Born Daisy Millicent Boyce in Arima, Trinidad on Oct. 8, 1913, she was nicknamed Ena at a young age. She was the fourth of eleven children of Rufus and Ada Boyce. Daisy grew up in a rural town and she recalled caring for her younger siblings from the time that she was seven years old.

After the birth of her daughter, Sue, she traveled to Barbadoes to work in 1945. Daisy met Lacey Simpson and they married on December 8, 1952. Their marriage lasted until August 2, 2002 when Lacey passed away at the age of 100. With sponsorship by her brother-in-law, she migrated to the US in 1953 to seek more opportunities and she was joined by her daughter two years later. It wasn’t long before she passed her Practical Nurses exam. She worked at Creedmore State Hospital for about 30 years as a practical nurse, working with alcoholics, the mentally ill and in the children’s wards. She retired in 1982 and began collecting her pension.

Daisy joined the Seventh Day Adventist faith in Barbados in the 1950s, and served faithfully for the remainder of her life. She was an early member of Linden Blvd. Seventh Day Adventist church and with her husband by her side, she worked diligently to build the St. Albans based church as deaconess, sabbath school superintendent and teacher. She was an active participant in many aspects of the church including its expansion and the purchase of the new Linden SDA facility in Laurelton.

She was also a leader in the Prison Ministry for 30 years. Throughout this time she ministered to thousands of male and female inmates at Rikers Island . Many times she was alone, with only her faith in the Lord to protect her from her charges. She received recognition from the Mayor of the City of New York for her work, turning around the lives of countless people through Christ. She went to Rikers Island so much, her grandchildren teased her about being on the work release program.

After arriving in New York she brought dozens of family and friends from the West Indies to the United States to seek a better life. This included her sisters, their families, Lacey’s family from Barbados, her extended family, friends and “friends of friends”. They went on to become contributing members of society in medicine, business, the arts and other fields.

Daisy was self-reliant until her 90’s. She tended her own garden until she was about 90. She grew her own medicinal plants, flowers and vegetables. She knew home remedies, provided others with vegetables from her garden, canned her own stock for the winter and was a vegetarian long before it was en vogue. And, she always kept a couple of dogs and cats around to keep her company.

Daisy traveled near and far to visit with family and friends. This included returning to Trinidad several times during her lifetime. She went to Japan and Hong Kong in the early 90s to see her daughter who was living there at the time. She also traveled with her grandson and his wife and children to South Africa to visit his in-laws. She also made numerous trips to Philadelphia to care for her great-grandchildren when they were young.

In her nineties she moved to Los Angeles, CA and continued to participate in a local SDA church.

She is survived by 2 sisters Viola Alexander and Delphina, daughter Suechin Keane and son-in-law Dr. Edward Keane, grandchildren Michael Clemmons and Karole Larsson and husband Morgan Larsson, two great-grandchildren Zinzi Clemmons and Mark Clemmons and numerous nieces and nephews.

Lovingly Submitted
The Family

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