Pain and disbelief at Vauxhall High Murdered teacher mourned by colleagues, students, community

BY RACQUEL PORTER Observer staff reporter porterr@jamaicaobserver.com Tuesday, January 28, 2020 

Morning devotion at Vauxhall High School in Kingston yesterday was not easy.

C-ndre Jackson weeps for his teacher, Carl Samuels, even as

 he is being consoled by Christine Bartley, an education officer

 at the Ministry of Education, during devotion at Vauxhall High 

School yesterday morning. Samuels was shot dead by gunmen

 last Saturday at the school. (Photos: Garfield Robinson)

Grief, expressed through tears and sobs, filled the auditorium as students, teachers, alumni, residents of neighbouring communities, and people who didn't even know 36-year-old Carl Samuels reflected on his brutal murder by gunmen last Saturday evening.

Samuels, who taught theatre arts at the school on Windward Road in east Kingston, was shot dead on the school compound about 7:35 pm.

The pain at Samuels's loss was evident from as early as 7:00 am as people flooded the school, discussing the tragedy in groups.

They consoled each other during the praise and worship session. Eventually, emotion got the better of fifth-form student C-ndre Jackson, who had assisted with the devotion.

“I was going to Camperdown (High School) when I heard all the gunshots. When I reach Camperdown I got a call that someone died over here and then a couple minutes after, my uncle called and told me that it was my teacher,” 16-year-old Jackson said, adding that all he could do was cry. “I sent him my (theatre arts) SBA the same day (Saturday) and he told me that he would give me an answer on Sunday… He has been like a father,” the grade eleven student said. “He was a teacher, a great mentor, and a father figure. Mr Samuels showed me a lot of things; he told me a lot of jokes during drama class. He usually provoked me because I was late for class but yet still I always do my work.” more