Getting to Know Stacy Eden Hurlston

Have you ever met someone that was extremely humble, seemed to enjoy the simple things in life yet had an intriguing mystery about him? That’s Stacy Eden Hurlston. He’s the kind of guy that you feel knows the secret meaning of life. The kind of guy that doesn’t seem to know how much he has to share, because for him, wisdom is just a way of life. I met Stacy while touring the Pedro St. James Castle, and while we didn’t get to spend much time together, I left hoping to cross paths with him again.

Stacy gave my fiancé and I a lovely tour of the first Great House in Cayman. He started with the history of Pedro St. James, telling us about those that lived there and significant events that took place within its walls. He told us about the Englishman named William Eden who built the large house in the 18th century and of Caroline Eden Hurlston, the last person born in the house.

Then Stacy took us into the Theatre Room and introduced himself as our official tour guide, Stacy Eden Hurlston. My lightbulb went off, and I asked him if he was related to Caroline. He chuckled and murmured, “I don’t usually tell people that until later in the tour.” He went on to tell us that he is actually Caroline’s son though! How cool to get a tour from an actual descendant of the family that built and lived in the house for generations! We felt honored. And that is living history at it’s best!

I could tell that Stacy took a lot of pride in the house and was happy to be showing it off. We enjoyed going inside and soaking up the stories. I took the photo below as Stacy was telling us about his great grandfather who built the house.

Towards the end of the tour, after going through the house, he introduced us to his friend Jack the Donkey and during the theater tour we met Ginger the resident cat. He demonstrated a great love to both and fed them as we passed by. When I asked Stacy if I could take a picture of him for this post, he was pretty bashful (which made me like him even more), but he amiably agreed and took out his hat for the photo op.

As we left the Pedro grounds, I figured this story ended there; and maybe it does. But while I was writing some notes on our ride back to the condos, something triggered my memory from an event two days ago. Maybe it was the feeling he gave me or the love he had for animals, but two days before meeting Stacy at Pedro Castle my fiance and I were taking a leisurely Sunday drive around the island. We made a quick pit stop at a gas station, and I saw a man nearby tossing out feed to chickens. I asked him if the chickens were wild chickens, and he said, “I feed them, so they are here.” As I was turning to walk back to the car I heard him omnisciently say, “Every mouth must be fed. That’s what the Lord says!” I was so touched by his words and presence that I sneaked a discreet snapshot of the man and his wild chickens to remember the moment. But like I had mentioned, while on the way back to the condos from the Pedro St. James tour, I was struck suddenly with the idea that the man with the chickens was Stacy! I grabbed my phone to look at the photo I had snapped and gasped with delight as I saw the man wearing a hat identical to the one Stacy wore on our tour. I showed Brandon (my fiance), and he was tickled, too. The photo was too blurry to tell for sure, but its posted below, so I will leave it to you. Either way I think Stacy and the man with the chickens both had the warmth and indescribable wisdom of veteran Caymanians, so whether it’s him or whether it’s not, they are kindred spirits.