Who am I? - Senior citizen longs for family connection

Hubert King is now a senior citizen and there is only one thing he knows for sure, it is that he was born in St Mary. He has no idea just where, though.

In a sit-down with The Gleaner, King said his parents died when he was young and the “one aunty” that he had, took him to Kingston and she died shortly after.

“Afta dat a pure batteration. Mi walk ‘bout and kotch a people place ... mi just live like a animal,” he shared about his years growing up in the city.

King said a gentleman he met took an interest in him and taught him the welding trade. When the man moved to live in Cockpit, Clarendon, he invited King to live in community as well.

King, who now lives in a shack on land that his benefactor owns, said he doesn’t even know his age as he has no birth certificate, and he wouldn’t even know how to go about getting one.

Laurel Livingston, who one day saw King crying, took compassion on him and has since been ensuring that he gets his daily meals.

She reached out to The Gleaner for assistance in getting King to reunite with his family, as she said his memory is slowly fading.

State of disconnect

King, for his part, said he feels as if he is nobody. He has no roots and knows very little about himself. His greatest desire is to have some form of family connection.

He makes it plain that he is not looking to be a burden on anyone, but just to know ... to have an idea of his roots. That would be his biggest joy.

“A doan know mi madda, and di ongle ting I know is dat dem sey mi fada did name Eustace … suh dem sey,” he said.

King rakes yards and does other odd jobs for survival. He said that although he doesnt have much, he is more concerned about his heritage … he just wants to get an idea of who he really is.