HIS EMINENCE CARDINAL KELVIN EDWARD FELIX
Kelvin Edward Felix was born on February 15, 1933, in Roseau, Dominica. He was one of nine children born to Major Edward Mosley Felix, Chief of the Dominica Police Force, and his wife Melanie Cadette. Young Kelvin received his primary education at the Roseau Boys School, and his secondary education at the Dominica Grammar School. He had a sunny, jovial personality that endeared him to friends and acquaintances alike. Kelvin was also a fine soccer player, representing the Grammar School with distinction. In 1950, he left Dominica to study for the Catholic priesthood at St. John Vianney Seminary in Trinidad; and he was ordained in Dominica in April 1956. He was the first diocesan priest from Roseau, and the first Catholic priest to be ordained in Dominica.
After several years of pastoral work in Dominica, Father Felix left in 1962 for St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia where he did a Diploma in Adult Education, graduating in 1963; and in 1967 he completed a Masters in Sociology and Anthropology at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana. He did post graduate studies in Sociology at the University of Bradford in Yorkshire, England, graduating in 1970. In 1986 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from St. Francis Xavier University, Nova Scotia.
In the late 1960s, while studying in the UK, and at the same time providing for the spiritual needs of Dominican immigrant community in Bradford, Father Felix saw the great difficulty that many West Indian immigrants encountered to buy their own homes, or in some cases, to merely lift themselves out of poverty. Despite intense competition from traditional lending sources, and some skepticism in the Dominican community, Father Felix persevered and organized the Bradford Credit Union among Dominicans in Bradford to help the community mobilize its savings for self-improvement. This seeded the Credit Union movement in the London Metropolitan area, and in the UK in general, a legacy that Dominicans in the UK are thankful for and are justly proud of. On completion of his UK studies in 1970, Father Felix was appointed tutor at the Seminary of St. John Vianney, his alma mater, and lecturer in Sociology at the University of the West Indies at St. Augustine.
In 1972, reflecting his leadership, and his training and sensitivity, Father Felix was called back home to serve as Headmaster of the St. Mary's Academy which was then experiencing serious racial problems engendered by the Black Power movement. His success in resolving the problems at the Academy, and his humility, keen intelligence and diplomacy, together with his diligence and penchant for effective organization, led to his appointment as Associate General Secretary of the Caribbean Conference of Churches. And in 1981, Father Felix was elevated to the position of Metropolitan Archbishop of the Province of Castries, St. Lucia, responsible for all Catholic dioceses in the Windward and Leeward Islands.
Among the many offices that Archbishop Felix was appointed to were President of the Caribbean Conference of Churches, President of the Antilles Episcopal Conference, and Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Bridgetown, Barbados. He also served the Holy See on various Pontifical committees, including the Pontifical Council for Family Life, the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, and the Synodal Council for America.
For his service to the region, and particularly to Dominica and St. Lucia, Archbishop Felix was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace, London in 1992. In 1999, he was awarded the Dominica Medal of Honor; and in 2002, he received the St. Lucia Medal of Honor. He retired in October 2007, but continued to meet the Pope in Rome for three years after retirement. In retirement, Father Felix, as he is affectionately known, elected to do pastoral work among the poor in the villages of Dominica, where his leadership and wisdom continue to be felt. On February 22, 2014, at a Papal ceremony in Rome, Pope Francis elevated Archbishop Felix to the rank of Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church.
For his visionary leadership, his selflessness and humility, and his dedication to the poor, DAAS honors Dominica's much loved son, His Eminence Cardinal Kelvin Edward Felix.
Contributed by:
Davison Shillingford
October 2008
Updated April 2014
The Sun's Person of the Year, 2014
