Family and friends of Rockling “Rocky” Bootle are struggling to comprehend his sudden and violent death, remembering him instead as a man “full of life,” “rooted in faith,” and deeply devoted to family.
Bootle, a taxi driver from Abaco, was found dead in a motel room in Nassau on Friday. A maid, who went to clean the room, made the grim discovery. Police said he had suffered multiple stab wounds. The investigation continues.
“A name that still walks into the room with the biggest smile,” his niece Gayniah Bootle wrote in a heartfelt social media tribute. “You were a family man, through and through, rooted in God, unshaken in faith.”
She affectionately called him “Rocky,” though he proudly referred to himself as “Ambassador Bootle.”
Bootle came to Nassau after Hurricane Dorian devastated Abaco, rebuilding his life behind the wheel of a taxi. Many remembered seeing him at the boat harbour and Abaco Airport, always working and smiling.
“The way he gone out, my heart hurts,” said Lakeria Simms.
“Rocky always so full of life, man,” Sandy Porter added.
Just hours before his death, Bootle posted a video to social media, celebrating a good day’s work and giving thanks to God. Sitting in his taxi, he spoke excitedly.
“This is a record-breaking year,” he said. “You’ll be faithful, treat each of your brothers and sisters honest and fair and God will bless you… When you put your faith and trust in God, you don’t have to worry about nothing, nothing, nothing.”
He laughed as he shared that even after starting work late, he had still done well.
“Ain’t God good? Whoah!”
Watch: Here are his last words hours before he died.
His words echo painfully for those who watched the video after learning of his death.
“Enjoying yourself at the moment can be your last time,” Robin Ferguson wrote, stunned by the news.
His nieces struggled to put their grief into words.
“I’m still in disbelief,” Valencia Bootle said.
Gayniah said she will always remember his favourite greeting: “Hey, hey, hey, family.”
Another niece, Lasonia Simms, shared the rawness of the loss. “Some days the tears come easy. Other days you feel numb and confused, stuck trying to accept that you’ll never see certain people again.”
At the start of the year, Bootle posted another video, singing inside his taxi, he spoke about love, faith, and the promise of tomorrow. “I’m going into the new year loving my wife, myself and my family,” he said. “It’s a new year. God has spared me.”
He was a father of four children.