Toshyna Patterson hailed as a fighter in emotional service
Scores pay tribute to slain mom, daughter
Published:Sunday | December 17, 2023 | 12:12 AMAinsworth Morris - Staff Reporter
Twenty-seven-year-old Toshyna Patterson was eulogised as a fierce fighter in an emotional service as relatives, friends and associates celebrated her life and that of her 10-month-old daughter Sarayah Paulwell on Saturday.
Cousin Sherman Bowen said Patterson was always a fierce fighter – even in her mother Danett Gayle’s womb as she bested her twin sister Sashna by being born five minutes before her. This fighting spirit, Bowen said, she would show time and again throughout her life.
“It appears that Tosh’s inner fighter was uncomfortable and was pushing her to reach new heights and take on more ambitious tasks,” Bowen said, relating the young entrepreneur’s journey to finding her footing in the pest control industry.
He told a packed hall at the Jamaica Restoration Breakthrough PHD Ministries in Portmore, St Catherine, that having founded Propest Company Limited in a partnership, Patterson later left that collaboration and founded her own enterprise, ChemPest Company Limited, in 2019. She ran the business until she and her daughter were killed in September in a case that jolted the nation.
Sarayah was the daughter of opposition lawmaker Phillip Paulwell, who did not attend the service.
According to police reports, the mother and her child were abducted outside their St Andrew home on September 9 and were taken to east Kingston, where they were shot and killed and their bodies burnt.
Four persons were later charged with their deaths, two of whom have pleaded guilty. The remaining two defendants – Leoda Bradshaw, the parliamentarian’s American companion with whom he also shares a child, and her cousin Roland Balfour – remain before the court and are booked to make their next appearance on March 6 next year.
Bradshaw, a 34-year-old US Navy officer, is accused of plotting the murders. She is also alleged to have paid J$100,000 in the US currency equivalent to the hitmen as part of a down payment for the J$500,000 hit.
It is alleged that with the help of her cousin and co-defendant Balfour, Bradshaw contracted men, including the now-convicted Rushane Miller and Richard Brown, to kidnap and murder the mother and daughter.
CONTINUE AS TOSH WOULD WANT
“She was a hands-on person who actively participated in the day-to-day operations of her business ... . She had no problem arming herself, getting ready, and searched far and wide for her adversaries. Pests! You name it. They may be roaches, rodents or duck ants, she was going to find them and destroy them, no matter where they were ... . She was definitely a pest buster rather than a ghostbuster!” Bowen said, adding that the entrepreneur was placed on earth to remove pests.
“Tosh developed an interest in the pest control industry, a highly peculiar field, and I wonder if she intended to assist anyone in getting pests out of their lives,” he added.
Bowen said that since having Sarayah – whom she went into labour with during her graduation from The University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, with a Bachelor of Science degree in November 2022 – Toshyna returned to her family’s house of faith, the Jamaica Restoration Breakthrough PHD Ministries.
Apostle Marshal Taylor, who officiated the service, characterised Patterson as a friend.
“Every now and then, Tosh will ask me, ‘How are you doing, Apostle?’ The last thing that she said to me, ‘Continue to do your good work’, and every time I remember about Tosh, it brings tears to my eyes, even this morning,” Taylor said.
“But I remember Tosh said, ‘Continue!’ Tosh is gone, but continue! Continue to love! Continue to be kind!” he urged mourners.
Among the heartbroken, many of whom wailed as numerous tributes were offered, was Danett Gayle.
The weight of the double tragedy, having lost a daughter and granddaughter, had her crying out to the Almighty at times.
She wept openly and was so overcome by emotions that when Taylor called the family, who were dressed in white, for an intercessory prayer, she screamed even louder.
“Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Oh, Jesus! Oh, my God!” she cried, triggering a wave of tears among mourners during the three-hour service.
Patterson was a past student of the Rock Hall Basic School, Rock Hall All-Age, and Jonathan Grant High School. She also attended the National Academy and obtained a diploma in business administration before pursuing studies at The UWI, Mona.