Myrtle Evadne Palmer

The life of Myrtle Palmer is one that must be celebrated because of the awesome human being she was during her sojourn here on earth.  She was christened Myrtle Evadne Palmer by her parents Rodella Peart Palmer and Perry Isaac Palmer, and was born on February 15, 1929.  She departed this earth on Tuesday, December 8th, 2020.  She was the sixth of eleven children, and is survived by one sister, Violet Palmer, and two brothers: Clarence and Basil Palmer.  She grew up in the little district of Upper Lincoln, in Manchester, Jamaica.  Upper Lincoln is a mostly cool and breezy place with rolling hills, verdant pastures and citrus trees of every variety.  It is against this backdrop that the life of the hardest working, most committed to a task, woman that we know, was forged.  She attended the Fairfield All-Age School, and also the Fairfield Moravian Church. 

In the early ’60s, Myrtle journeyed from her hometown to join her elder sister Doris in Kingston.  There, she worked at various jobs until gaining employment as a store clerk at Sossos on King Street.  She worked there for many years until immigrating to the United States in 1986, settling in Brooklyn, New York.  Before her retirement, she worked as a home health aide.  She received a great deal of satisfaction from her job, as she loved caring for others.

Myrtle had a very likeable personality, and you would have to search far and wide to find someone who had a negative word to say about her.  She was considerate, generous and understanding, and mothered in a way which reflected those attributes.  She was by no means a softie or a pushover, for “spare the rod, spoil the child” was a corrective form of discipline she often employed.  Her love for her children was always evident.  She was a dedicated mother to four girls: Ilene, Jennifer, Hillary and Yvonne, and a niece, Constance, whom she considered a daughter.  She also mothered family who visited with her for extended periods of time, and those who were left in her care temporarily while their parents immigrated.  Myrtle had a great sense of humor and would have you in stitches, especially with the way she imitated the character traits of others. 

Myrtle was a quiet person by nature, and the things she enjoyed doing matched her persona.  She was a very good cook who truly enjoyed cooking.  When she resettled in America, she fell in love with the “can-hardly-win-a-game” New York Knicks.  They would have her up past her bedtime in anxiety overdrive, praying for them to win their match -- which they typically did not.  That never put a damper on her love for the team though.  She also took a fancy to the game shows “Let's Make a Deal” and “The Price is Right.”  She never did too badly with her guesses, and I always told her she should try to get on one of those shows.

Myrtle loved her God more than anything and anyone.  After all, He had been her BFF all her life, and had never failed her in all that time.  Church was one of her favorite places to go, and she would go faithfully every Sunday morning and Wednesday evening, and in between when occasions arose.  She loved the old classic hymns.  Rock of Ages, The Old Rugged Cross and Amazing Grace were some of her favorites.  She attended the Lenox Road Baptist Church shortly after arriving to New York.  She was a member of the Seniors Ministry, and though not an official member of the Missions Ministry, she often volunteered on Thursday and Friday evenings to help with meal preparations for the meal program.    

She supported the church at almost all of its events, because she loved her church and her pastor.   Myrtle taught by her actions as well as by her words.  Long before we understood the meaning of what was said, we were “schooled” by it.  If we heard her say “chicken merry, hawk de near”, we knew that was not part of a nursery rhyme, but rather an ominous warning -- watch out because you are asking for a beating.  There were many more such sayings: “one one coco full basket”, “meekly wait and murmur not”, “a nuh same day leaf drop off a tree it rotten”, “puss an dawg nuh have di same luck” and “every mickle mek a muckle”.  Definitely wisdom to live by, and which lingers and continues to mold and shape our lives, behavior, and mindset.

Myrtle was not a big eater (you could not call her craven).  Her go-to foods were your typical Jamaican fare, and I am going to start with her number one favorite --Bullacake.  She looovved soup, gungo peas, red peas, chicken … any kind of soup.  In earlier years, she enjoyed curry goat, oxtails, cow foot, stew beef, etcetera, but in her senior years, she and red meat had a big break up that led to a divorce.  After that, she only ate chicken, fish and vegetables.

Myrtle has enjoyed a blessed life, and God has been faithful all of her ninety-one years.  She had testimonies of how He brought her through many a storm, trial or challenge; how He made a way when she did not have the answer; how He turned things around in her favor; how He protected and kept watch over her; how He was always a very present help in her time of need; how He gave her the gift of salvation, and because of that precious gift, she is able to join Him in glory.

Hers has been a life with its ups and downs, twists and turns, but a righteous end.  Myrtle fought the good fight of faith and she has finished the race set before her.  There is stored up for her in heaven a rich reward so well deserved.  She has left behind a rich legacy of example, one which speaks of how to be a good person, with broughtupsy (good manners), benevolence (giving without expecting to receive), loving and caring for and about others, and living a godly life.  It is this legacy that will continue to inspire those who knew her well, and will serve as a road map for doing good.  Godspeed Myrtle, Mommy, Aunty Merks, Aunty Myrtle, Grandma.  Keep a watch, till we meet again.

Myrtle is survived by and will be terribly missed by her four children, three grandchildren, four great-grandchildren, sister and brothers, nieces, nephews, and a host of other family members, friends and loved ones.

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