GORDON “Butch” Stewart has described the late Captain Robert “Robbie” Hamaty, master pilot and founder of Tortuga Rum Company, as a supremely decent human being who was a friend to all and enemy to none.
Stewart, the Caribbean's leading hotelier and founder of Sandals Resorts International, paid tribute in a statement to his long-standing friend who died on June 13, 2020 at Baptist Hospital in Miami, Florida, with wife Carlene at his side.
Following is the full text of Stewart's tribute:
“I have been deeply saddened by the passing of Captain “Robbie” Hamaty, a truly generous and kind-hearted man who has been a friend to all and enemy to none.
Captain Hamaty will also be remembered for his singular accomplishments in the airline industry as a master pilot, and in business, especially for his establishment, with his wife Carlene, of the Tortuga [Caribbean] Rum Cake, one of the Caribbean's most recognisable brands.
Hamaty is survived by his wife Carlene; daughter Monique, her husband Marcus Simmonds and their children Jayda, Nadia and Brandon; his son Basil and wife Melissa and their children Lismely, Megan and Robert Michael II; his sister Sonia; brother Frederick; sister-in-law Merle; sister Helene and brother-in-law Jack; brother Maskey and sister-in-law Gem; aunt Yolanda; nieces and nephews; cousins; and many loving friends.
