground. I recall his battles with his two elderly female bully neighbours he had who frequently and purposely frightened his children while playing the backyard. On one occasion they decided to be even more irritable and called City of Toronto to inspect repairs that Romain was doing to his home. For these unfortunate informant neighbours this inquisition backfired on them when the City inspectors upon arriving, concluded that they were one that in violation of certain bylaws and left them with a citation work order. This I would consider poetic justice.
Romain was an avid community person; always engaging members to support causes and particularly focused his attention on youths that were at risk.
One of the last times I saw Romain was during the dedication of the Jolly Way in honour of Denham Jolly.
We recounted many fond memories of the early years of Caribana. Romain noted although he was unable to be actively involved, he wished Caribana’s objectives to be best preserved and developed by the new generation. He encouraged people, largely of Caribbean descent, to “pursue the dream”.
How untimely it must have been for Romain and his family to suffer the loss of his son-in-law just a few days before his death.
I wish to express my sincere condolences to his wife Amabelle, daughter Jennifer, son, Kevin, youngest daughter, Tracy, and extended family for their sudden loss. May God continue to bless and support you during these challenging times.
Dr. Maurice L. Bygrave DDS
We all battled through the ground-laying days challenged by limited financial resources. Determined to see our dream through, we often supported the festival with personal funds and guarantees. Solana Cain in The Official 2017 Festival Guide quotes Romain:
“I recall writing probably 500 letters to businesses asking for support. I think we got one contribution from the Bank of Nova Scotia. I can’t think of any other money we got from business over the years. The government’s ambivalent attitude towards the Caribana event, notwithstanding the immense economic impact Caribana had on the city, made me pessimistic.”
Even though it took many twists, turns, and even detours around what we originally envisioned, indeed it was a delight to see our dream grow year by year. We could feel satisfied that this came to be North America’s largest festival which also reached international acclaim.
As committed as Romain was to his work and family, he still dedicated time and resources to Caribana. As a lawyer, Romain and his legal partner, Eric Lindsay, would often provide pro bono legal services. They remained loyal to Caribana and to each other throughout. Romain had a keen legal mind and was brilliant at analysing cases. According to Eric they would spend many enjoyable hours after work discussing legal matters and world affairs. This routine continued by telephone for many years afterward when they were both presiding as judges.
Personality- wise, Romain was incredibly humble and down to earth. As my lawyer, he always made himself available when I needed consultation. He entrusted his children’s dental care to me. We exchanged these business services and were friends for over 50 years. As a strong, tall, and physically fit young attorney, I can remember Romain walking to work daily instead of driving or even using ‘the better way’. He never backed down from a confrontation and always stood his ground. I recall his battles with his two elderly female bully neighbours he had who frequently and purposely frightened his children while playing the backyard. On one occasion they decided to be even more irritable and called City of Toronto to inspect repairs that Romain was doing to his home. For these unfortunate informant neighbours this inquisition backfired on them when the City inspectors upon arriving, concluded that they were one that in violation of certain bylaws and left them with a citation work order. This I would consider poetic justice.
Romain was an avid community person; always engaging members to support causes and particularly focused his attention on youths that were at risk.
One of the last times I saw Romain was during the dedication of the Jolly Way in honour of Denham Jolly.
We recounted many fond memories of the early years of Caribana. Romain noted although he was unable to be actively involved, he wished Caribana’s objectives to be best preserved and developed by the new generation. He encouraged people, largely of Caribbean descent, to “pursue the dream”.
How untimely it must have been for Romain and his family to suffer the loss of his son-in-law just a few days before his death.
I wish to express my sincere condolences to his wife Amabelle, daughter Jennifer, son, Kevin, youngest daughter, Tracy, and extended family for their sudden loss. May God continue to bless and support you during these challenging times.
Dr. Maurice L. Bygrave DDS
