Dear Editor,
” Say not in grief, that he is no more, but live in thankfulness that he was”. I repeat this Hebrew proverb in memory of my late friend Capt Spence. He was the pilot of Guyana Airways Corporation, manager of the said company and Consultant/ Instructor of the Guyana Aviation Academy. This charismatic individual flew thousands of persons including Govt officials, diplomatsen, entrepre-neurs, important and not so important persons in, around and out of Guyana. Little was said of him except an announcement of his demise in one of the daily newspapers and a short statement by one of his colleagues Mr Fazel Khan.
What a pity and an embarrassment to those who knew and associated with this meticulous gentleman. Being a Guyanese International Pilot I am aware that a lot of media houses and persons of influential public standing knew him personally and could have endorsed his passing with some recognition.
People come into our lives for a reason, a season or a lifetime, and when we know why they are there, we know exactly what to do. I met this individual more than thirty years ago and he created an indelible impression that remained with me to this day. I admired him for the way he chose his diet and did his exercises and other activities with care and precision, like checking his instruments in the cockpit before taking off with his plane.
I once asked him what was his scariest moment as a pilot, his reply was “Wally, it was never in the air, but on the ground, remember Jones-town, I was sitting in the cockpit, waiting for Leo Ryan, the San Francisco congressman and others who had visited Jim Jones commune to get on board, when I heard gun shots outside, some of the bullets whizzing past me, at that moment I felt like I was a goner. After a while I looked outside, and saw persons lying dead, the camera man had his brains spilled on the camera, that was the most terrifying moment in my life”.
There were hilarious moments too, one of which was when, after taking some foreign diplomats on a flying tour around Guyana ( at the time nationalisation and renaming of major entities were in progress e.g Guybau, Guysuco, Guybank, Guyhoc and a host of other entities) and when his passengers were about to leave they thanked him for the wonderful tour they had.
One of them asked him what was his name and he said Guy Spence. The man replied “What, you mean Burnham nationalise you too”.
This patriotic individual deserved a better send off from his countrymen than was accorded him in his final journey to the great beyond. He was an individual that I pray someday I will have the faith and courage to emulate a part of his life style.
I do not know his family, whom he glorified whenever he mentioned them, I say to them on behalf of my entire family whom he knew and associated with for over 30 years, we miss him too and to live in the hearts of us who are left behind is not to die.
I know my friend died in Canada and if anyone knows where his remains are I will be grateful to have that information, so on my next visit to Canada I may be able to pay a visit and give my respects to the late Captain Guy Norman Spence AA A hero of no mean order to myself and family. I can be contacted at Papadipchand2@Yahoo.com.
Yours faithfully,
Walter Dipchand
