Almost three years ago Bermudian Colin Lee was murdered in cold blood in Sudan as his pregnant wife watched on in horror.
The story became international news and was heard by thousands.
One of the people "touched" by the story was American Joey Parish and his wife Fawn. They have embarked on an ambitious project to capture Mr. Lee's life and tragic death in a documentary.
They are hoping Bermudians will come forward to shed some light on the "colourful character" that he was.
Filming for The Mamma Shekinah Project begins next month on location in Sudan.
Mr. Parish and his wife had been working as reconciliation experts for victims of tribal warfare in developing countries for several years when they first met Mr. Lee's widow Hedwig Lee.
"We were in Uganda for a conference in 2008 when we first met Hedwig," Mr. Parish said.
"We were struck by her strong desire to return to the place where her husband was killed.
"We couldn't get her story out of our heads."
Mrs. Parish wrote the script herself and is the author of several books including Honour: What Love Looks Like, It's All About You, Jesus, and Deeper Still.
They hope to pitch the 44-minute documentary to TBS when it is complete.
Mr. Parish said: "We want to portray Mr. Lee's life growing up in Bermuda, the hard times he went through, his courtship of Hedwig, her growing up in Paraguay and their whirlwind romance around the world.
"We will go to the ambush site where he was killed, the hospital where he passed away and talk to the people who were there when it happened.
"We will then fast forward to the difficult birth of their daughter Shekinah (which means 'glory of God') and to Hedwig's period of total rejection to what happened - the hurt was so hard on her."
The film will end with Mrs. Lee's "healing" and ultimate decision to live in the country where her husband was killed.
"For me, I would like for people to watch the film and walk away knowing there is a God of love that can heal and that forgiveness is very healing," Mr. Parish said.
Share stories
Mr. Lee's sister, Gaylhia LeMay, is hoping Bermudians who knew her brother well will come forward to share their stories and photographs of him for the film.
"I'm desperate to find people who have had meaningful interactions with my brother," she said.
"I'm looking for anyone who has first-hand accounts of their encounters with Colin."
A carpenter by trade, Mr. Lee worked for himself as well as for several local construction companies such as Sea-Land Construction and his last job was at the Berkeley Institute site.
He could often been found playing saxophone on the ocean-side rocks and had a passion for classic cycles.
Before he became a Christian in the late 1980's he was a musician who played guitar and was the lead singer for band The Burning Ice.
"He was raised in the church, he just went astray for a while," Mrs. LeMay says of her brother who had been linked to drugs. "'Reverend' was his nickname because he could be in the middle of smoking a cigarette and drinking a black and coke and be quoting parts of the bible."
Mr. Lee had been in Sudan on-and-off for two years when he was shot and killed.
He and his wife of one year had been working with charity International Aid Servcies (IAS) at the time and were on their way to offer "spiritual healing for Sudan's down-trodden" when their car was ambushed by members of The Lord's Resistance Army on the afternoon of November 5 2005.
Mr. Lee, who was 57 at the time, was shot in the chest and throat taken to Yei hospital for treatment where he died later that night.
His sister said: "He saw the need in Sudan and felt it was his calling - that it was where he was meant to be."
Anyone who knew Mr. Lee is urged to call Mrs. LeMay within the next week at 338-2455 or email her at rememberingcolin@yahoo.com
Reader Comments
Posted: Friday, August 07, 2009
Comment by:
Beth Brooks
I know Fawn and Joey Parish personally, and I'm so grateful this article was put up. It is important to get the news out about this project--our prayers are with you Mamma Shekinah Project!
