Robert Lalah, Staff Reporter
WINSTON SILL, Freelance Photographer -
Governor-General Sir Howard Cooke (standing nearest the casket in the front pew) heads the group of mourners attending the funeral for Gladstone Mills, former professor at the University of the West Indies yesterday.
IT WAS a diverse group of family members, friends, governmental luminaries and academics who poured into the St. Margaret's Anglican Church on Hope Road, St. Andrew, yesterday to say goodbye to one of Jamaica's most prominent educators Professor Gladstone Mills.
Professor Mills passed away peacefully at his home in Acadia Gardens in St. Andrew, on September 26, at the age of 84.
The Jamaica College old boy, who went on to become an internationally recognised authority on public administration, was lauded for his numerous achievements in different facets of society.
From being a stalwart of the University of the West Indies, where he held numerous posts, including being the longest serving Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, Professor Mills also had the distinction of being the first chairman of the Electoral Advisory Committee, a post he held for 14 years.
Dr. Peter Phillips, Minister of National Security, in paying tribute to the late professor, remembered him as a man of unwavering integrity.
"Professor Mills had a high capacity for excellence. He spent his entire life in the service of his country and the Caribbean," said Dr. Phillips.
LOVE FOR CRICKET
Edward Seaga, Leader of the Opposition, in his tribute, said: "Gladstone Mills was one of the finest Jamaican public servants of the 20th century."
Mr. Seaga went on to describe the early days he spent with Professor Mills, pointing out that they were once teammates at the Kingston Cricket Club. He drew laughter from the congregation when he spoke of Professor Mills and his willingness to tell the story of how he once bowled cricketing great, George Headley, for a duck.
Mr. Seaga added that Professor Mills was a brilliant lecturer and a man who was always firm in his beliefs about what he thought to be right. "I can truly attest to the fact that he was a gentleman in the truest sense of the word."
