Harry Makly Dautruche's Obituary
On October 13, 1950, the home of Mr. Lopez N. Dautruche and his wife Lise, nee Bréva, was blessed with the arrival of their second beautiful baby boy. They named him Harry Makly.
Very early, Harry would demonstrate his adventurous and ingenious side. Before age ten he would disassemble his parent’s prized radio and to put it back together. At a time when in Haiti, an electric iron was considered a precious trinket to be used only on precious occasions, Harry dared to subject the family’s electric iron to his thorough survey. This time, the reassembling failed. However, upon finding the damaged good, the parents simply concluded the iron fell and broke. Ouf! The next object of Harry’s scrutiny was his father’s Instant Polaroid Camera. He could be found snapping candid pictures around the house and of some of the next-door neighbor’s children. This was the start of a life’s long interest in photography. His camera never left him and he became the pictures taker and collector for the family.
Harry and Jocelyn were like twins, and they completed together their schooling in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, from primary school at Coeur de Jésus to the end of secondary school at College St-Pierre. Harry, then, moved to Pittsburgh Pennsylvania to study engineering at the University of Pittsburgh. During his first years in Pittsburgh, he lived with and became a son to the Goodwins, friends of his parents. Later, he resided with the Pamphiles who were very dear to his parents.
However, New York was calling him: This is where Marie Lourdes (Choupette), his beloved, was living at the time. Harry moved to New York and together with Jocelyn who had migrated there too, he became an entrepreneur. He later worked as manager in different food companies in New York. Harry returned to Haiti for a brief period where he and Jocelyn operated a business together. For the last twenty years, Harry and his family resided in Florida where he has worked for Air Canada and SwissPort Co.
Choupette has been a magnet in Harry’s life since his younger years. This attraction started a long time ago as children growing up in the same neighborhood. And Père Solon, Choupette’s father, who was very strict (thiak!!) lost his punch when Harry, a teenager, walked to his house and told him point blank he liked his daughter and wanted to court her. That was the beginning of a long love story that even death cannot end. Harry and Choupette were married on February 27, 1982, and they were blessed with one daughter, Nathalie whom Harry cherished.
After a long fight with cancer, on the morning of June 29, 2023, Harry took his last breath his hand in Choupette’s hand while listening to some of his preferred Christian hymns, probably murmuring the words “Never alone, He promised to never leave me; no, never alone”.
Loving husband, caring father, attentive brother, cousin, and friend, faithful Christian believer Harry is survived by his dear wife, nee Marie Lourdes Hilaire, his daughter Nathalie; his brothers, sisters, and their families: Jocelyn, Jean-Robert, Joel, Ketlie, Mona, and Guy; his brothers in law, sisters in law and their families: Delano, Tony, Mireille, Luna, Marco and Sonie; many nephews, nieces, cousins and friends.
There will be a funeral service held at Fort Myers Memorial Gardens Funeral home on Friday, July 21, 2023 . Visitation will begin at 9:00 AM and service starting at 10:00 AM. Harry will then be laid to rest immediately following his service.
For those who can not make Harry's service personally, the family invites you to join by a livestream. Please click the link below to join and watch the service.
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81609204609?pwd=NURKemtRLzNKSDNXR1lZTUc0MjZNZz09
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