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By Rickforde Burke- I’m devastated at the passing of Claire Ann Goring, Director of the Guyana Cultural Association of America, the organiser of the Guyana Folk Festival in Brooklyn. Words cannot express the profound affliction I feel.
Claire passed on Monday, January 15, 2024 after a brief illness.
Claire was a sister, mother, counselor, mentor, advisor, guide and most important, a confidant. She has been a loyal, unyielding, non-negotiable and unapologetic supporter of mine and all of the endeavours the Caribbean Guyana Institute for Democracy (CGID) and I have pursued. I couldn’t have asked for a better big sister and mother figure! Like so many others, she has been my conscience as I travelled this wretched path called life!
Claire was a genuine Guyanese patriot and such a special and rare repository of Guyanese arts and culture, that she was an endangered species. She was the source to consult in the diaspora on our unique culture. This was demonstrated through her love and care for the arts and her indefatigable promotion of our Guyanese culture.
She was a pleasant soul. Always civil, classy, savvy and quietly peppery if rubbed the wrong way, albeit a disciplinarian. No one can speak ill of Claire. Her life epitomised love, joy, peace, understanding and consideration for others.
She loved children and young people and made it her mission to impart her skills, expertise and knowledge to them through various fora like summer camps, classes and other educational endeavours.
Her death has left a sprawling void in our diaspora, her family and extended family, and a deep well of sorrow in our hearts.
Personally, this one hits hard!
But we will weep, mourn, and celebrate her life, then we will carry on her legacy and vision for the preservation and enhancement of Guyanese Culture.
Rest In Peace Claire 🙏. We love you. We will always remember you. We will cherish the moments you created with us and adore the memories of your smile, love, humility and wise counsel.
Rest well and rise triumphantly on that great resurrection day!
Sleep in peace!
We will forever immortalise you as our cultural hero!
