The Tribune

By NICO SCAVELLA

Tribune Staff Reporter

nscavella@tribunemedia.net

FAMILY, friends and colleagues of slain Charles W Saunders Baptist School teacher Marisha Bowen yesterday mourned the “untimely and tragic death” of a woman they all hailed as a “great teacher” and “cheerful, fun loving young lady” who was “full of life”.

During a memorial service in Ms Bowen’s honour at the school’s campus on Jean Street, hundreds of students, as well as faculty and numerous acquaintances, paid respects to the 35-year-old Guyana native, who they all said captivated her peers and others alike with her “vibrant” personality and “impeccable” sense of style while alive.

However, most, if not all, of those paying tribute to Ms Bowen at the William Thompson auditorium recalled her “beautiful, charming smile” which one individual said “captivated the hearts of all who came in contact with her”.

Ms Bowen, who was pregnant, was found dead shortly after 8am on Friday, September 9, in her apartment by other tenants of a complex on Red Sea Road, off Sumner Street, suffering from a single wound to the body, according to initial police reports.

“The untimely and tragic death of our colleague and friend was a shock to all of us and indeed our hearts are saddened as we mourn her loss,” CW Saunders Principal Dr Shelton Higgs said yesterday. “We will forever miss her candidness and affectionate smile.”

“The tragic death of our colleague and friend will be hard for us to come to terms with. We will remember her for the beautiful and lovely person she was.”

Michelena Broomes, Ms Bowen’s sister, said yesterday: “I remember her as loving, always smiling … a generous person, industrious, and I could go on. She was always telling me that I’m rather boring, and that I need to loosen up. But that was my sister.”

Eleanor Welch, Ms Bowen’s former teacher who would years later become her colleague in the teaching profession, provided perhaps the most colourful tribute, describing how the two forged a relationship after reuniting in the Bahamas in 2014.

“She was a cheerful, fun loving young lady, who was full of life,” Mrs Welch said. “Marisha’s smile could light up a room. I mean it was infectious. She made everyone around her happy. Whether it was a funny joke, her confident attitude or her big smile, she was a delight to be around.

“She was a firm leader. This was evident in the control she had over her homeroom as well as the classes she taught. She held one-on-one parent conferences with parents and students in her homeroom, to sensitise parents of their children’s behaviour in the class as well as their performance.”

She added: “Ms Bowen was one bold young lady, and told you exactly how she felt, regardless of your age, your position, or your nationality. She was kind and helpful, always ready to lend a helping hand to her colleagues and friends.”

According to Mrs Welch, Ms Bowen was a “determined young lady” and a “go-getter,” and was actively involved in a number of civic organisations in her homeland, such as the Guyana Youth and Student Movement, and locally, the Guyana Bahamas Association, in which she served as secretary up until the time of her death.

As such, Vilbert Williams, the Guyana Bahamas Association president, said the group is “profoundly saddened” by the teacher’s death.

“She had the brilliant, radiant smile, that kind of personality that drew you in and kept you there,” he said. “She took on responsibilities; she was the secretary of our association. But she had brilliant ideas, and I dare say that the association will struggle now to meet these ideas that she had without her guidance and leadership.

“But she was striving, always seeking to improve herself, and that is something that we’ve really, really, come to respect. The Guyana Bahamas Association is and will be better because of Marisha’s involvement.”

Ms Bowen taught at C W Saunders Baptist School from 2014.