Latest update December 19th, 2024 3:22 AM
Heroic prison officer treated to special birthday celebration
Heroic prison officer, Roxanne Winfield, was treated to an extra-special 49th birthday celebration last Saturday at the GPS Sports Club in New Amsterdam. It was a very special afternoon as friends from near and far travelled to celebrate with her and also to pay special tribute to a true Guyanese heroine.
Eleven years ago, Prison Officer Roxanne Winfield was staring down the road of death; doctors battled desperately while relatives prayed earnestly to save her life.
Roxanne Winfield
She had been shot in the head at point blank range by one of five dangerous criminals who subsequently stormed out of the Camp Street Prison, sparking off the most vicious crime wave that this country has ever experienced.
On February 23, 2002, Winfield was in- charge of the inner gate while 21-year old Prison Officer Troy Williams was manning the outer gate. Williams was later stabbed to death by the escaping criminals.
Shortly after midday on Mash Day that year, five desperate criminals, Andrew Douglas, Dale Moore, Shawn Browne, Mark Fraser and Troy Dick, first approached her at her post and demanded the keys to facilitate their escape.
Roxanne stood up to their demand and for that she almost paid the ultimate price. There are reports that when the men began to physically assault her, she threw the keys away, oblivious to the consequences of that act. Angered by the stance that Winfield was taking, one of the bandits placed a gun to her head and pulled the trigger.
For the next several weeks, Winfield remained in a coma on life support machines. The whole of Guyana prayed for her survival. And she did pull through.
She has lived to see her 49th birth anniversary. She sat at the head table last Saturday along with Officer-in-Charge of the N/A Prisons, Mr. Linden Cornette. She wore an eye patch since she is still recuperating from the horrific ordeal in the left eye.
The celebration saw the attendance of several senior police officers both from Berbice and Georgetown, her family and friends, as well as the female prisoners of the N/A Prisons. They performed songs, dances and poems, much to the satisfaction of Ms. Winfield. She could be heard mouthing words of thanks, which the audience clearly understood too.
Tribute after tribute flowed from the lips of many as they went up to the microphone and wished the officer a happy birthday. She was also serenaded by several singers. Then it was time for her to stick her special cake. She was assisted by a lad. And Ms. Winfield led the singing of the Happy Birthday song. Officer Cornette then brought out several gifts and tokens and arranged them across the head table and made a simple presentation. She was all smiles.
A special home is also being constructed for Ms. Winfield. The home is being constructed on a plot of land that belonged to Winfield’s now dead father at Middle Walk, Nabaclis, East Coast Demerara. The idea of the special home to accommodate Winfield’s present condition was cemented during a visit to her by the Rotary Club of Stabroek, in February last year.
It was during the visit that members of the club decided that Roxanne needed a disability-friendly home to if nothing else, enhance her in-house mobility.
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