The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie yesterday remembered Rev Dr Earle Francis as an exemplar in the religious community who served the country in magnificent ways.

Dr Francis, the senior pastor of First Baptist Church at Market Street and Coconut Grove, was 92 years old when he died on Wednesday.

Many knew Dr Francis as “the pearl” who often expressed an unwavering love for his wife, Marjorie Eloise “Sweet Potato” Francis.

The couple were married for nearly 67 years and were the parents of 13 children, which included his daughter, the Rev Diana Francis, and sons, Percy “Vola” Francis, leader of the Shell Saxon Superstars junkanoo group, and Dr Emmanuel Francis.

While offering condolences to the family, Mr Christie noted Dr Francis’ historical mark as a pioneer in the hotel industry in the over the hill community with the construction of the Grants Town Hotel. It was located at McPherson Street. Mr Christie said the entire country should be saddened by Dr Francis’ death.

“From a cultural point of view,” Mr Christie said, “his home was immersed in the junkanoo tradition and therefore he was able to wear that hat as well. He did it with great aplomb in whenever you went to his church in identifying himself as a Saxon, and he was the Dean of Baptist Ministers. He really was so much of a positive influence on the increasing prominence of Baptists in the Commonwealth of Bahamas.

“Very little is known of the fact that he was also a hotelier and that he was one of the first Bahamians of colour to enter the hotel industry, to actually have one. It was at a time when we needed to see examples of leadership, pace setters.

“He will be missed, but the good news is that he set a wonderful example that will be enduring and lasting.”

Offering condolences on behalf of the Progressive Liberal Party, Chairman Bradley Roberts defined Dr Francis’ death as a bitter-sweet moment. The party, Mr Roberts said was not only celebrating the life and work of Dr Francis, but was mourning his departure from this life.

“Like many Bahamians,” he said, “I am grateful for the time God has loaned Dr Francis to us. The examples he has left us in terms of his love for and loyalty to God, family, community and country have left an indelible impression on the social landscape of the Bahamas.”

Dr Francis was commissioned to lead the then Salem Grove Mission located on the corner of Market Street and Coconut Grove Avenue in 1964. The years to follow saw the name changed to First Baptist Church and an expansion to the church’s family under his pastoral leadership.

Later, five churches were added to the mission. They included the South Beach Union Baptist Church, Harrold Road Baptist Church, Rivers of Life Baptist Church, Mt Theo’s Baptist Church and Cedars of Lebanon Baptist Church.

Dr Francis was also instrumental in securing scholarships for about 100 Bahamian students to attend Selma University in Alabama during his lifetime.