Canute James Cato of Highgate, St. Mary, Jamaica passed away on March 20, 2022. Known to his friends as CJ, and to his family as Jolly, he was born in Galina, St. Mary, Jamaica to Levi and Eugenia Cato on February 22, 1934. One of a large family of nine children, he leaves behind Veronica, his wife of 57 years, grown children Cheddi, Duane, Kevin and Shani, as well as loving grandchildren, siblings, nieces and nephews.

By any measure, Canute was a true self-made man.Coming from a humble rural community in Jamaica, he and his family did not have access to many of what are now common niceties, such as running water, electricity and so on. As one of a large family, he spent much of his childhood being a support and caregiver for his siblings, a charge he considered a lifelong responsibility. Gifted with a powerful oratory, inquiry and an enduring love of reading, he performed well in his basic schooling, and was afforded the opportunity to become a nurse in Kingston at the young age of 17. Canute worked in that field for several years, eventually becoming a public health inspector, a role which allowed him to travel the length and breadth of the island, building relationships and a love of country that he passed on to his children and drove his passion for community service. His strongsense of nationalism would see him often writing letters to the Jamaican Gleaner newspaper, highlighting issues and items of concern to him. It was at this time that his  love for the writings of Omar Khayyam and Khalil Gibran also developed, poets which he would quote his entire life.

Canute eventually migrated to the United States, working in several jobs, until meeting Veronica, on a visit to Canada, where she was a nurse. Canute and Veronica married and he made the move to Canada, where he worked for the provincial government as a tax specialist. He rapidly began to build his own family and build his legacy of community engagement. In Canada, Canute was instrumental in the effort to improve rights and access for his fellow Jamaicans, a role which eventually led to his becoming president of the Jamaican-Canadian Association. An avid cricketer, he also became a captain of the Canadian Commonwealth Cricket team, while continuing to build relationships and advocate for Jamaican and Caribean peoples representation in Canada. He would often meet with other luminaries of the Canadian Caribbean diaspora (such as Bromley Armstrong, Lincoln Alexander, and others) to discuss the future, and was heartened to see so much for which they fought come to pass.

Canute was also a businessman of no mean order, eventually leaving provincial service and building multiple businesses in Canada across tax consultancy, laboratory services and property development. In the late 70s, going against trend, his love of Jamaica and the desire to ensure and reinforce the identity of his children pulled him back to the island, where he became a farmer and champion of agriculture for Jamaican small farmers. Canute again offered service in the local farming community, becoming a vice-president of the All Island Banana Growers Association (AIBGA), member of the board of the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS), and a noted fixture in conversations related to improving the lot and returns for Jamaican small farmers.

In his latter years, Canute was challenged by several health ailments, none of which he allowed to slow him down or prevent him from continuing to run his farm, producing crops and engaging with his peers across the nation. Canute remained physically and mentally active, opining often on the need for Jamaica to ensure food security for the betterment of it's people. His keen wit, love of Jamaica, and love of agriculture and it's ability to improve quality of life remained his mission, and made him an inspiration to many in his circle of friends and young people guided and mentored by him. Canute was deeply loved by his wife, children and grand-children and was generous with his thoughts, opinions and questions, always encouraging his family and friends to reach further, and become better than they are. He will be deeply missed until our joyous reunion.

Funeral arrangements for Canute Cato will be announced as soon as they are finalised.

Work is love made visible. And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy. Khalil Gibran