THE LATE Caribs and Trinidad and Tobago rugby player Jason ‘Moon’ Clark will be remembered for his generous spirit, as well as the love and respect he showed to all that he met as well as persons he grew familiar with.
So said his mother Josephine during a telephone interview yesterday.
Clark died on Saturday evening at the Port of Spain General Hospital, at the age of 30.
According to his mother, “Jason was an awesome kid, very respected. He gave respect and he gained respect. A phenomenal young man. He loved his family, he loved his sport, he loved his friends.” She spoke about his love of food, and his penchant for inviting his friends over for meals.
“(He would) accept everybody in arms,” said Mrs Clark.
“He would come home (and ask) ‘Mammy what you cook girl?’ And I will say ‘I make soup (or) pelau’. (He would add) ‘I have two friends, you have food?’ (and I will reply) ‘you know we always have food’.
(He will then say) ‘alright we coming’. He was always bringing somebody for food.” She revealed that he died of sepsis (a life-threatening condition that arises when the body’s response to infection injures its own tissues and organs). Asked how long he was ailing, she replied, “he just went in (the hospital), spent a week and that was it.” Tributes were paid to ‘Moon’ Clark by members of the rugby fraternity, and the Ministry of Sport, but no offer has been made to assist the family in terms of funeral expenses.
However, Mrs Clark noted that Jason’s funeral will take place at 10 am on Friday at the All Saints Anglican Church in Newtown, Port of Spain, following which his body will be cremated at the St James Crematorium.
Concerning any help towards the family by the Trinidad and Tobago Rugby Football Union (TTRFU), Mrs Clark said, “they haven’t come to us as yet. The week is still young but nobody has (told) us anything about that yet. Our rugby family at Caribs offered a lot of help but the Rugby Union not yet. I’m saying not yet. It’s only Monday so maybe they’ll call or something.
The Caribs club, the club that Jason played for, they offered a lot already.” The third child of a family of five (he had two brothers and two sisters), ‘Moon’ Clark became paralysed in November 2012 following a vehicular accident on the Beetham Highway.
His mother pointed out that, since the accident, “he always (kept) the faith. He had ups and downs. Sometimes he’d get tired of the pains. He keep saying ‘we have 365 days in a year but I was like getting pains 395 days. I am just tired of this pain’. He’s human.” Asked how will the family remember him by, Mrs Clark replied, “we will remember Jason for the love, for the closeness of the family. We are a very close family. We are there for one another, it’s all about his family.
He loved his friends. He loved his rugby. People from all over the world - India, New Zealand, he interacted with a lot of rugby people. But he will be missed dearly. He will be missed.” In related news, Sports Minister Darryl Smith also extended condolences on the passing of Clark. In a media release issued yesterday, Smith stated that Clark’s loss was a devastating one to the entire nation but his indomitable spirit in the face of adversity was something to behold.
“He’s in a better place now and I’m sure his family and friends give thanks for the time spent with him. The accident may have changed his physical capabilities but never dampened his spirit,” said Minister Smith.