The late Alfred Crook was born in the heart of the Green Valley in the Hermitage Village area on May 25t", 1913 on the eve of the Great World War of 1914 and grew up to be a very independent thinking individual, determined to succeed in life.

As a business man the late Alfred Crook was everything to the little community of Keys and surrounding areas. His shop became the hub of social life, as it was the only place where people met particularly on weekends to have a drink, play dominoes or draughts or to simply engage in discussion on the local happenings and major events of the week.

His stone-oven baked butter and pork bread on Saturday nights was a delight in which every villager partook and sampled. To be eligible for this treat, however, you had to be a regularly good customer and one who paid up and settled your credit balance in due time. However, if for some reason one of his customers was not in a position to pay, Mr. Crook would always find a way to ensure that you were able to make your weekly shopping, even if it means that you had to work for him to clear up what you owed.

His generosity to his customers was unsurpassed and people showed their gratitude by spending their monies at his shop. Ever so often Mr. Crook had to assume roles as counselor and mediator for family disturbances and problems, be it do¬mestic disputes, financial or otherwise. He was also the vil¬lage banker, providing interest-free loans to all and sundry.

On occasion of merriment, he would often pride himself in being "Kruger the Conqueror". If you were unfortunate to be caught under his spell you had to prepare yourself for long episodes and historical accounts of the great war exploits of "Kruger The Great". His favorite line was, and I quote, "I'm Kruger The Conqueror, born from the poor state of man, have more knowledge than many that were born before me". He always admired and encouraged young people who were smart and ambitious and would admonish those who were delinquent, sometimes by even taking the liberty to use his leather belt on them.

Perhaps Mr. Alfred Crook would be best remembered for his genius, innovation and inventiveness, when through the creative use of scrap metal, pieces of pipes and iron he became the first man in St. Kitts and perhaps the Caribbean to design and make a rifle shotgun. Upon investigation, law enforcement officers were alarmed and intrigued at the same time, by the quality finish product and the power which emanated from the barrel of this homemade gun. After a few alterca¬tions with the law Mr. Crook was eventually given a license to carry his own firearm.

Mr. Crook was an active man well into his seventies, fathering ten girls and one boy and was very passionate in bestowing on them love, care and attention. It is for this and more that we salute and pay tribute to the sterling contribution made to the community by the late Alfred Crook who left us on January 2nd, 1990. His was a life of service to his people.