To his loving wife Sarah, children, grand-children, church members of many generations, friends and all who were touched and blessed by his life. I join my wife and entire extended family and speaking also for many who have laboured for conservation of historic sites and natural areas and flora and fauna here in The Bahamas – in offering deep condolences at the news of his passing reaching us here – but so offered with deep certainty that this is not the end for this great and highly faithful servant of God.

It always amazed me that I had lived on New Providence Island for so many years before our paths crossed with so many parallel interests in our lives, but so it had been until 1990, during the Adelaide Creek Tidal Wetland Restoration Initiative, which gathered momentum and public interest and brought me into contact with volunteer youth groups and during one of countless clean-up sessions, overhearing a discussion between my own teenage sons and a C.C. Sweeting High school teenager, Bradley Williams now a fine man and major building contractor, over the identity of a black iron wood sapling and I was astonished that Bradley knew it authoritatively. In finding out how and where this city kid learned so much about native flora – the road led to the Bahamas Youth Camp and to Pastor Redmon and his work with church and youths and his personal love of wilderness, outdoors, trees, wildlife, hunting and fishing and with the Youth Camp and his own home space within it full of beautiful native trees – all gifts to us of God’s Creation.

From the Adelaide Creek project I went on to be made president of the BNT in the exiting days before the Earth Summit in Rio 1992 and helping to prepare our Country Report, with visiting United Nations Env. Program Botany professors and I being haunted by the oft repeated words to me by the then late Dr. Don Correll Author of “Flora of The Bahama Archipelago” – “Pericles … you are doing it wrong … you look after the trees and the trees will look after your birds”.

I wanted to get the BNT strongly into a native tree conservation and pre-planting program and I realized that there were very few people then still living, at least of my acquaintance, who even knew how to identify native trees and I invited all 6 of the most knowledgeable ones in my sphere of acquaintance. Five of these were elderly, all members of the Natural History Society of Queen’s College in the mid 1930’s and Pastor Jim Redmon.

Not long after, we tried to get the BNT to do a native tree seedling program as was being done in Miami – Coral Gables by the Fairchild Tropical Garden, so that as public education and interest arose, people could actually acquire a tree of their choice but the BNT Council vetoed the program and I had to seek by-pass surgery.

At about the same time Pastor Redmon had to make choices and preferred to retire here with people he had pastored for decades rather than another posting abroad and I encouraged him to do a Native Tree Nursery which would help with some necessities and let him continue his Bahamas Youth Camp development and teach and learn, all of which he did with great zeal and success for many years, at one point having 10,000 native plants in stock.

This half hobby, part business profoundly advanced botanical knowledge, seed germination techniques and public education and knowledge and I am proud to have helped, learned much and taught some.

I told Sarah that the proof of success of his and others work could be found in the demand for the Patterson Book “Native Trees of the Bahamas”. When we started in 1991 -92 there were 4,000 + in the author’s family storage. Within a few years they re-printed, I think 8,000 – all gone and the book is a collector’s item.

Far beyond that, he greatly contributed to the building of conservation ethic and environmental awareness and great parks have been established and immeasurable progress made and are continuing (always with some defeats and always new battles) in The Bahamas, which he contributed to.

I personally am known as one of the Bahamas’s most knowledgeable naturalists and conservationists and Pastor Redmon was a very important teacher and inspiration to me.

The Bahamas Youth Camp, another of his Great Works became a haven beauty and a “green pasture” in many ways and the Bird Club of New Providence and countless other visiting groups and individuals bless his work and his memory.

I shall be personally present and speaking at his Bahamas Memorial Celebration on Tuesday coming. There is much more to say on all this – but a part of his life – and in times ahead and I pledge to his wife, family and friends, that he will not be forgotten, and proper memorials will keep his name and memory on our lips.

I leave the raising of his name in praise and thanksgiving for his other Great Works to his Church leaders and others, who will do him befitting honour.

Again, our condolences to Sarah his very wonderful and supporting wife who stood by him all these years.

If I use another’s words: the heavens will rejoice at his entrance to the Kingdom while the world, the rest of us left here, will cry at his departing but also offer thanks for what he did for us while on this earth.

Respectfully,

Pericles Alexander Maillis
Maillis Farm, Adelaide N.P
Bahamas – October 31^st 2020