Footprints: Lascelles Patterson - Moravian stalwart gone to eternal rest

Lascelles Patterson

Moravian stalwart gone to eternal rest

Lascelles Patterson, formerly of Walderston, Manchester, and Weston, Florida, was a long-standing stalwart of the Moravian Church.

Patterson, born to Daniel and Clarice Patterson on February 11, 1936, was also active in the Moravian Church. His mother served as national president for the Moravian Women's Fellowship.

Patterson taught at Mizpah Moravian Primary School after leaving school at age 16 and was also a young lay preacher at the Mizpah Moravian Church.

Later on, he was the driving force behind the acquisition of lands and the establishment of the Covenant Moravian Church, located off Molynes Road.

Patterson also studied land management and was a pioneer in the development of the profession within the Government, where he was an assistant commissioner of lands at the Land Valuation Department. He was a former director of beneficiary services at the National Housing Trust and worked as a realtor in Jamaica and Florida for more than 40 years.

A trailblazer in the establishment of Churches Credit Union, which he served as a director for years, he was instrumental in the acquisition of land for the construction of the credit union building at Ripon Road in Cross Roads, St Andrew.

In his last days, he established the Mizpah Goods Acre Fund to maintain the Mizpah Church Cemetery.

Patterson leaves behind children Gail and Christopher, and grandchildren Marley and Paige. He was big brother to Ira, Carol, Glen, Newton, Robb, Dennis, Violet, Pearline, and Yvonne.

"Lascelles Patterson was a loving father and husband, and a big brother to his siblings. He loved his children and grandchildren, and focused entirely on improving the lot of his family and community. He was a loyal friend and his boyhood companions remained his closest friends until his death. He lived a long and happy life," Dennis Patterson said.