Caymanian publishing pioneer William Dudley Churchill Parsons Bodden, known as Billy, was the man who launched the Compass.
Born in George Town in September 1927, Bodden’s first foray into the media world was when he moved to Florida as a young man. Coming from a long line of sea captains, Billy initially joined the ship belonging to his father Captain Ellington Bodden but then took a job with the Miami News and later with the Miami Herald.
After serving around 16 years with the US newspapers, Billy returned to the island of his birth in 1964, soon setting up the short-lived Tradewinds newspaper with Jim MacDonald and Arthur Bodden.
In 1965, Bodden founded the Caymanian Weekly newspaper with Dr. Roy MacTaggart and several others, marking the beginning of the national newspaper of record.
Then in 1972, Bodden started the Cayman Compass with Reid Dennis, which amalgamated with the Caymanian Weekly in 1974 to become the Caymanian Compass, under the aegis of Cayman Free Press of which he (Bodden) was president.
Having gained a wealth of experience at the Miami newspapers, Bodden was responsible for teaching many Caymanians all aspects of the printing industry.
Tributes
In a newspaper article following Bodden’s untimely death in 1975, it said all his journalistic efforts were aimed at benefitting his fellow people and that he was greatly liked by colleagues for his modesty, compassion, generosity and warmth.
A tribute in the Caymanian Compass, read: “The name of William D. Bodden, more affectionately known to us as Billy Bodden, will be forever enshrined in the history of the Cayman Islands for his contribution to the field of journalism in this country. Wherever and whenever anyone refers to the printing and publishing industries in Cayman, the name of Billy Bodden will be remembered.”
It went on to say: “His contributions to his country, through the channels of journalism, perhaps though not fully realised now, will in due course cause our founder to be numbered among the islands’ immortals.”
While Bodden’s first focus and love was for his beloved Cayman Islands, he also had an international outlook, serving for several years as the local Reuters news agency correspondent.
In the mid-1960s, Ora Adelee Hollebon, neé Ebanks, now of East End, worked at the Caymanian Weekly which she says was sometimes referred to as ‘Mr. Billy’s paper’. “He was a very kind man, and, from my experience, he was a quiet, mild-mannered, committed and dedicated editor,” she recalls.
Personal life
Bodden was married three times, first to Ann in the United States – they had a daughter Gwendolyn and a son Wayne. He later married Lorraine and they had a son, Craig. In later years, he married Joyann Singh in Cayman.
Among endeavours outside of work, Bodden was a chartered member of the Rotary Club and was the backbone of the Santa Claus Committee, which brought happiness to hundreds of children each Christmas.
He died tragically on his 48th birthday in September 1975, but left a legacy which, 60 years after he founded the national newspaper of record, is being celebrated this month by the Cayman Compass.
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