Murdered surgeon described as 'trailblazer'

The daughters of murdered surgeon Dorothy Williams-Chandler – Cari and Charice Chandler – hailed her as a trailblazer during a virtual memorial service on September 24.

“She was the first female surgeon in our country,” they said in a joint opening statement at the beginning of the service.

“This service is not just about mourning her loss, but about remembering the incredible gift of her life,” one daughter said.

“Though our hearts are heavy, we take comfort in knowing that her legacy will live on in all of us – in her patients, her colleagues, her friends and most especially in her family.”

Officiant at the funeral Fr Robert Chirsto described Williams-Chandler as a healer, both spiritually and physically, and a servant.

“She was a doctor who saved lives and touched many lives,” Christo said. “It is so hard to see that we can’t heal, touch and save her and suddenly she was violently taken away from us. (But) we know God is present within us and was present within her and loved her. She was a gift and love is a gift.

“Even though we can’t wrap our minds around this kind of death, God is standing in our woundedness and he is trying to transform it from the inside out. No violence, no robbery, no tragedy, not even death itself could separate us from love,” he said.

“She was loved and she was love personified. She was loved as a doctor, friend, believer, companion and counselor – and that love did not end with a bullet.”

Christo said Williams-Chandler’s life was about saving people’s souls, spirits and bodies. He said she was a woman of community. He encouraged the online gathering to trust in the Almighty and have faith that He was with her in her final moments.

“Yes, we may weep, we may doubt, we may feel distressed, but not as a people without hope. God’s love is stronger than any evil, violence or death. Dr Dorothy Williams Chandler, a beloved daughter and child of God, with an eternal destiny and a divine nature, is in heaven.”

Mavis Haywood, a nurse who worked with Williams-Chandler for 40 years, at the Port of Spain General Hospital, hailed her as a caring and spiritual person.

“She demonstrated the character of God in her performances with her calm spirit,” Haywood said. “She brought joy, peace, healing and happiness to many patients as well as many relatives and staff.”

Williams-Chandler was ambushed by two gunmen near her home in Champs Fleurs on August 30.

Sources told Newsday that while heading toward her home at around midnight, a Nissan wagon suddenly pulled in front of her SUV and gunmen came out and opened fire on her vehicle hitting her several times.

An off-duty prison officer was in the car behind her. He drew his service weapon and shot at the gunmen, killing one. Williams-Chandler died from her wounds on September 18.