St John residents remember Thompson

Article by Carlos Atwell

ALMOST A YEAR after the death of former Prime Minister David Thompson, the people of the constituency he represented still remember him fondly.
A NATIONNews team drove around several areas of St John to speak to residents there about some of their favourite memories and thoughts of Thompson.
“I knew him when he first started campaigning,” said Erskine Estwick of Glebe Land. “He was easy to get along with then and very approachable and that never changed, even when he became Prime Minster. He was always a realist,” he said.
Estwick said one of his best memories of Thompson was cooking for him.
“He came to my home a night and had some of what I called summer pudding. He said it was real good,” he said.
The team journeyed from Glebe Land to Edgecliff where another long-time friend of Thompson, Esther Reid, reminisced.
“I knew him when he first came on the scene. I used to work in Four Roads and he would come into the supermarket. He was a cool and calm guy; pleasant and polite and after he made it, he was still the same David.
“I remember one day I wanted to catch a Sargeant Street bus so I was walking when I heard a vehicle coming up behind me and stop. It was David and he brought me home,” she said.
Reid said the news of his death left her at a loss for words
The next stop was Colleton Tenantry where St Clair McCollin gave his perspective on the life and times of David Thompson.
“He was the kind of person anyone could talk with and now a lot of the road work he started has stopped. I knew he was going to pass away but it was still a sad thing,” he said.
During a visit through to Cheshire, David Walrond, the owner of the Wrong Turn bar, a popular spot where Thompson used to relax.
“I remember how he used to come here and make sport with the fellas. He was a very nice man, a family person,” he said.
Walrond said he heard the tragic news during a karaoke session in the bar. He said the festivities stopped immediately.
“The music died, everybody started leaving and the girls were crying,” he said.