Audrey T. Maitre

Obituary:

 Audrey Teresa Maitre

  Introduction

 A pleasant day to everyone who has come from far and near to join us in celebrating the life of our dearly beloved, Audrey Teresa Maitre. We, her children, grandchildren, great-grands, great-great-grands, siblings, nieces, nephews, and extended family are truly honored by your presence. Psalm 116:15 says: “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His faithful servants.” This verse of scripture, filled with promises, brings comfort to us, knowing that our mother lived a meaningful life in the Lord, always beaming with joy and gladness. Ladies, and gentlemen, family and friends, we gather today to celebrate the remarkable life of Audery Teresa Maitre nee John, affectionately known as Audge, to her children and siblings; Sister Maitre by her Seventh Day Adventists family. She came into this on December 12, 1931, and left this earthly life on  June  20, 2025. She was married to Clive Maitre; and together their union produced 10 children. Six sons: Robert, Sebastien, Simeon, Hugh, David and Frederick Maitre. Four daughters: Leona Maitre -  Stewart, Fay Maitre, Creselda Maitre-Joseph and Frederica Maitre-Felix.  Three of her sons; Simeon, Robert and Sebastien, passed on before her, with Simeon, her fourth child, leaving this earthly life as a baby, under one year. Sister Maitre was a cool conservative woman, who listened attentively to everyone despite their situation in life, and was also very neighborly too!. She was an avid reader multitalented, and a dedicated follower of JESUS CHRIST, who enjoyed going to church to worship her GOD and fellowship with her Adventist family.  Siblings  Mommy loved her siblings every one of them. and ensured her children remained close to their aunties and uncles. Uncles:, Talton aka Tal,  Renix; aka Bully, Julian aka Juju and Peter John. Aunties: Camillia Antione aKa Naughty; Eustella Philgence aKa Lala, and Antonia Randolph. She very was close to Uncle Talton or Tal, her endearing name for him., so it was no surprise that is the one to have introduced her to the Seventh Day Adventist  faith which she embraced never to look back.  She ensured we visited the homes of every sibling,  resulting in close family bonds, up to this day, with our cousins: Claudine, Theresa, Marcia, Andrea,Rondel Gloria  to name a few of them. In 1970, our mother received an invitation from her beloved brother Talton John, all the way from Cleveland, Ohio. Those two, Talton and Audrey, were inseparable. She was invited to attend a seven-week crusade at the Castries Seventh-day Adventist Church on High Street, conducted by Evangelist Kembleton Wiggins. However, there was one thing we always heard Mummy say, “Me? I will never join Semdays! I will never go to church on a Saturday! How can I see myself doing that? I do my shopping on a Saturday, never! never!” All this she said just before, and soon after she received the invitation. But upon its receipt,  she agreed to attend, mainly because it came from her beloved brother whom she did not want  to disappoint. But she continued to insist, “there is no way  I will join that church”. Ha! But Little did Mummy know that God had other plans for her, good plans, wonderful plans. She and her eldest daughter, Janet,  known to her friends as Leona, attended the crusade regularly not missing a night. Interestingly by the third week, they had removed all their jewelry and were baptized at the end of the crusade. Fay, then nine years old, recalls being excited because she was set to receive her First Communion as a Catholic. Adding to her excitement, Mummy Audge had made her a beautiful dress, with all accessories, ready for that day. However, upon mummy’s baptism, she informed Fay that she would no longer allow her to take part in the ceremony. Disappointed, Fay begged her not to take the opportunity from her. And finally with understanding on display; she said, “Okay, but I will not be the one to take you to church.” And so our father,  Clive, now deceased, stepped  up and said, “I will take her.” And yes, he did.  This type of unwavering conviction in her new found belief, characterized her entire life as a Seventh Day Adventist Christian and she was not looking back!!. With that spirit, she was also instrumental in leading many of her relatives to CHRIST: her parents, siblings, and children and was relentless in in sharing the Truth of GOD’S to everyone. Family and friends, mummy was not just a committed Christian, she was a nurturing mother, grandmother, sister, daughter, aunt, or friend, she was a caregiver, a fearless spirit,  a relentless pursuer of  divine wisdom,  and righteousness, a model of CHRIST for her loved ones to follow.  There was no doubt that she wholeheartedly loved her God. She Attended mostly every service, joined the choir, and often shared testimonies with us; of the glorious wonders her God had worked on her behalf. He was her  rock,  her  guide  whose charitable spirit she tried to emulate. In that regard she dedicated her time in service to the Dorcas society of the Castries SDA Church, and for several years she took part in the work and vision of feeding, sheltering and clothing the needy. Visiting the sick and shut-ins, everyone else who was deserving of love.  Not surprising, she continued her life of service on joining her church family in the U.S.A to aid her Haitian church family to communicate with other members. she volunteered to function as their interpreter. This gesture of service did not end there. Sister Maitre in a short time joined the community service group, and with other church members in packaging food for the needy. But not only that, she joined in delivering those packages. While her actions seem routine it was evident of a Christian who loved her GOD and allowed his love to shine through her.  Sister Maitre was committed and loyal to her friends and they in turn were devoted to her. We remember this one friend whom our mother cherished deeply, pure sisterly love. Though they lived in the same neighborhood in the 1960s, leading to the 70s, they were merely acquaintances, but started a friendship after they were both baptized during pastor Wiggin’s crusade, with that friendship blossoming into an unyielding  sisterly bond. We speak of no other than Sister Ann Busby, who sadly left this earthly life two years ago. They loved and cherished each other, and their offsprings. Their children became closely bonded by the same unyielding friendship and love displayed by their parents, which is still the same today. Mummy Audge was exceptionally talented and for several years, used her skills to make wedding cakes, sew clothes for all occasions, even mattresses. Oh yes, she made her  own beautiful coconut straw mattresses for her children to replace those we peed on  that the sun could no longer deodorize.  Our mother was gifted with another superb talent; her exquisite pastry making skills. They were always  delicious... We her children learnt so much from her, since she always allowed us to be be around her in the kitchen or what ever she was doing. Party planners knew where to find her always hoping not to be disappointed as they placing their orders early.  However, what stood out most of all was  her sewing. A seamstress par excellence  gifted both with the machine and her hands. She was so skillful that even when her sewing machine broke down she sewed entire outfits by hand. we stayed up late watching this lady work stitching dresses, blouses, and skirts by hand, unbelievable you would think but true. She had to meet deadlines and did not have time to wait for machine repairs. However,  her repair personel,  were a few of her sons, particularly Hugh, aKa Lulu, even though he never had training in this regard. We cant recall anyone ever coming to the house to make repairs , But whenever something broke or got burst, he would disect the lady’s machine, request for to her buy replacement parts, and somehow he got the problem fixed.  Her skill as a seamstress was in high demand, but she dedicated her time and life to sew for her children and relatives.  Mummy raised us to be curious, and within a brief time both her boys and her girls used the sewing machine to hem, do minor repairs to shirts, skirts and pants. And under her watchful eye, most of us learnt to use the sewing machine to perform basic tasks. She was ever so happy that her two sisters followed in her footsteps and took on the sewing skill  Before she became an Adventist my mother had an extensive bookshelf stacked with well-worn novels of every genre imaginable, romance, war, westerns, adventure, you name it.  When we  ask her what she was reading, without fail, she would transport us to the dusty streets of an old cowboy town with men shooting at each other. Into the heart of  Paris or London, in a love drama or the battlefields of  Europe with guns and canons spitting out death to young men in their teens. Her storytelling brought those books to life so real that we were often transported to the middle of the scene.  We also remember the fantastic stories of  lagablès and gaghay she told to us at night, causing us to tremble with fear of every shadow in our dark bedrooms, eyes wide peering for the gaghay we had never seen. Thankfully, mommy always lit a little oil lamp that threw a dim light across our rooms dimming our fears with it.  We clearly remember the novel ‘The Day of the Jackal’  based on the actions  of a dangerous assassin. It was told with such suspense that we came to embody the characters: their fears, their worries and determination to stop the antagonist. But best of all was the story of war involving Adolf Hitler. ‘Red Roses for the Furer’ was so vivid that we felt the suspense fright and risks of the main characters, as they were shot after digging their own graves,  hunted or fought for their survival. Their resistance, their fight against Nazi terror, their capture, torture and execution jumped off her lips keeping us in rapt attention. We could not believe human beings could be so mean and cruel to each other.  Her story telling produced good fruit, it was instrumental in deciding career choices. Hugh for example, who had devoured her entire bookshelf while still a teenager. pursued  qualifications in Literatures in English, becoming a lecturer, and a CXC A ‘Level /CAPE examiner in the subject for many years. Her creative spirit, her love for books, storytelling and literature, manifested themselves in every one of her children. Some singing, beautiful cake making and decorating, cooking,  pastry making etc.and yes the list goes on. In fact, every one of their career paths chosen by her children is rooted in mommy’s talents.  When she was converted all her books were replaced by religious literature which we  continued to enjoy. The Bible stories series were intriguing, and we enjoyed every one of the volumes. Mummy made sure to train her children to be independent in whatever they did or wherever life led us. However she made special emphasis on her boys and so all of had a part to play in the daily runnings at home. One summer morning, she called Hugh who was about fifteen. She had to head into town early, and our eldest sister Janet (also known as Leona) accompanied. Just as we were all thinking of marbles and tiki Toc, my mother called him aside, and said You’re cooking today,’  handing him the reigns of the kitchen like he was a regular cook, but the boy had cooked nothing before. “Mummy, I don’t know how to cook!” he protested. “Well, you will today,” she replied briskly. She had already seasoned the chicken-backs our favourite,. Mummy had no such shame.  She had prepped the pot of chicken-backs, green bananas, peas, cabbage and carrots, setting everything by the coal pots. Then, off she went, with zero signs of worry. Hugh stood there stunned, frozen like Lots wife. But then he remembered all the moments we all had spent helping her in the kitchen. Oh yes, we were always around our mother helping her with stuff, so moments after she left, Hugh’s shock wore off  and he started to cook. When she returned and tasted the food, her verdict was swift and sealed with a mouthful: “Good, good, from now on you are a cook”. Incidentally, Hugh was not the only one challenged in that way, before him Leona was, then later, David, Fay and Creselda. This is how she trained us. She made her boys  share in the weekly laundry, washing everybody’s clothes, no exceptions, yes, no exceptions. They alternated washing weeks with their sisters. This produced rounded, children  competent at washing, cooking, and general house cleaning  who could take care of themselves early in their lives. Now, those who know our family home in La Pansee will recall the three towering breadfruit trees that dominated the yard. Season after season, they bore breadfruit in abundance, but not a soul in the house ate breadfruit. We disliked breadfruit with the same passion. We dodged it, disliked as if it was poison.  One holiday, at the peak of the breadfruit season, we marched into the kitchen to take our food: expecting it was something other than Breadfruit. One by one we entered her kitchen, uncovered our plates, mmm As we  uncovered our plates we discovered in horror that every plate had at least two servings of breadfruit. We did not come for our lunch all at once, but at different times. As mummy related later that night, each of us collected our plates and march with long mouths straight to where she was seated at her sewing machine. “Mummy!  whats that?”  “Breadfruit”, she replied gingerly. “You know we are not eating that!”    Without skipping a beat, she replied, “Well, you can lie down by it. Or eat it when you are hungry”  With that said, she recounts each of us turned marched right back to the kitchen to return the food.  But by late afternoon, one by one, some of us crept back into the kitchen, retrieved our plates, and devoured the food. That night she asked, :how was it?”  keeping a straight face. No one answered.  Shockingly she did this to us a second time, only this time she substituted breadfruit, for Irish potato in a pot of soup.  I  recall returning from school hungry, rushing to collect the  soup that mommy had promised that day. I thought I had seen irish patatoes and jumping for joy, I said yayy only irish patatoes today! ,and made my way to dig in. All the while mummy positioned herself to watch the action and saw when I spat out the first bite of breadfruit. Sure, Indeed she laughed to her hearts content. However, “Mummy beckoned me not to say a word to the others, since she wanted to see their reaction, and yes she got that satisfaction , for everyone presented the same reaction on realizing it was actually breadfruit in that pumpkin rich soup. Later she explained “I have trees full of breadfruit but spend money each week to buy other food.Si we must learn ti welcome what’s before us. Through those actions, mummy had taught us valuable life lessons that would serve us for the rest of our lives. But most importantly we had learnt to love breadfruit. We learnt to improvise.  Mommy  was keen on education and wanted her children to attend high school. This was unusual as during those years parents talked more about their girls getting married, and their boys getting a job. But mommy’s mind was set on all her children pursuing an Academic journey. Her was unwavering, focused, everyone of her children were pushed to obtain a skill or pursue academic qualifications.  Tasty Treats Apart from cooking, tasty soup and  bouillons,  mummy enjoyed preparing tasty finger food,  which included delicious bakes often flavored with cinnamon or Lunny - a minty herb. David remembers the patience and care she took in kneading and shaping her dough on rainy days making bakes or dumplings. She also made tantalizing jams, guava jellies, guava cheese or coconut cakes to our delight. She was the ultimate mother who did not hesitate to do things that her children enjoyed  Shopping days with mommy was an adventure. going to the various shops under the CDC  or the grocery stores in the  heart of the city M & C, Lafayette, or JQ Charles were delightful. We waited for her near the entrance with bags as she shopped. Sometimes it seems like forever, but the tasty rock cakes, sandwiches, soft drinks, ice cream and occasional toys made shopping with mommy memorable.  David’s New York Visit  David recalls his first journey to the USA to visit his mom. She was delighted to have me around, he said. And so One day she cooked her favourite fish to celebrate his presence. Poggi the fish did not only have a funny name but looked strange to. That’s the first time  He had heard the name or seen that fish, he said. She had fried about nine of them that morning, inviting me to a feast,  to which he happily obliged. But the name sounded so funny that he restrained from laughter  and had to stifle his mouth, so as to not make her feel bad. So, he got set to devour  the fish with the funny name but could not get enough, as it was delicious, properly seasoned and prepared.  Conclusion  Audrey outlived her parents and her four(4) sibblings who has gone befire her, and so those of us who are alive feel honored and blessed to have had her around for 94 years, hoping she would score the 100th, however Our GOD knows best. Being the eldest alive, she gained the title; Matriach of the family. Shecwas loved and adored by her grands and great grands. Mommy was a woman of vision, strength, creativity, and deep, unwavering love. She taught us the value of education, the joy of simple things, and the importance of family.   She built our confidence and taught us to be frank, truthful and fearless. Through every memory, every story, and every delicious meal, her legacy lives on. We will miss her dearly. Her presence in our lives was a blessing of  love, dedication, connection patience, and faith, all of which will remain in that cherished place; our hearts.  God took care of her during her illness keeping her with us until she was ready to go rest, passing away peacefully in the arms of her ladt daughter, Frederica. Our joy lies in knowing that she fought a good fight, she kept the faith, and there are surely treasures laid up for her in Heaven. Inspite of all the love care mummy gave to us, all that she  did for us she never looked for gold silver or Bronze, but all she ever wanted was for us to make her proud. We, her children, siblings, grandchildren, great-grands, nieces, and nephews believe that she will see Jesus when the clouds are rolled away, and the loud trumpet sounds, and the dead in Christ rises. Mummy loved the LORD,  she loved to sing and always had a song for every situation. So; Family and friends, I quote the chorus of a tribute song to mothers that captures her spirit perfectly:  “She is the one who told us about Jesus. She is the one who taught us to sing. She deserved an armful of roses, but she was always satisfied with an armful of weeds”  Unquote So, until then, Our hearts will go on singing. Until then, with joy we will carry on. Without any doubt, we claim the promise that Mummy held on to, that she will rise in power on that resurrection day, which is the promise of God. Jeremiah 29:11 says: “For I know the thoughts I think toward you, saith the LORD thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” Let us all hold on to that promise and be comforted. Thank you, everyone.   

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