Collie Cleotta Ernestine Lovell, a former National Senior Games athlete, prayed to God every day, asking him to grant her wish to celebrate a century on Earth.
At the age of ninety-six, Lovell withdrew from the games on October 30, 2023, in generally good health. She thanked God that her prayers had been answered and she had lived to see her 100th birthday, a milestone indeed.
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Lovell mother of six, grandmother of 17, and great-grandmother of 15 stated, “I thank God that I am alive. I try to serve the Lord, and the Lord loves me, and I love him, and that is why I live so long.”
At the Holy Innocents Anglican Church in St. Thomas, Lovell celebrated her birthday in style, wearing a burgundy dress and beige heels. She told President Dame Sandra Mason some anecdotes from her life.
She gave her life to God there 88 years ago, and she also participated in the Mothers’ Union and sang in the chorus.
Dame Sandra smiled admiringly at the Downes Gap, Arthur Seat, St. Thomas resident during their nearly hour-long meeting because of her sharp observations, expressive singing, and sense of humor.
The 100-year-old informed the nation’s first president that despite her struggles, her life has been “wonderful.”
A number of family members and friends attended the event, including Lovell’s children Oscar, 76; Joseph, 73; Phillip, 66; Margaret, 62; and Samuel, 54. Daisy Gill, her 95-year-old sister, was also there.
John Lovell, Lovell’s 70-year-old son, was unable to attend the festivities but his written birthday tribute was read instead.
It states, “Christened Collie but always called ‘Sister’ because of her nature and demeanor, she was seen as the perfect sister to her 17 siblings. Her two hands were the tools used for pinning cloth diapers, dressmaking, basket making, cooking, gardening, and for flogging her five boys and one girl. They also cared for the elderly. Your Excellency, my mother is true grit, having been molded by life’s hardest circumstances.”
John reminded the grandmother that future generations hoped they might reach their 100th milestone as well, noting that his mother had survived many hurricanes and a world war.
The message continued, “Ma, you had your heart set on this day for the past 30 years, asking everyone you conversed with to offer prayers on your behalf. God has heard. God has delivered. A woman of strong will, I could not get her to stay off the street. Her reason? She had to go to various establishments to help care for old people. Now get this, my mother is 70, 80, and 90. When asked how old these old people were, to my surprise, some were as much as 30 years younger than herself. What a strong, dedicated woman to her fellow human beings.”
At the age of twelve, Lovell dropped out of school to assist in raising her siblings, some of whom were older. This allowed her mother, a hawker, and father, a field laborer, to go out and provide for the family.
Lovell was known as a “little mother” in her neighborhood even though she was just a teenager because she took her role as a caregiver for her brothers seriously and even flogged them when needed.
Lovell is one of the few surviving siblings; several of her siblings passed away before the age of 80.
In 1998, at the age of 75, her spouse of 49 years, Joseph Lovell, passed away.
Margaret informed the group that although her mother’s life had been difficult at times, she had tried her hardest “to make life easy for her children” with her husband’s help.
Margaret shared, “My mom became an integral player at the National Senior Games, participating in everything that she could do, and what she couldn’t get done, she [still] did. At home, there are so many medals and so many awards for her participation.
She added, “But after she was coming of age in her 90s, she started to get a little slow, and they decided to let her be the mascot for the games. And she was also given the opportunity to open the games.”
Lovell, who was well-known for her theatrical talents, also took part in a number of national plays directed by actor Winston Farrell and former congressman and community organizer Hamilton Lashley.
Lovell has been known to St. Thomas Member of Parliament Cynthia Forde for a long time; in fact, Forde taught at least one of Lovell’s children at Holy Innocents Primary. Forde observed that Lovell was still involved in the constituency. She added that Lovell had attended a Barbados Labour Party branch meeting as recently as two months prior.
Forde was urged by Dame Sandra to nominate Lovell for a Builders of Barbados Award in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the country’s development.
