NASSAU, Bahamas, March 25, 2024 — A Service of Celebration for the Life of renowned photojournalist Margaret Guillaume was held on Palm Sunday, March 24, 2024, at Hillview Seventh-Day Adventist Church on Tonique Williams-Darling Highway. It attracted long-time media colleagues and friends and hierarchy within the Adventist church.
Margaret died in the Intensive Care Unit of the Princess Margaret Hospital on Sunday, March 10, 2024. She was 76-years-old. Her body was laid to rest in Woodlawn Gardens, Soldier Road.
Condolences and Tributes paid via video recordings and in person reflected the life of a master photographer, a perfectionist, and a stern teacher of photography, who epitomized strength, efficiency energy, keen observation, and reliance. She was also revered for her dedication to the Adventist faith, particularly at Hillview, and her contribution to The Bahamas through her craft.
Margaret worked in New York City as a freelancer earlier in her career, and her photographs have appeared in newspapers and magazines in The Bahamas and internationally.
“Members of the Bahamas Press Club express profound condolences to her family and wish her an eternal peaceful rest. Margaret was a perfectionist. With her, nothing was halfway. It was either doing it right or not at all. I can say with certainty that we, the members of the Bahamas Press Club will miss her, too,” said President Anthony Capron in his recorded tribute.
Also paying tributes and expressing condolences were: Leader of His Majesty’s Loyal Opposition the Hon Michael Pintard; Pastor Peter Kerr, President of the Atlantic Caribbean Union Mission of Seventh-day Adventists; Kenny Deveaux, President of the South Bahamas Conference of Seventh-day Adventists; and Elder Elgin Hepburn, Head Elder, Hillview Seventh-day Adventists. Pastor Leonard Rahming, Hillview Seventh-day Adventist Church delivered the Homily. Her niece, Presleith McPhee gave heartfelt thanks on behalf of the family.
Professionally, Miss Guillaume was a well-known Master of Fine Arts Documentary Photographic Artist and Photographic Lecturer who taught photography at the then College of The Bahamas.
She organized and was the first President of the Bahamas Camera Club, and a founding member of The Bahamas Press Club.
Among her many stellar accomplishments, is her Exhibition “Dancing In the Light”, which was held on June 3, 2014, at Doongalik Studios Art Gallery. She has also exhibited many of her historic scenes of Nassau buildings, flora and fauna, and photographed scenes of Nassau and elderly Bahamians prepared on archival paper that was tested and confirmed to last for over 200 years.
Margaret’s work is known worldwide and has caught the attention of the late Queen Elizabeth II, has been purchased by the Shar of Iran, and notable persons in the United States, including an ambassador who had one of her archival prepared Junkanoo in his art collection.
She was a member of the Board of Directors who restored the Villa Doyle home into the National Arts Gallery of The Bahamas. In this capacity, she fought for the recognition of archival-prepared photographs to become artwork for the Gallery.
