The Tribune

By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

A MONTH after losing her only son in the fatal North Andros plane crash, Apostle Dr Jan Jones still struggles to separate the waves of grief crashing over her, admitting that she’s at a place where “me myself don't know where I'm at.”

“We pray but it ain’t easy,” said Dr Jones, whose son Giovanni “Geo” McKenzie was among the ten people killed on July 10 after their Flamingo Air aircraft crashed near San Andros airport. “We begin to laugh, talk and all the rest of it but it’s really hard.”

She said the family has its good and bad days, but is relying on faith to cope even as questions remain surrounding the tragedy.

Her youngest daughter, whom McKenzie helped raise, often asks why her brother died the way he did, Dr Jones said.

The teenager is also struggling with the painful reality that her brother will not be present for her graduation next year.

For Dr Jones, the pain is just as profound. She said her son’s death has left a piece of her missing.

“If you’re not careful, You could literally lose your mind,” she said. “Sometimes I don't eat. Sometimes I can't sleep. It's just gone. I don't know. It's like I'm at a place where me myself don't know where I'm at.”

Dr Jones said she and her son had an unbreakable bond, with his three sisters often joking that McKenzie was her favourite child.

However, the mother of four said while she loves all of her children same, McKenzie held a special place in her heart because they had so much in common.

They also shared many firsts together.

“We spoke about everything and even though his father was there, I was the one who he always would come to,” she said. “I even taught him how to drive the car. I bought him the first instruments he ever had.”

When Dr Jones learned of her only son’s death, she found out in the worst way possible — through social media. Calls later poured in, confirming the news.

“I think it was nasty. Actually, I feel basically we should have had a call from the officials rather than just going on Facebook to see something, and people saying, "Oh, go look on Facebook! That whole plane crash and all of them die and Gio die’.”

She recalled immediately experiencing pain after hearing the news, likening the feeling to having contractions.

“It was like I gave birth to my baby and at the time, I couldn't cry. I just started to speak in tongues. That's the only language I knew at that particular time and I said God what is your response in all of this. I just needed to hear the response of God in the midst of it.”

Even now, she sometimes cannot sleep or eat, especially as the family prepare to bury him this weekend.

McKenzie, 35, was among the few victims whose bodies remained intact following the crash.

One of their final conversations before McKenzie’s death, Dr Jones recalled,  was about his plans for the future.

The talented keyboardist and popular bandleader had shared his goals for the year, many of which centred around his passion for music.

He had big plans for Da Pond, often dreaming of performing internationally. He recently purchased new instruments and also wanted to start a music school and launch several other businesses.

“Wherever music is, that's where he is,” Dr Jones said. “He was somebody that was always ambitious and always believed that they’re going get to the top because that's how I train my children because of what I do too.”

The disaster has also deeply affected McKenzie’s church family  at Revolution Church - where he worshipped and played the keyboard.

Members of the congregation called him a pleasant man who was dedicated to his faith.

Dr Jones, meanwhile, described her son as a visionary and people builder, saying he believed in bringing out the best in people.

She said she still has many questions surrounding his death, some of which she declined to disclose.

She said Flamingo air has yet to meet with family but added she remains hopeful that she will eventually get the answers.

“The only thing I want to do is at this time, right now, is to lay my son at peace, rest and then whatever I have to take care of, I’ll take care of afterwards,” she said.