Former First Lady Joyce Hoyte died yesterday morning at the St Joseph Mercy Hospital.
She was 77.
Mrs Hoyte, the widow of late former president Hugh Desmond Hoyte, had been admitted to the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) after being taken there by ambulance on January 18. The main opposition PNCR, in a statement yesterday, said she had been ailing for the past three weeks. She was discharged but re-admitted one day later, the party noted.
Despite a battery of tests, doctors had been unable to determine her ailment.
Mrs Hoyte was widowed in December 2002, with the death of the former president, who was at the time leader of the PNCR. She had always kept a low profile during his tenure as head-of-state and later while he served as opposition leader. The couple suffered the tragedy of losing their daughters Maxine and Amanda in an accident on the Linden/Soesdyke Highway in 1985 and reactions to Mrs Hoyte’s passing yesterday praised her for her strength in dealing with the loss.
In a statement on behalf of himself and the Government of Guyana, President Bharrat Jagdeo extended “heartfelt sympathy to the relatives and friends of this wonderful, gracious, considerate woman whose inner strength and fortitude in overcoming personal tragedies inspired us all.”
The PNCR, meanwhile, conveyed “its sincere condolences” to her relatives.
