Baptist preacher calls on youths to put down their guns

Bishop Patrick Brown made the plea while officiating at the funeral service of father of seven, Rodney Joseph, who was shot at killed near his Carapichaima home on Saturday night. The service was held at David Guides Funeral Home in Couva. Joseph, a security officer, was shot near a church not too far from his home. Reports are that he was walking along Orange Field Road in Carapichaima, when a white vehicle pulled up alongside him. Three men alighted from the vehicle and began shooting.

Friends and relatives cried throughout the service. Brown, whose son was also murdered a few years ago, lamented that with persons being killed nearly everyday, it was uncertain who was next to die.

“Who is next? This is what we do not know. There are too many killings taking place.

What is going on in this country?” Brown said that the country needs prayers. “We need peace in this land. Everyday you are hearing about a shooting. Let us ask God to take the evil out of the people. We need the Lord to hear our cry so he could protect and guide us,” he said.

Brown told mourners that they need to learn to live in harmony with each other. Delivering the eulogy, family member Keisha Scarborough said that Joseph was an outstanding father and shared a close relationship with his children.

She said that although they would grieve that he is gone, they would also cherish the memories he left them with.

“We must be happy and remember the happy times and celebrate his life,” she said. Another relative in paying tribute said that Joseph put his family first.

“He was always doing something for his wife and children - cooking, washing and cleaning.

He was always there to provide for his family,” she said. Joseph’s wife Neisha Richards wept as she bade farewell to her husband.

He was laid to rest at the Point Fortin Public Cemetery.