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| Adolphe Joseph Frenche |
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Obituary
Adolphe Joseph Frenche, Age: 91 Born 24 March, 1920, in the town of Arima, Trinidad, to Joseph and Mary. Died, 2 January 2012 at Suburban Hospital, in Bethesda, Maryland. Adolphe was the last living member of 21 siblings. He lived his last 43 years in Germantown and Bethesda, Maryland. He is survived by his wife of 37 years, Nora, and living children: Allyson, Michael, Kandice, Lelicia, Fidel, Richard and June*. Eric Johnson, Ulric Johnson, Joseph Johnson, His first marriage lasted 28 years and produced the following children Althea, Earl, Rudolph, Angela, Adolphe, Marion, Peter*, Perry*, and Clyde*.
*Deceased
It’s been estimated, at best, that he leaves behind 58 Grandchildren and more than 32 Great Grandchildren. His nieces and nephews could not be accurately counted, but is believed to exceed 60 altogether.
He was instrumental in writing the Charter that started the Trinidad and Tobago Regiment Force. Adolphe spent 32 years in the Trinidad and Tobago Regiment, and later became Trinidad and Tobago’s first Regimental Sergeant Major. In June 2010, he was honored in Trinidad, by the Cadet force as “The Oldest Cadet” alive. Adolphe worked for many years as a Customers Officer before he joined the Regiment.
Adolphe enjoyed BINGO, playing Scrabble and card games. Adolphe had many wonderful characteristics by which he is remembered. One that truly made him the person he was, was his unfretted enthusiasm to help others. To him, it was his way of affecting people’s lives to make it better. He had an uncanny ability to make new friends, and to make people laugh, and to remember people’s birthdays and anniversaries. He was an intelligent and gentle giant of a man. One of his most remarkable life stories, and a view into the soul of this man, is his triumph for survival. During the 1970 coup in Trinidad, after being shot in the foot by the rebellious forces, he managed to escape and lead a group of his soldiers out of the Chaguaramas forested hills, to safety and unharmed. He saved their lives. He often spoke fondly of his services in the Regiment, his duty to his country, and his many life-long friendships. It was and remains a testament of his military skills, his inner strength, and his will to live. In his final years, he viewed his life and the years that followed to that of the game of Cricket. He would say that he was batting to make 100 runs, one run at a time, so his living was one day at a time, and one year at a time. Each time I saw him, I made sure to remind him of this by saying “you have to live one more day dad, one more day.” Our pray was that the Lord’s grace and mercies extended his life. On January 2nd, 2012 his life’s long Cricket match simply ended. He lived a good life. He lived a long life. His good deeds extended too many. His passing marks the ending of his generation. He will be remembered always.
God’s blessing upon his soul.
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