Mary Rose Mizzi writes:
The news of Jeremy’s sudden passing away on June 26 came as a shock to us.
The last time my late husband Francis and I met Jeremy was at his Honoris Causa graduation last November. It was a most merited occasion for the great anthropologist who contributed immensely to understanding better Maltese village dynamics.
Jeremy and his wife Inga first came to Malta in 1957-1958. He came here as a representative of the US relief organisation Care.
However, in 1960-1961, he was given a grant from the Colonial Social Science Research Council to carry out research. During this time, he used to live in the small village of Farruġ (Kirkop) and embarked on anthropological studies focusing on Kirkop.
The fieldwork consisted of a micro look at the family life, the networks of relations, social distinctions, the role of the Church and the conflicts between partisans of rival saints, band clubs and political functions in the village.
The first edition of the book Saints and Fireworks was published in 1965. This was followed by Ħal Farruġ a Village in Malta. The names of people and saints mentioned in this book had been changed. A more recent update Ħal Kirkop a Village in Malta was published in 2006.
Jeremy and Inga, together with their daughters, were frequent visitors to our island. They owned a house in Naxxar but they never forgot Kirkop. Here they made friends and learned their first Maltese words.
Inga was a very fast learner. Jeremy and my late husband Francis became great friends and Jeremy found a great collaborator in him. We were in close contact on a periodic basis over the past 50 years. And they were real friends of Kirkop.
On May 29, 2009, Jeremy was awarded the Merit of Kirkop for his voluntary work among Kirkop residents.
Thank you Jeremy. You will always be remembered through your books. Thank you for portraying, through your deeds, a simple way of living, evidently strongly influenced by a Dutch ethic, how to love, appreciate and cherish the families and residents of our village.
Although 50 years have passed since Saints and Fireworks, it is still a reference book worth reflecting upon today.