Around thirty relatives, colleagues and former students gathered Tuesday evening in the Galisbay parking lot to pay tribute to Gabriel "Gaby" Marbœuf. The 76-year-old driving instructor, who died on July 9 in a road accident in Bellevue, near the border with Sint Maarten, trained generations of drivers on the island for more than forty years.
Dressed in white, Gaby's favorite color, the participants rode at a leisurely pace from Agrément to Concordia, then to the border at Bellevue, where candles were lit in her memory.
Visibly moved, his son thanked those present: “My dad was a very joyful person, who loved his family very much and who loved others very much. Thank you very much for being here, and we love you for making the effort to be here.”
The prefect of Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy, Cyrille le Vély, was also present. Although he did not know Gabriel Marbœuf personally, he emphasized the importance of the driving instructor profession and stressed the need for caution on the road.
The heartfelt cry of driving instructors
The majority of driving instructors on the island were present at the memorial service for their colleague. For them, this tragedy highlights a broader issue. “We worked together [with Gabriel] on road safety; we were very committed to prevention,” says Linda Exty, manager of Help Conduite in Hope Estate. Still in shock, she adds: “What happened is incomprehensible. It could have happened to us too. We're going to be even more vigilant about road safety to raise awareness.”
Professionals are denouncing persistent road safety issues on the island. Between the coexistence of French and Dutch traffic codes, the lack of signage, and frequent violations of traffic rules, driver education is a particularly demanding exercise in Saint-Martin. _DR
Editor's note: The entire Faxinfo team joins in the family's grief and offers its sincere condolences to them and to Gaby's loved ones.
