Noel King was born on December 24, 1939 at Sion Hill in St. Vincent. He was the second son and third child of Mr. And Mrs. Gladstone King. His elder brother Gek predeceased him, and his sister Pat Franklyn lives in Laval, Quebec. He went to the Kingstown Anglican School under Headmaster Thomas. This school was important in the life of young Noel since his grandfather was once a headmaster. He went to St. Vincent Boys Grammar School (1951 1959) under headmaster Mr. Lopey and Mr. Millar. He was a member of Green House, and a long distance runner with many medals under the tutelage of Walcot Pemberton. He represented the St. Vincent Boys Grammar School on more than one occasion at the Windward Island Interschool tournaments.
He was a member of the Grammar School Cadets Corps, and obtained Class A and Class B badges while on a cadet camp in Barbados. He obtained a Grade 1 School Certificate from Cambridge University in 1957. After leaving the Grammar School, he taught one year in the primary school system in St, Vincent before leaving for Trinidad where he taught at Eastern Boys Primary School in Lavantille (1960 1963).
He migrated to Canada in 1963 and worked at Tam-O-Shanter (1963-1965) while going to school at Sir George Williams University (now Concordia) in Montreal. He left Tam-O-Shanter and went to university full time completing his Bachelor's Degree in 1967.
He got married to Miss Greta Duncan in 1964 and they have two children. Gene, his son was born in 1965 and Tracy, his daughter, was born in 1967. He started working with Department of National Defence in 1967 and retired in 1995.
Extra-Curricular Activities:
He was a founding member of the Kingstown Chorale and sang with the group for a year. He was also very active in the late fifties and the early sixties as a calypsonian. His popular name was Lord Shines, and he has been called Shines ever since. His love for music impacted very much on his son Gene who is now in the music industry.
He became associated with a group of young people in the Calliaqua/RathoMill area in St. Vincent known as the "Villagers". He remained a most loyal "Villager". He became a member of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Association in Montreal and was a past president. In the year 2000, he became active in the Association again and was vice president, and became president in 2001 and continued to be president until he passed away. His impact on those who knew him was strong simply because he gave a hundred percent in whatever he did. He will be missed by many of us.
Noel departed on April 23, 2004 in Montreal. May his Soul rest in Peace.
