Sunday, 28th December, 2008

Today, I join thousands of Bahamians who mourn the untimely loss of one of our nation’s talented sons.

Phil Smith was, to my mind, the dean of the nation’s sportscaster fraternity. He was a fixture on ZNS radio in particular, a dominating, authoritative and trusted voice.

He was extremely knowledgeable about local and international sports of all disciplines but he was primarily an effervescent supporter of local home grown athletes, sports personalities and causes.

His enthusiasm for Bahamian talent was infectious and his advocacy on their behalf was extremely effective. He made sure that we were aware of their exploits no matter where they performed.

Phil demonstrated, in his profession, and in his personal life, a deep reservoir of courage and tolerance. In the years since his medical woes were made public, he never betrayed any sense of self pity or abandonment. Instead he kept on keeping on, reminding us all that despite obstacles we can overcome and succeed.

In this regard as in other areas of his life, Phil Smith became a role model for the youth of our nation and for many of his peers, who saw in him a quintessential ‘overcomer’.

We, who are passionate about sports, and who have, for decades, followed his investigations, his revelations, his descriptions and his analyses, will miss him for his thoroughness, his honesty, his tremendous memory resource, his passion and his love of sports.

I wish to send heartfelt condolences to his wife and family, to his colleagues at the Broadcasting Corporation and to the wider family of journalists in the nation.

I also send condolences to his family on behalf of the Members of Parliament of the Progressive Liberal Party. We in the PLP wish to thank his family for sharing him with the nation these many years and for their unselfishness during the prolonged period of his illness. Phil labored hard, but he did not labour in vain.