Thursday October 17th 2019
I would like to extend a thank you on behalf of my family for gathering here with us today. I want to make sure I honor my brother and speak his truth to the best of my ability. This is probably one of the most sobering reasons one would enter the house of God or even gather in one location. But this is not the lingering of a loss, it is the celebration of a life. On May 9th, 1977, our mother, Hartley, had to have her first C-Section, giving birth to her second child with our father Edward. Most women expect to have babies the size of football, my mom gave birth to one the size a football player. From that point on, none of our lives would ever be the same. She named hersecond born, her second son, Wesley Lloyd Drakes. He had a full head of hair, a strong jaw line, full lips, and chubby cheeks. Wesley had a presence; you could sense his strength, even from a young age. In his newborn picture he has a scowl and his hand balled up in a fist, I lie to you not, I have the pictures to prove it. As if he was saying from the beginning, “You got a tough one right here”. His strength, incomparable. He was strong enough to walk at 8 months old, after that he didn’t want anyone to hold him up. He was going to hold himself, if needed he would hold you up too. His smile was a trademark, big and broad, it seemed like it would take up his whole face as a child. It was infectious. You couldn’t help to smile back at him when you saw it. As a man he carried a straight face, but his smile was the most welcoming thing you could ever see. His childhood was full of complexities, of love and of pain. He lived the majority of his life in Dorchester not too far from here. One Street, in particular, was of great significance, Codman St. This was the street where he would make bonds that not only spanned across decades but would maintain its strength or grow stronger with each passing year. Forgive me if I forget anyone, on Codman St. he grew to know, Camille, Rose, Lydia, Hakim, Greg, Al, Steph, Steve, Jay, Sam, Anthony, Tamara, Ant, Tanya, Rena, Joel, Rayshawn, he was also blessed because he had family there as well, our cousins Adrian, Shelly, Valerie, Alvin, Allison, Sherrie, Annette, James, Jackie, our oldest brother Chris, andmost prized of all Joe and Larry. Theirs’ was a genuine friendship, which those who are lucky enough to have, know they are fortunate and those who don’t, well, they can do nothing but wish for. It wasto a point where the only time you didn’t see them together is when they couldn’t be together. Even when our parents moved us out miles away to a small town and Wesley became good friends with Dennis, Lonnie, Kevin, Luke, and the bunch; he would make certain he got up before sunrise every weekend to catch a ride with our Mom as she drove to work in the morning so he get back to being part of the Trio. You knew, if you saw one of them, the other ones weren’t too far away. The trio of boys grew into men, and as men do, made choices that placed them on their own paths. My brother’s path led him to Local 7 where he worked with men and women who literally built the foundations that changed the landscape of the cities we live in. He was proud of that; Iron Work is ranked as the 6th most dangerous profession by the bureau of labor and statistics, it’s been among the top 10 in the country for years. I want you to think about that the next time you enter a high rise. Imagine being at that height with nothing but the air, some metal beams, your skills and a hardhat. My brother did that every single day; you have to be crazy or brave to take that kind of risk on a regular basis. He had almost no fear, but make no mistake he wasn’t crazy; that there was bravery. When he wasn’t at work, he would enjoy being in his place, listening to music at the highest volume, playing PlayStation on his right screen, while following sports on his left, working to achieve his next bench goal, even though he was pressing over 200lbs. Doing over a 100 pull ups, 200 sit up, 10 minute planks and whatever other workout regimen that would make you sore from just watching. He would stop by my house most days of the week, not for me though, for his #1 and #2 girls, my mom and my daughter. He loved his Mother, he was the only one of her three kids who would never talk back to her, who would rather be silent than get her upset. He would bring Mom a coffee, and a donut from Dunks, never forgetting the two extra donuts for his baby girl Daphne, commanding a kiss for payment, which she gladly paid, after she ran around laughing playfully waiting for him to catch her and whisk her up in the air, which he did gladly. His donut deliveries were just a ruse, his main objective was to check up on his Ma, who was dearest to his heart. He wanted to do so much for her, he wanted to give her what he felt she always deserved, he never wanted her to be upset or want for anything. The thing about Wesley if he loved you, he always loved you and he would show it whenever or where ever he saw you. You could be walking across the street, I guarantee he would show you love, and that love wouldn’t just extend to you it would extend to your family too. When we lived together, I would see his chosen family, Dawon, Verma often and of course the only member of his Trio still in the state, Joseph. Joe was more than family to my brother, they were kindred spirits. The walls of Wesley’s apartment were naked, save for his bedroom. On those walls, he had a Bajan flag, my discarded paintings,two TVs, his workout goals and the pictures of 4 children. Maria, Reymal, Tristan and Daphne. Wesley loved his nieces and nephew, his first niece Jasmine was his ratgirl, his nephew CJ shared his name, Tristan was his look alike and Daphne, his sweetheart. Maria and Reymal were more like his own children because they were Joe’s. From 9yrs old on Wes had Joe and Joe had Wes, every day for 33 years these two were each other’s hand. It was only fitting that it would be Joe who was with him in the end. It’s comforting to know he wasn’t alone when he decided to go back home but with the person with the person who knew him best.Wesley was loved, he was the favorite of many people for many reasons, amongst my mom’s adopted daughters, at his job, in his circles, in his life. Each relationship Wesley had with those he loved was a unique one, tailor made, if you will, so I can’t tell you what he would say, because he would have a different message for each of you. But as we proceed out, to say our final goodbyes to the vessel that housed my beautiful brother Wesley, let us cherish the memories we created with him, whatever they are. Let us reflect on what Wesley saw in us, that we didn’t seem to see in ourselves, let’s us concentrate on what he would want to see from us, for us, whatever it is. Because… as Wes would say “You already know Read Less To send flowers in memory of Wesley Lloyd Drakes, please visit our Heartfelt Sympathies Store. Afficher cette page en : Français Traduire Désactiver pour : Anglais Options ▼
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Wesley Lloyd Drakes Thursday October 17th 2019.
Death notice for the town of: Dorchester, state: Massachusetts