Appreciation: Raymond Cordina

My father, Raymond Cordina, passed away suddenly at the age of 67 on April 10. His passing was a great shock to my family and all his relatives and friends. A source of comfort is that he passed away peacefully, surrounded by nature, which was so dear to him.

As his daughter, I would like to thank all those who were part of my father’s life. You enriched it and made it special in your own way. I would also like to thank those who came to my father’s funeral and those who sent messages of condolences.

My father was a man of many interests, and although he spent most of his life working as an aircraft engineer, many will remember him for his other passions and achievements, including his love for the environment, his work as an organic farmer, his passion for local food traditions, good food and wine, and his love of birds, including his work in the introduction of the barn owl project.

I know how much the overdevelopment of land and the destruction of the environment troubled my father. He was also frustrated by the lack of investment in local agriculture and by the resulting high dependence of the island on the importation of food products.

He taught me many things and passed on so many values to me. Many of you will know him as a gentleman, and in fact, my father taught me the importance of keeping one’s word, and the importance of always acting according to one’s own values and principles, without compromise. He taught me that whatever I chose to do in life I should try to be of service to others and to do it with passion. My father was also always searching for the truth, and he taught me that an unexamined life is not worth living. He transmitted to me his love for reading and also his love for music.

These are the things he would want us to remember him by. I hope to transmit these values to my own children, and to keep his memory alive every day.