The Tribune

SIR Sidney Poitier is the uncle of Stephanie Poitier, Senior Nursing Officer at Princess Margaret Hospital Administration Office.

She said her uncle was somebody who kept in touch and was ‘proud to claim his heritage.’

“I remember when the PLP won the first election in 1967. I remember seeing him, walking the streets with all the persons working at the different polls on walkie talkies. He provided walkie talkies for them. They needed to have telephones to be communicating.”

Sir Sidney added to the momentum of the Bahamian suffrage movement by providing cars to make connecting with one another easier.

“He felt as though it was his duty to be a part of that and make a great contribution. And when we won, it was my father and those who were campaigning up and down. They were so happy. It was such a great victory at that time and a time of pride for The Bahamas and being Bahamian,” said Sister Poitier.

She recalls her Uncle Sid’s passion for being a perfectionist, making movies, intense research and study, travelling, serving his country in Japan as an international delegate in an ambassadorial position.

She said he never forgot where he came from and he was always accessible to his family, so he appreciates that the government wants to honour his life.

“Being around him, he was just normal. He was just my uncle. He loved family and he loved being involved with his family. We could pick up the phone and call him at anytime. He loved knowing what is going on with them and letting him know what is going on here,” said Ms Poitier.

“He keeps involved and he keeps abreast of what is happening in the country. He has never forgotten his roots, no matter where he went or what he did. I think he took The Bahamas and the Bahamas culture and the history of The Bahamas with him. He likes to talk about The Bahamas and Cat Island where he spent some of his youth.

Sir Sidney took part in the civil rights struggle in The Bahamas.

“In the end, for him, it was about The Government. It was not whether he was PLP or FNM, he didn’t take sides like that. He felt like as a son of the soil, it was his duty and his right to want to make a contribution in whatever way he could do it,” said Ms Poitier.