MANDEVILLE, Manchester — Amid glowing tributes and a sombre mood at the Kendal Conference Centre, north of here, on Wednesday at the funeral service for former Cabinet Minister Dean Peart, was a clear message that his legacy of community development will never die.

Peart, affectionately called Deanie, died on July 12 at age 77.

Among the many tributes came one from former Prime Minister PJ Patterson and read by former Cabinet Minister and Manchester Central Member of Parliament (MP) John Junor. Patterson credited the Peart brothers for rebuilding the People’s National Party (PNP) in Manchester and neighbouring parishes during the “dark, difficult and gloomy days in Opposition in the 1980s”.

“Shoulder to shoulder with his brother Michael as the strategist, Deanie took to the hills, the valleys, the plains, the streets. He walked to the market, sat with the farmers in their fields, stopped at the corners, entered the bars and sometimes the kitchens to listen [to the people],” the tribute read.

Peart’s brother Michael, a former speaker of the House, and their sister Christine Steele, his widow Vynnette Peart, his cousin and actress Sheryl Lee Ralph were among those seated in the front row at the funeral service.

Patterson in his tribute emphasised the work done by Peart in Manchester North Western.

“[Constituents] dubbed him the community king and the record explains why. Thirteen community centres built across the constituency under his helm,” the tribute read, evoking applause from the congregation of mourners including PNP stalwarts and party president Mark Golding.

“[He also built] basic schools, roads, water infrastructure, playfields and a scholarship fund that [continues] to this day. Those centres and places were never mere meeting places. They were instruments of empowerment where children learnt, where the sick were treated, where those who couldn’t read were taught and where young people at play discovered their own worth,” added Patterson’s tribute.

The former prime minister said Peart went above and beyond as a Cabinet minister.

“His wide range of talents and interests made him a formidable asset available to any prime minister settling their ministerial team,” said Patterson.

Peart led at various times the ministries of labour, environment and lands, and local government.

Members of the Peart family seated among the congregation at the funeral service in Kendal, Manchester, on Wednesday. (Photo: Kasey Williams)

According to Patterson, Peart “was never considered for any ministry that required the display of diplomatic spirit as he was the first to admit his own shortcoming in that area”.

Patterson’s tribute evoked laughter among the audience at times with Peart being described as a straight-talker.

“He was not one to carry a grudge nor stay angry too long, for he was cheerful, jovial, and gregarious. On his appointment to my Cabinet as minister of land and environment he never sought in our meetings to speak on every submission before him. He commended full attention, however, when he intervened to say, ‘Mister Prime Minister this cyah work’ and then proceeded to explain why,” said Patterson.

Peart was also credited for his tenure as local government minister in the Portia Simpson Miller-led Cabinet and being a man of integrity.

“His tenure there has won the praise of incumbent ministers as one of the best-ever to have led the Ministry of Local Government,” said Patterson.

“Dean Peart was unapologetic, uncompromising in reflecting his party allegiance…. For him people always came first. Regardless of whether you voted for him or against, the country was foremost in every decision he made. At all phases in the development of our nation, we deserve to follow that template which was evident throughout the ministerial stewardship of Dean Alexander Peart. He left politics with clean hands and his party’s standard… His legacy will never die,” Patterson’s tribute read, evoking applause.

MP for St Catherine North Western and PNP Vice-President Damion Crawford shared similar sentiments on behalf of the PNP.

“He was committed to democratic socialism. He believed in the constant pursuit of justice, equity and fairness in a society and when he didn’t have political power. He took it upon himself personally to adopt persons who he felt were in need of help,” said Crawford.

“In his heart he thought that people together were more influential than any other source of change or power. He also believed in local government. He believed in the diversification of power away from the central government into the local entities and to that extent I am not surprised that many felt he was one of the best ministers of local government,” added Crawford.

Former councillor Anthony Watson (PNP, Mile Gully division), who served alongside Peart in the then Manchester Parish Council, recounted when Peart was first elected in representational politics in 1986 as the councillor for the Spur Tree division.

“He was [also] nominated as mayor of Mandeville, a position he held until 1989 when he was elected as Member of Parliament for North West Manchester. He served the [constituency] for over 22 years with five consecutive general elections for the PNP while demonstrating the kind of dedication that set the standard for representational politics,” said Watson.

He added that Peart’s passion for service was in his DNA, derived from his father Ernest Peart.

Dean Peart’s grandchildren stand following a floral tribute at the former Cabinet minister’s funeral service in Kendal, Manchester, on Wednesday. (Photo: Kasey Williams)s

“He showed us who a transformational leader should [be]. Every day he demonstrated that to us. The several times he was appointed a minister of government did not fly up in his head. He was the same Deanie Peart from Battersea,” said Watson.

According to Watson, Peart worked well with both sides of the political aisle.

“Interestingly, it didn’t matter if the PNP was in government or not. Deanie represented and delivered. He has some very good friends in the other party,” said Watson.

He recalled how Peart negotiated with landowners across the constituency to get access to properties to build community centres and skills training areas.

He also credited Peart for building and maintaining close to 300 roads in Manchester North Western.

“Under his stewardship the landscape of learning was transformed. The road network through the constituency was his forte, every inch of it. Over 290 odd roads. There was a thing in Parliament where an MP got up and said Deanie building road in cow pastures and he can’t get a road fixed in Christiana,” Watson said, evoking laughter among the congregation.

Current Cabinet Minister Dr Christopher Tufton also paid tribute to Peart.

“He was my mayor, my MP as a citizen of this parish hailing from the geographic location that he represented and through family connections I have had to be in his company on quite a few occasions. He was an extremely charming individual, very frank, very up front, said what he meant and I enjoyed having conversation with him. I believe he has left a lasting legacy,” said Tufton.

Peart’s daughter, Simone Peart Boyce, in leading the family’s tribute, described him as a mentor not only to his constituents but also his children.

“I have heard him being described as a leader, a mentor, a teacher and someone who cared deeply about people and as I listened I found myself smiling, not because these stories surprised me, but because it sounded so familiar. The qualities people admired in him, the patience for people, the willingness to help, the belief that people mattered, were the same qualities we experienced every day as his children, that was simply who Daddy was,” she said.

“The way he interacted with the world was the way he interacted with his family. He showed up for people. He invested in people. He wanted people to do well. One thing I have been thinking about a lot is Daddy’s gift for mentorship. People spoke about how he guided and encouraged others throughout his life, but mentoring was not something he did because of a title or position, it was simply a part of who he was,” she added.