Virgin Islands Department of Education Commissioner Sharon McCollum, Ph.D., has issued the following statement on the passing of longtime St. Thomas-St. John District educator, Oswin ‘Zeke’ Sewer, Sr.:

On behalf of the Virgin Islands Department of Education, I wish to extend my sincere condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Mr. Oswin ‘Zeke’ Sewer, Sr.

Mr. Sewer was a true giant in our community and a lifelong champion for the education of young Virgin Islanders. His years spent in the classroom, shaping and molding the minds of some of the Territory’s best and brightest were served with wisdom, humility and fidelity.

Following his three decades as an educator, Mr. Sewer’s many involvements in his church, local clubs and organizations, the University of the Virgin Islands Board of Trustees and the V.I. Board of Education continued to bear witness to a life that embodied the essence of the well-known mantra, ‘service above self.’

Mr. Sewer's countless contributions to his native St. John and the Virgin Islands family as a whole will live on in perpetuity.

The Virgin Islands education system has been made better because Mr. Oswin Sewer was a part of it. He will be greatly missed.