MEMBERS of the House of Representatives on Tuesday paid tribute to the late Lady Patricia Golding, remembering her for the spirit of generosity she possessed and her legacy of unwavering service to the people of Jamaica.

Lady Golding, who is the mother of Opposition leader and People’s National Party President Mark Golding, passed last month. She was 92.

Leading the tributes, Speaker of the House of Representatives Juliet Holness said Lady Golding led a life of dedicated service to community.

“Through her work with her husband, the late Sir John Golding, at the [Sir John Golding Rehabilitation Centre] — formerly the Mona Rehabilitation Centre — and with the Girl Guides, she had a positive impact on the lives of many. Lady Golding has left a lasting legacy of which her family should be proud. Let us keep Mr Golding and his family in our prayers as they navigate this difficult period,” Holness said in her tribute read by Deputy Speaker Heroy Clarke.

Leader of Government Business Edmund Bartlett, who extended condolence on behalf of that side of the House, described Lady Golding as a woman of great passion, deep resolve, and someone who had a generosity of spirit that knew no bounds.

“Her sense of philanthropy was equally so, and she shared with her husband in building out the most enduring institution for the protection of the disabled in Jamaica — the Mona Rehabilitation Centre. So many hundreds of persons who otherwise might have lost their limbs were able to have restoration and to come back to as normal an existence as was possible as a result of Sir John and Lady Golding’s work,” he said.

Bartlett said that when he was the Member of Parliament (MP) for St Andrew Eastern he shared a deep relationship with the family, noting that the Goldings have left behind a strong and powerful legacy, not only in terms of the institutions established — including Cheshire Village, which is a housing scheme built mostly for disabled people — but have “produced one who now has aspirations to offer service at the highest level in our land”.

“We want to say that [Lady Golding’s] compassion and unwavering commitment to service will no doubt redound to Mark’s own efforts in the years to come,” he said.

In the meantime, MP for Kingston Eastern and Port Royal Philip Paulwell expressed sympathies to the Opposition leader on behalf of that side of the Parliament.

Paulwell said that while he did not know Lady Golding personally, he knew her as a remarkable woman whom he learnt more about through Bartlett who spoke highly of her.

He said this demonstrates that sometimes while MPs appear to be always at each other’s throats, “when it comes on to national moments, moments of grief, there is always a reaching across of the aisle and we express our sympathy in a humane manner”.

Lady Golding was born in England on December 24, 1931. She grew up in Savanna-la-Mar, Westmoreland, and in Kingston and St Andrew. She attended St Andrew High School and university in England, earning a sociology degree.

In 1953 she was employed as an administrative cadet assigned to the Colonial Secretariat, then to the Ministry of Trade and Industry, and the Central Planning Unit. In 1961 she married orthopaedic surgeon Dr John Golding.