Gombey Festival Honouree, September 11, 2011
Edmund Owen Galloway was born 3 March 1929 and was said to be the oldest living Gombey dancer when he passed in 4 April, 2011. From a very young man into his early twenties, he danced with the first major Gombey troupe, led by Mr. Charles Norford – justly cited as the father of the re-emergence of this folkloric dance. With his marriage to Ruth Elizabeth Ratteray and their focus on raising a family, Mr. Galloway was disappointed to have to abandon his official participation but forever remained a Gombey dancer at heart. We recognise posthumously Mr. Galloway’s passion and his dedication to the art of dancing the Gombeys.
The twin joys of his life were his family (his wife, his three daughters and his grandchildren) and the Gombeys. His family tells of the immediate joy Mr. Galloway experienced upon hearing the striking rhythm of the Gombey drums. Even as he grew older, it only took the Gombey beat heard through a window to perk him up and be transformed. It is said that he perfected a dance called the ‘high step’ and he performed it whenever he danced. As stated in his obituary, “his love of the gombeys was phenomenal and this was passed on to his children – especially Sharilyn and Lisa who would follow the gombeys with him or drive along or behind them so that he would have his fill of the music”. He loved the Gombeys and the Gombeys loved and respected him.
Mr. Galloway looked forward to attending the annual Gombey Festival and true to form was easily encouraged to get up and dance with the gombeys at the festival in 2010. Whenever the gombeys danced in the area of Euclid Avenue, he made sure they stopped and performed at his gate – especially on Boxing Day. His keen ear would pick up the correct beating of the drums and would be able to state if the group was beating the drums according to tradition. A stickler for tradition, Mr. Galloway would always stress the importance of the dances being properly dressed and masked so that no one would see their faces.
History records the contribution Mr. Galloway made to the preservation of the Gombey traditions of dance. On behalf of the Ministry, the Department of Culture and indeed on behalf of the people of Bermuda, we salute Mr. Edmund Owen ‘Willie Gollie’ Galloway for his invaluable contribution to the Gombey folk art tradition.
