Able Seaman David Elisha Joseph Powell Douglas was eulogised as a wonderful sailor, exemplary human being, and committed father who placed great value on family.

The coastguard, who died at sea on the job on December 16, 2015, was laid to rest with full military honours in Briggs Park, the military cemetery at the Jamaica Defence Force headquarters in Kingston on January 15 this year after a moving service of thanksgiving for his life at Garrison Church of the Ascension at Up Park Camp.

Below is the eulogy delivered by one of his uncles, Vernon Davidson.

Just looking at his names, it is very obvious that David’s parents were driven by strong religious convictions when they were giving him an identity.

The name David, as we all know from our

Bible studies, depicts a valorous warrior of great renown, a poet and musician who is credited with composing many of the sacred songs contained in theBook of Psalms.

Among Christians, King David is viewed as a righteous and effective king in battle and civil justice. He is also described as a man after God’s own heart.

Elisha, we are told, was a prophet and a wonder-worker of the Northern Kingdom of Israel who was active during the reign of Joram, Jehu, Jehoahaz, and Joash.

Then we have Joseph, the name that can be translated from Hebrew as signifying ‘The Lord will increase’ or ‘The Lord will add’.

Note also that in the Old Testament, Joseph is Jacob’s 11th son and Rachel’s first, while in the New Testament we encounter two Josephs — one the husband of Mary, the mother of Jesus, while the second is Joseph of Arimathea, a secret disciple of Jesus who, according to all four canonical Gospels, donated his own prepared tomb in which Jesus was buried.

Given such careful focus on name selection, it’s no wonder that David’s parents, with God’s help, gave us all here, and indeed the wider world, a remarkable human being.

A man who his father, Donald, remembers as not only a good sailor, but a man who placed great value on family, and that’s an impressive characteristic that David’s wife Dionne readily testifies to.

Let’s start there, with Dionne, whom David first laid eyes on when he was 23 years old. So smitten was he that a year after meeting her while she was living here in Jamaica with her daughter Phoenix, they got married in Runaway Bay, St Ann.

I well remember the joy the newly-weds displayed on that day — joy that was shared by family from both sides of the world.

They travelled to Curacao for their honeymoon and fell in love with the island so much that they decided to name their daughter… you guessed it — Curacao.

Dionne will tell you that they often travelled as a family and shared in his passion for football by attending many matches.

She also revels in his culinary skills because, as she puts it: “He made the sweetest sweet potato pudding, old-time sinting with the slush on top, and at family gatherings he was always the head chef.”

On Christmas Day just passed, Dionne shared with us during the annual family dinner at the family home in Hellshire, her recollection of her husband as a sentimental man.

The story goes that she asked him one day when was the last time he did something romantic for her.

I cooked for you, he responded.

Yes, but you cook often, Dionne countered.

So, without her knowledge, David bought a pair of sneakers for her, because he knew she had wanted to start going to a gym, secured the key to her store, placed the sneakers at a spot where she could not miss them when she opened the following day, with a note that read: “Is this romantic enough?”

That was the nature of the man, whom his father describes as “understanding”, even though he could be impatient at times.

But probably David’s strongest trait was his fixity of purpose, because from his early years he wanted to become a sailor.

His fascination with the sea was most likely developed when he lived in the Rockfort area of Kingston as a boy.

Later, he moved to Rollington Town and attended Rollington Town Primary School, after which he was taken to live with his father in Richards Pen, St Mary, where he attended Tacky High School.

At first, David wasn’t too thrilled with rural life, but, with his father’s encouragement, and support from his family, he eventually came to love being close to nature and particularly enjoyed catching crayfish and eating an abundance of fruits to which he had easy access.

Those years spent growing up with his father resulted in a deep bond between them, as well as with his grandfather Ransford, both of whom instilled in him the importance of family.

That he loved his family, particularly his wife and children, was never in doubt, as he took every opportunity to tell them. But he also loved his job, even though he admitted to his father that he knew that serving in the coastguard was dangerous.

Ironically, it wasn’t the danger to which David referred that took him away from us. But even as we grieve his unexpected departure, we take comfort in the belief that heaven’s coastal borders are being kept secure by this wonderful sailor and exemplary human being who will forever remain in all our hearts.

As we pay tribute to David today, we recall the words of that great American Commander-in-chief, Abraham Lincoln: Honour to the soldier and sailor everywhere, who bravely bears his country’s cause. Honour, also, to the citizen who cares for his brother in the field and serves, as he best can, the same cause.”

May the Great Architect of the Universe guide David’s hands on the tiller, and may he rest in perpetual peace.