Milestones

* AS we about to enter a New Year, let us reflect over some who left us in this year 2007 – particularly those who died recently. We honour the memory of Derick Ah-Lock, MBE, who is well remembered for his years as Registrar of the Supreme Court of Seychelles. Derick was the also the Chief Registration Officer of Political Parties in 1992. He left behind Helene, born Lau-Tee, when he married in 1955 and two daughters, Anne and Marie-France.

* BORN on the 1st December, 1917, Andréa Larue left us on the 18th of November, 2007. A great family man, Andrea left behind nine sons (Cyrus, Ernest, Gerard, Olivier, Amedée, Emmanuel, Fernand, Francis and Carmel) and two daughters (Cecile and Marylus). With such a family background, it is not surprising that l’Eglise de Notre Dame des Douleurs at Anse Boileau was overcrowded at his funeral on Wednesday 21st November. Andréa was with the British Army in the Second World War. He spent many years as Administrator and Commander-in-Chief of Silhouette Island.

* GUY LIONNET born in Mauritius passed away as a distinguished Seychellois on the 30th of November, 2007, at the age of 85. He arrived in Seychelles to take up the position of Director of Agriculture during colonial days. A lover of books, he also became a prolific writer and will be remembered by the ‘Romance of a Palm: Coco-de-Mer’, first published in 1970. He was an ardent conservationist who contributed very significantly to the spread of botanical knowledge in Seychelles. He left behind his wife, Marlene, born Savy, with whom he had four children – Nan, Gilles, Genevieve and Guyto.

* ON the 1st of November, 2007, the nation was shocked to learn that Marie-Anne Hodoul had been found dead at her tourist guesthouse “La Residence” at Anse à la Mouche. At the time of going to press, we under-stand that three suspects are now in Police custody, allegedly for murdering Marie-Anne, who will be forever remembered for her contribution to tourism development in Seychelles. Needless to say, the cruel departure of Marie-Anne was a shocking and sad development not only for the Hodoul family but also for the rest of the nation.