SO LONG, SHALEEN

‘NOW SHE HAS A GIG IN HEAVEN WITH HUNDREDS OF BRILLIANT PEOPLE LIKE HER’

THIS year is going to be different, she told her friends shortly after celebrating her birthday in May. Shaleen Surtie-Richards had had a tough time in recent years and the pandemic didn’t help. But things were looking up for her – she had work again after long, desperate periods of joblessness that left her almost destitute.

She’d also had many health issues, including two strokes and an extended battle with type 2 diabetes. Her financial situation was so dire at one stage that she struggled to keep a roof over her head and could barely afford food.