Retired banker Alfred ‘Al’ Jarrett was remembered as a patriot with a great mind.
Jarrett, a retired banker and former chairman of the Bahamas Electricity Corporation who was at the forefront of national discussion on the country’s fiscal state, died at his West Bay Street home early yesterday.
He was 69.
His long-time friend, Jones Communications CEO Wendall Jones, said Jarrett’s family told him he died of a massive heart attack.
“He was a nation builder of the highest order and a greater patriot the country would not find,” Jones said.
Jarrett embarked on a career in banking more than 40 years ago and served the country in many capacities throughout his career.
He served as a board member at the National Insurance Board, an investment analyst and stock broker for Deltec Securities in New York in the early 1970s before becoming managing director at Royal Bank of Canada FINCO.
Jarrett was also a former chairman of Bank of The Bahamas.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Works and Urban Development Philip Brave Davis said in a statement that Jarrett’s passing meant The Bahamas “has once again lost a great Bahamian son”.
“He was a patriot with a sound mind to build a better Bahamas,” Davis said.
Chairman of the Progressive Liberal Party Bradley Roberts described Jarrett as the country’s foremost expert on banking, finance and economics and as a “faithful and fearless warrior” in his contributions to the development of the financial services sector.
“Mr. Jarrett was very vocal and painfully honest as he engaged in vigorous policy debates with friends and colleagues,” he said.
“… He entertained some, he angered some, but he enlightened all of us.”
A day before Jarrett’s death, Roberts, while a host on the More 94.9FM talk show ‘Real Talk Live’ with Ortland Bodie, had pointed to Jarrett’s contributions while chairman of BEC.
Jeffrey August Williams, Jarrett’s friend and former
colleague at Deltec Bank & Trust Limited where Jarrett worked as a bank teller for approximately five years in the late 1960s, described him as an extremely honest person who cared for those around him.
Williams also remembered Jarrett as an ardent sportsman and a great fan of baseball, who was a formidable force as shortstop in his earlier years.
Jarrett is survived by his wife, Linda, his two sons Lamont and Marco, grandchildren, siblings and other loved relatives and friends.
*Read more on Jarrett’s death under TNG Online Business section.
Royston Jones, The Nassau Guardian
