Centenarian Ethlyn Clarke stood tall through sickness and Hurricane Melissa

WESTERN BUREAU:

In August last year, Ethlyn Clarke suffered a major health scare. Two months later, she survived the brutal assault of Hurricane Melissa, so, when she celebrated her 100th birthday on January 20, she was full of gratitude to God for allowing her to reach such an enviable milestone.

“I am just excited about what God has done for me, just excited. The Word of the Lord says, ‘The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom’, and I believe it is the fear of the Lord that keeps me,” said Clarke, who resides in Mt Salem, St James.

Born in Bridgewater, Westmoreland on January 20, 1926, Clarke was the oldest of eight children for her parents, Joseph Brooks and Vida Brown, though she was primarily raised by her stepfather, Joshua Graham.

At age 19, Clarke left Bridgewater for Montego Bay, St James, where she sought and gained employment as a domestic worker.

“I went to Montego Bay to stay with my cousin and to see if I could get a job, and when I came to my cousin, I was told I could not stay there because it was only one room and it was just my cousin and his girlfriend,” said Clarke.

“I was so disappointed, but the girlfriend said, ‘Ethlyn, mi nah mek you go back up a country’, and she took the iron board and made up a bed behind the bedhead. I have to give God thanks because all the way I see that He is leading me.”

In 1957, she married Stephen Clarke, now deceased, and together they raised 11 children, two of whom have since passed away. Over the years, she has sought to be a good role model to her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren through her cherished Christian values.

Clarke, who is the oldest member of her church, the Faith Temple Assemblies of God, in Montego Bay, prides herself as a fun-loving person, who enjoyed dancing before she suffered a hip injury.

HEALTH ISSUES

While she now battles hypertension and sinus issues, Clarke is elated that she miraculous recovery from an infection last August, which she sees as divine intervention.

“In August, I was so sick, and they took me to two doctors. My head was stuffed up, I could not hear, and I was not getting better,” recalled Clarke.

“One night, the Holy Spirit told me to drink some water, and I took the water, and the Spirit said I must drink all of it. I took up back the bottle and drank all of it, and hallelujah, my eyes ran water, and ‘cold’ was coming out of my mouth and nose, and I got relief. The Good Lord touched me and I got relief.”

Caregiver Paulette Ricketts, who has worked for Clarke for 10 years, told The Gleaner that not even Hurricane Melissa’s passage last October could shake Clarke’s resolve.

“The hurricane did not affect us, as nothing happened to the roof; only at the back door, water came in, but otherwise it did not affect us. When the hurricane came, Ms Clarke sat right at the window looking out,” said Ricketts. “Afterward, everybody passed and was saying, ‘Really, the old lady’s house is still standing’.”

Meanwhile, oldest daughter Monica Shaw described her mother as a protective parent, whose guidelines she still follows whenever she visits her mother’s home.

“She was very strict on me, and all now she is very strict, and I cannot come and go as I please. When I come here to her place, I am ‘under manners’, and I have to tell her where I am going. She always kept us together, and kept us going to Sunday School,” said Shaw.

“To this day, I do not know how she would know when we do not put our tithe and offering in the Sunday School offering plate, but she knows, and you cannot lie to her,” said Shaw. “I thought she was wicked back then, but when I think back now, I say, ‘Thank you Jesus for letting us have her until this time’.”

christopher.thomas@gleanerjm.com