The funeral service for the late Speady Rollie Randy Harrigan was held at the Mount Fortune Seventh-day Adventist Church on Monday, 25th July. Rollie died on Tuesday, 12th July, 2022 at the Princess Alexandra Hospital, at the age of 70.
During the service, several tributes were presented by Rollie’s siblings, friends, members of the close-knit community of Island Harbour and members of his church family – the Seventh-day Adventist community.
His brother, Terry Harrigan, former Speaker of the Anguilla House of Assembly, read his eulogy. In it, he mentioned that Rollie was the second of his parents’ thirteen children. “One of Rollie’s great passions, as it was for most of us, was singing and playing music,” Terry said. “Rollie loved music. At a young age, our dad had taught him, along with our brother Arnie and me, how to play the guitar.
“As we grew up and developed our skills in music, Rollie began to write and record his own songs. Soon, we were able to establish ourselves in the local music arena, and formed a band known as The ARTELS which comprised a group of five brothers and one sister.
“On July 27th, 1977, Rollie and Celestine were married, and over the years they had been inseparable. They endured their challenges and enjoyed their triumphs together. They raised three sons: Chet, Terrone and Jerimi, but just one year ago, our family was shaken by the sudden passing of Terrone. The past year was very difficult for Rollie and Celes, as they became burdened by a measure of heavy grief.” Now, sadly, Celestine grieves without him.
“Rollie was driven by ambition and a sense of purpose,” the eulogy went on. “He enjoyed worshipping and fellowshipping with the congregation where he attended church, and where he passionately played his guitar during services. Overall, he loved the Lord, he loved his family, he loved animals and he loved helping people.
“Rollie was a humble man; an excellent musician; a song writer; a master electrician by trade; a loving son; a loving husband; a loving father; a loving brother; a loving uncle; and a great friend but, above all, he was a child of God.”
In his sermon, Pastor Howard Simon preached on the difficulty of carrying a heavy burden, referring to the grief that both Rollie and Celestine carried due to the untimely loss of their son, Terrone. “It is important that, as men, we learn how to exercise healthy grief,” he said.
He spoke of the instance where he visited the home of Rollie and Celestine on Saturday, June 25th, and evidently both of them were still grieving the loss of Terrone. “I was particularly ministering to Celestine with her heavy burden of grief,” he reflected. “As most men are, Rollie seemed to be so strong but, obviously, he too was heavily impacted by the loss of his son. I went off island since then, and had never thought that Sabbath, June 25th, would be the last time I would see Rollie alive.”
The Pastor spoke comforting words to Celestine in her state of bereavement. He compared her to Naomi, in the Bible book of Ruth, who had lost her two sons and her husband in rapid succession. Yet, she trusted in God to sustain her. “Naomi’s husband and her two sons died while they were down in Moab,” he said, “And it seemed like it was too heavy of a burden for her to bear. But one good thing about Naomi is that she expressed healthy grief.” He encouraged Celestine to grieve whenever she felt like it – to give vent to her sorrow, but to rely upon the Lord for constant consolation.
The service at the church ended with the recessional song “When the Roll is Called up Yonder”, and interment took place at the Sandy Hill Cemetery.
