Tribute to Urel

It is with a tinge of sadness that I reflect on Urel Campbell’s passing. She sort of opened my eyes to the heights of Vincentian netball standards. From an early age, the combination of Peggy Ince and Urel Campbell formed an impregnable duo. Even though there have been other netballers who had kept the Vincentian flag flying, there was a definite ring about the Peggy Ince/Urel Campbell combination. {{more}}

It took me some time as a grown man to decipher that Peggy Hull and Peggy Ince was one and the same person, but it surprised me with a rasping curiosity that Urel’s surname remained unchanged.

Regardless of the off court activities, there was something scintillating about Urel Campbell.

She served as an inspiration to me in many ways. Her sporting ability engendered a feeling of esteem in the Vincentian.

That also perhaps influenced my acceptance of sports, on the ground and by air. There was always something special about Urel Campbell.

When I attended school in Kingstown, it was a thrill for me to explore the sporting arena or the “halls of fame” as it might have been, unofficially as it could be, to get a close up version of Urel Campbell. I dare say I followed her working life and the contribution to the administration of the game.

She proved a living example value of sports, for she maintained a healthy physique years after she quit the courts in competitive fashion. But she maintained her position on the court in company with other former stalwarts, in the team called Vets.

Hers was a perfect example, and she maintained that aura of majesty transcended from her sporting involvement.

Condolences to the Campbell on their bereavement. The netball fraternity has suffered a great loss with Campbell passing. Her quiet demeanour was perhaps deceptive and almost contrasting to her lethal accuracy when she was in her hey day. She knew when to leave the stage, and adapted to a different role after her national sojourn. He memories will last forever, having etched her character with utmost distinction in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the rest of the Caribbean, and the international arena.