It was 1995 when i first meet Maurice ,Marcia and little Khari. Marcia and Khari had just arrived into Abu Dhabi to join Maurice and the beginning of his career at the TV station and a new adventurous lifestyle. I , marcy mitchell at the time , was a Kindergarten Teacher employed at Abu Dhabi International School in Karama down town. Marcia and Khari had come to view the school and facilities , khari at that time was 3 or 4 yrs old . We hit it off and Khari was soon enrolled in my class. I remember being bowled over as i’d never met anyone with similarities to my name , not only was there Marcia Holland number 1 but to my dismay there was Marcia Holland number2 who was married to Maurices brother Derek.  Within days i met Maurice and a great friendship was formed between us all. 

Maurice and Marcia often invited me to their home and it became a regular occurance  for home cooked food and a few bevies . Maurice was a dab hand in the kitchen and i ate my first ever jerk chicken and plantain care of the chef extrordinare. I became khari ‘s babysitter when they needed a night out until they became settled with a live in nanny housekeeper. Life was good for this young British / Jamacian family in the UAE . We had many good times together  , with beach bbq’s , parties, brunches and family gatherings that were often quite messy!!!!!  In the UAE you learnt how to work hard but you partied even HARDER. 

Maurice was incredibly friendly and always made people feel at ease , we laughed a lot and i laughed even harder when he laughed with that unusual laugh he had. His stories , infectious personality and relaxed attitude was what made Maurice..... MO. I remember when Marcia became pregnant with Kamal ....... boy was maurice on cloud nine grinning with that ULTRA BRIGHT SMILE. Maurice had always been an amazing dad to little Khari and treated her as if she was his own.

As years passed i moved on to pastures new , but we always picked up our friendship where we left off as if it was yesterday. MO you will always be remembered as that happy go lucky cheeky chap with that infectious smile. RIP my friend xx I will be watching the live stream send off and raise a glass to your truely remarkable life.

Sincerely with love Marcy Preston-Mitchell