The Grenada correspondent for the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC), Linda Straker, died Tuesday at the General Hospital after a prolonged battle with illness. She was 55.
Straker, who also freelanced for a number of regional and international publications, had been hospitalised for over a month due to a number of medical complications.
She had served as an executive member of the Media Workers Association of Grenada (MWAG) and was also Grenada’s representative on the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders.
“Linda was known for asking tough questions, even evoking strong reactions from those being interviewed. She was fearless and above all loved her 3 children, whom she regarded as her pride and joy,” said CMC’s editor, Peter Richards.
“Her youngest daughter Naomi recently graduated at the top of her class as a registered nurse at a university in Cuba, and yesterday was her first day on the job,” he added.
In a statement announcing her death, her friends, Rawle Titus and Nicole Best, wrote that “Linda was more than a journalist, she was a force of excellence, a voice for truth and a champion for the media profession.”
They said Straker was renowned for her “deep commitment to accurate, ethical and impactful journalism” and that “she tirelessly championed press freedom, media development and the importance of a strong, independent media”.
Among her various awards was “Best Research Journalist” and “Linda’s legacy lives on in the stories she told, the journalists she mentored and the doors she opened.”
CMC
Condolences to her family.
She was the best journalist on the island.