Andy Palacio laid to rest in Barranco
More than two thousand mourners gathered in Barranco Village on Saturday afternoon to pay their last respects to musician, composer and cultural ambassador Andy Palacio. Tonight News Five’s Rick Romero shares the sights and sounds of that sad day.
[Shots of funeral procession: singing and dancing]
Bishop O.P. Martin
“Andy Palacio loved the natural things we are blessed with here in Barranco; the sea, for example and the land.”
Rafael Martinez, Friend
“I can say here his characteristic laugh, full of life, full of vigor and I think that’s the way he would want us to remember him. He’s with us, he lives in all of us. I must mention that I will always remember my best friend, my cousin and my compadre who has humility. Although he was a cultural ambassador, this icon, anybody can tell you Andy P, when you meet Andy P on the street he could reach to level of the smallest man and to the level of the man up there. That was Andy, alright.”
[Kamou singing Amunegu]
Harold Arzu, Friend
“I remembered him at around the age of eight negotiating in Spanish on behalf of his father with traders from nearby Sarstoon. Some of his fathers marine products, eloquence was a gift that was born along with him. St. Peter College always had a good choir and Andy was a member but the only place one could experiment with secular music was in the clubs. He always had to be one step ahead of Father Kramer, Kami Palma, and Mike Espat not to be caught in the bar.”
[Singing with Guitar]
Yasser Musa, President NICH
“We are here music man, in you father’s house; St. Joseph next to the red cliffs of Barranco. We are here to show the world that you deserve nothing less than this, dear brother. We are here music man, we are here Kami, Uani, Nita, Tara and Kamou, Elvis, Jacinta; they are all here joined by only a few thousand family members, friends and your beloved fans. We are all here music man to say our last goodbyes as you say your first hellos.”
[Aurelio Martinez singing]
Prime Minister Said Musa
“Andy has touched the hearts and the minds of Belizeans all over this country. Andy, deep down, was a teacher. He was a teacher not only for the Belizean children but a teacher to the world because he taught the world, through his music, about peace and about love and he taught us all about these things. And today we join him in his final forthcoming.”
[Shots of procession through streets and burial ground]
