T&T state-assisted funeral for Mighty Sparrow

The Government will accord calypso icon Dr Slinger “Mighty Sparrow” Francisco an official state-assisted funeral, with Culture and Community Development Minister Michelle Benjamin also announcing a national tribute and other plans to honor his legacy. Benjamin made the announcements in the House of Representatives today as she paid tribute to Sparrow, who died in New York on Sunday, September 27, at the age of 91, surrounded by his family.

She said a committee had already been constituted to work with Sparrow’s family to ensure he receives “a funeral fit for a legend”. “Under the direction of the Prime Minister, an official state-assisted funeral will be held, a date to be fixed,” Benjamin said. She also announced that Calypso History Month, which begins tomorrow, will be observed this year in Sparrow’s memory

She extended condolences to his wife, children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, the calypso fraternity, the people of Trinidad and Tobago and Sparrow’s admirers around the world. She also expressed condolences to the people of Grenada, where Sparrow was born in Grand Roy on July 9, 1935. “We grieve with you for a son we have shared for 90 years,” Benjamin said

Benjamin said Sparrow’s greatest honor came from the love of the people. “It was the way a Sparrow song could play and the entire gathering would know the words,” she said. “That mighty man, the Mighty Sparrow, has taken his final bow. His music and his legacy remains, and it is ours. May his soul rest in eternal peace.”