THE late engineer Eglon Christie Sr was remembered Saturday as a man who devoted himself to Jamaica, and his life to nation-building.

Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness sent a message of gratitude, respect and condolences to the family of the deceased, which was delivered at his funeral at Church of St Mary The Virgin on Molynes Road, by senior advisor Trudy Deans.

Christie died on September 30 at age 82.

“I know that no words can fully ease the pain of losing someone so dear, but I hope you will find comfort in the knowledge that Eglon’s life made a meaningful difference and that his contribution to Jamaica will never be forgotten,” a section of the message read.

Holness expressed that the passing of Christie, who was a respected civil engineer devoted to nation-building, brought him profound sadness.

“I first came to know Eglon during the latter stages of the Petrocaribe funded Lift Up Jamaica programme while I was serving as a young Member of Parliament for St Andrew West Central. The Lift Up Jamaica programme, administered by the Urban Development Corporation (UDC), was an important labour-intensive initiative aimed at improving communities, creating employment, and restoring dignity to neighbourhoods through practical interventions,“ he said.

“These included the removal of zinc fences, the rehabilitation of schools and community centres, and other improvements to community infrastructure. Eglon served as chief engineer of the programme which subsequently expanded into Lift Up Jamaica 2. His technical competence, practical approach, and understanding of the communities being served made him an invaluable part of that initiative.”

The prime minister highlighted that throughout his career, Christie worked across many political administrations and earned the respect and admiration of the people with whom he served.

Holness said Christie understood that public service must ultimately be about people and that the responsibility to deliver meaningful improvements to communities transcends political differences.

He was described at his funeral as a stickler for competence, always insisting and emphasising that each project had to be done effectively, on time and within budget.

“Like a surgeon, he was extremely focused on getting the job done, and only then would he return to pleasantries. Working with Eglon was working with someone who approached their task with serious preparation and steady commitment,” said Prudence Kidd-Deans, who worked with Christie for many years at the UDC.

During the eulogy, Christie’s cousin Earl Jarrett highlighted that apart from work, Christie’s life revolved around school, church and family.

“The Christies were independent, strong and strong-willed. They were involved in agriculture, real estate, community leadership,“ he said.

After completing high school at Wolmer’s Boys’, Christie matriculated to Howard University in Washington, DC, a historically black university. This was a time when there was social agitation in the black community in the United States as people sought to have greater levels of recognition and access to opportunities in the United States.

“Eglon was a witness to all these changes and had to navigate his life to stay focused. These changes served to strengthen his character and through it all, he completed his degree in civil engineering,“ Jarrett added.

“Then life of the builder began. Eglon the builder began building physical structures. Having been minted as a professional engineer, he gained employment in the United States, got married, and began to build a family. Sometime later, Eglon responded to this spiritual call to come home to Jamaica to help to build this country.”

He pointed out that his cousin’s professional life included working with the National Water Commission where his engineering skills were utilised. He said Christie subsequently joined the company Edwards Construction and infused his engineering knowledge and skills within that company.

Jarrett shared that Christie was also an entrepreneur.

“He and his brother started a project to export limestone from St Ann to the United States. Eglon also devoted his skills and talents to this church. He used his skills to build the structures to improve the facilities here at St Mary The Virgin. He was responsible for the construction of the columbarium into which his remains will be placed today,“ Jarrett said.