DLP UK CHAIR WINS PRIDE OF BARBADOS AWARD.
On the 21st of January, Barbadians worldwide celebrated Errol Barrow Day, paying homage to the national hero while remembering his accomplishments.
While in Barbados on Friday – 19th January 2024 – at The Errol Barrow Lecture, Awards and Cocktail Ceremony at the newly named Errol Barrow Centre, one of the stalwarts of the local Democratic Labour Party (DLP UK) branch and an active community member was the recipient of the PRIDE OF BARBADOS AWARD. Unable to attend to attend the event, her aunt, Mrs Eudene Griffith, a DLP Stalwart, collected it on her behalf.
Anyone who knows Marcia Patterson would not be surprised by her success in winning this award, as she has worked steadfastly in the London community. Moreover, her contributions are not confined to the Barbadian diaspora but to the wider Battersea area in South London, where she lives.
Born in Airy Hill, St George, Marcia left Barbados on Christmas day in 1965 to join her mother in the UK, where she finished her education at Lavender Hill Secondary for girls. After leaving school in 1967, she joined the Central Electricity Generation Board (CEGB) as a trainee in the computer department.
Very soon, Marcia married and raised her two sons before returning to employment with the Metropolitan Police as a caterer at Scotland Yard. Her earlier training had allowed her to start her own business, a Restaurant and Bar, as a franchisee from 1991-1995, when the contract ended.
On completion of her contract, she worked as a first-class First Great Western Trains stewardess. She was on duty in 1996 when the high-speed passenger train (HST) failed to slow down in response to warning signals and collided with a freight train crossing its path, causing seven deaths and 139 injuries.
This incident profoundly impacted her life, and she returned to work two years later as a regional manager for a local pharmaceutical company. During this period, she was diagnosed with Lymphoma (throat cancer), resulting in her retirement after successful treatment. Throughout this period, she busily raised funds for the Democratic Labour Party and the Democratic Women’s League.
A seminal moment in her life was when she started volunteering with earnest and collaborated with abused women, children, and Refugees) in conjunction with Wandsworth Borough Council, teaching them knitting and how to cook on a budget.
In 2018, she started the group GLOBAL WOMEN OF TODAY, run by women for women of all Nationalities, with a membership of one hundred and forty-three persons. (143).
Marcia was brought up in a household where the DLP was not mentioned, only the name of Errol Barrow, so it was no surprise that this impacted her. She became a member after attending the Barbados Independence Dance in 1976, organised by the late Dr Owen Eversley, one of the founding fathers of the UK DLP group.
Her first job as an officer was as assistant secretary, where she realised how integral her role was to the branch’s success. She subsequently became a founding member of the Democratic League of Women (DLW)with Sherleen Rudder, Olivia Worrell, Suzette Alleyne, and Janette Hill. Among the beneficiaries of its charitable efforts were The Hope Foundation Barbados and the Diabetic Association. They successfully shipped numerous barrels of Children’s and Adults’ books and food items. Adult Toiletries, Children’s and Babies’ Toiletries, clothing, shoes, stationery, and Hundreds of Blood Pressure reading kits.
Marcia eventually became the Chairperson of the DLP UK in 2023 and was a fundamental part of the Independence luncheon. The first one was held after Covid restrictions were lifted, with ninety-six persons in attendance, the most since the start of the Luncheons were started. Her steady hand on the rudder resulted in The Group Global Women of Today, in collaboration with the Mayor of Wandsworth Councillor Julianna Annan, hosting a Reception for the President, Dr Ronnie Yearwood, on his unofficial visit to the UK in October 2023.
On being congratulated on her achievement, Marcia Patterson said, “I was very surprised because whatever I did or continued to do was not about looking for an award. I was raised by my grandmother, who always said to do things willingly or not at all. Do as for God, not for man. Your reward is not in this life.
