His was a life lived in service of others. His was a life of shared vision. His was a life of love for country. These were among the sentiments expressed at the Cathedral of the Most Holy Trinity in downtown Kingston in celebration of the life of Francis ‘Paco’ Kennedy yesterday morning.

Jamaica’s power brokers of commerce, politics and urban development paused to honour the life of one who, for decades, championed the redevelopment of Jamaica’s capital city.

While over the past week the press has been replete with written tributes to his work and worth, he was eulogised by attorney-at-law Milton Samuda as one who “grew up in the shadow of giants and became one himself”. He said Kennedy “simply wanted to work with whomever wanted to work for Jamaica, and work hard”.

Samuda told the congregants at the service of thanksgiving that he witnessed Kennedy being great, both as a team leader and a team member. “His service to the Jamaica that he loved so much was wide and varied,” the formed RJR chairman said.

Among the capacities in which Kennedy served, he was president of the instrumental Jamaica Chamber of Commerce, holding two terms and had secured a third term in September 2014. His legacy also includes a 46-year career at GraceKennedy.

Kennedy was also recently awarded one of the nation’s most distinguished awards — the Order of Distinction in the rank of Commander (CD) — for his sterling contribution in the fields of business and voluntary service.

The story was told of Kennedy’s life being as colourful as his language. He would find that he had to make $1,000 advance deposits in a swear jar that was priced at $100 a hit. His pearls of wisdom, however, would set the errant straight and were as “valuable as they were invaluable”.

Group CEO of GraceKennedy Don Wehby said: “Paco was a walking encyclopaedia… he always put the company first and never used his Kennedy name for any personal gain.”

Wehby described him as a man ahead of his technological age and one who used “stories” as his way of passing on the history of the company that reflects the hard work, integrity and trust that are its hallmarks.

Former JAMPRO head and sister-in-law of Kennedy, Pat Francis, honoured the deceased as a true man of integrity and great strength. She said he was able to “balance being outspoken with being diplomatic”, adding that “make no mistake of taking him at face value…”, like still waters, he ran deep. She offered respect for his wealth of knowledge of business and politics and his ability to never forget a birthday or anniversary.

Dr Fred Kennedy, former headmaster at St George’s College, spoke on behalf of the Kennedy family and recounted his brother, Paco Kennedy’s Georgian heritage, his love for boxing and tennis.

“Paco had a tremendous sense of fairness… and worked not to amass great amounts of wealth… he just wanted to do good,” he said.

The congregation then listened, seemingly transfixed, as Paco Kennedy’s immediate family paid tribute to their loved one. Son Charles was thankful for their relationship, especially in his more mature years, and urged everyone to continue the work to see his father’s vision of downtown Kingston realised. Daughter Cathrine, too, spoke of her father’s deep love for his country and of him enjoying mutual respect of family, friends and colleagues.

She reminisced of her days working alongside “Mr Kennedy”, as she called him at the office, and recalled his advice to “stick to your instincts and never compromise on integrity”.

When she spoke, wife Marjory Kennedy began: “Paco was my friend.” She recounted the story of their initial meeting and engagement and spoke of her wish to see his dream fulfilled. She then read a bit a poetry to describe her husband. Taken from an anthology The Prophet, written by Lebanese-American philosopher Khalil Gibran, she said: “It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.”

She explained that the act of giving epitomised her husband. He gave to family, community and country; not of his personal possession, she said, but of himself.

The congregation responded lustily with the hymn All Things Bright And Beautiful. Scripture lessons were read by Kennedy’s niece Amanda and brother-in-law Charles Johnston. The gospel was read by Deacon David Yee Sing and deacons Patrick Foster and Ronald Thwaites assisted throughout the service. Cantor Darcy Tulloch also contributed solos of Schubert’s Ave Maria during the incensation of the body and The Holy City.

Homilist, the Very Reverend Donald Chambers, said that the celebration of Kennedy’s life being held downtown Kingston was no coincidence. He added that doubly fortuitous was that his service of thanksgiving was being held on World Town Planning Day. This, Chambers offered, should be used as a sign that the work started by Kennedy in downtown Kingston should continue.

He said: “…despite his human frailty he tried to contribute to the development of humanity” and urged all present to so strive.

To close his sermon, Father Chambers charged the congregation to act more than talk, as “Paco was a man of action”. To start, he urged them to continue to take on five tasks. First, to give generously when the offering was being taken in aid of the Grace and Staff Community Development Foundation; pursue social transformation; work towards growth in the local economy; invest in quality of life; and forge strong public-private sector partnerships to grow the capital city — all work started by Kennedy.

Among the attendees at the service of thanksgiving were Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller, Opposition Leader Andrew Holness, former Prime Minister Bruce Golding, members of parliament Anthony Hylton, Raymond Pryce and Julian Robinson; Douglas Orane, Professor Gordon Shirley, Christopher Bovell, and a host of other well-wishers.

Francis ‘Paco’ Kennedy, CD, died on October 26, 2014 and will be interred in a private service at a later date.