Neville the Patty Man

[Yvonne]

For those of you who know Neville, if you have been to Negril recently, you may have noticed he's been MIA. For those who don't know him, he is a beach institution for decades who makes & delivers delicious patties to beach goers. I rely on him for my lunch almost daily.

He called me yesterday to fill me in on what has been going on. I've been so busy the past 2 months since I returned from Jamaica w/ the paving of my condo community (I'm on the BOD, treasurer) & weeks of home renovations, etc., I hadn't had time to call him. Listening to him really drove home how precious life is.

He/his family has been through a series of medical issues. Nutshell version - BIL hospitalized & later passed from brain cancer, then his youngest son was severely injured in a work accident. He lost both his R hand & R foot due to electrical burns. While helping his family through this, Neville himself suffered severe injuries in a motor vehicle accident.

In mid August he was the last remaining passenger in a taxi returning home to Grange Hill after a day of working on the beach. A truck coming from the opposite direction tried to pass another car & miscalculated, striking the taxi Neville was in head on. He initially looked so bad he was not expected to survive & people were calling him "the dead man" when he was taken to the hosptial. Internal injuries, head injury, bleeding from his nose & mouth, foot injured, broken arm. Miraculously, he did pull through & is now home from the hospital although he is unable to work. He is still going for treatment & tests/scans/X-rays to assess his healing. He cannot do any lifting & is working on strengthening & healing his arm. He expects to return to making & selling patties on the beach in November. He wanted me to let his many Negril visitor friends know what happened & why he hasn't been around. Feel free to PM me if you want more info.