After mustering up the courage to walk up to the coffin bearing the body of his common-law wife, Vanessa Keisha Ayers, Juma Charles planted a goodbye kiss on her face and said a few words. Overwhelmed with emotion, Charles arrived at the Navet Road, Rio Claro, home of Ayers’ siblings and went straight to the downstairs area of the house as he waited for the body’s arrival.
However, when the body got there it took him more than 20 minutes before he walked up to the coffin to pay his last respects. He was supported by his brother, Kambon, and another relative. Close relatives and friends cried openly, some attempting to call her back to life.
Ayers’ eldest sister, Jennifer, was inconsolable and had to be held up by her brother, Tony. She screamed at intervals and cried without ceasing, along with her other sister, Sherry-Ann, who was also overwhelmed with grief. Their deaf-mute brother, Avie, also stood crying, helplessly gazing into the coffin.
During the eulogy, Ayers’ eldest nephew, Ainsley Mohammed, described his aunt as a hardworking, dedicated and loving person, who focused all her attention on improving herself. “She kept pursuing courses to enhance her marketability in the job arena,” Mohammed said. He spoke of the unconditional love Ayers had for her own mother while she was alive, adding that without a doubt she would have surely treasured each and every moment she would have spent with her son, baby Daniel, if she had survived.
“Keisha was very close to her mother and they shared a wonderful mother/daughter relationship. Keisha never failed to let her mom know how much she loved and adored her. They shared a special relationship. “Her mother passed away seven years ago and that devastated Keisha. It is not clear if she came to terms with the loss of the person she treasured but she found the strength and peace of mind to shape her future,” he added.
Speaking to the T&T Guardian minutes before the body was taken to the Holy Name of Mary RC Church, relatives called on the Health Minister Dr Fuad Khan to investigate thoroughly what went wrong and dared him not to “sweep the matter under the carpet” or to cover for the doctors and nurses at the Women’s Hospital in Mount Hope.
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Vanessa Keisha Ayers died days after giving birth to a boy via C-section at the Mt Hope Women’s Hospital. The first-time mother developed blood clots as a result of the procedure done on April 9.