Advertising executive Astra Da Costa was my mentor and I didn't even know it.

 At least not until I got the call at 7 pm last Thursday to say that she had passed away, a casualty of the pulmonary fibrosis.

 I was shocked. Many were. If there was one person who always seemed almost invincible it was Astra. Tall. Robust. No-nonsene. Astra was (and please forgive the cliché) larger than life. "She hated bull shit," one person tweeted as the news spread on the social networks. What I recall most though is that she always came to the table prepared and demanded that those who faced her be the same way.

 I remember distinctly a conversation with her when I invited her to sit on a panel alongside other ad executives to address an IABC TT gathering. I think that it's telling that despite a very tight travel schedule, she agreed to be part of the head table because privately she recognised that 'she'd be the only black female'.  This had nothing to do with race and  everything to do with pride of place.

 For sure, Astra helped to shape public relations in Trinidad and Tobago and her counsel to many senior leaders at BPTT, TCL, CLICO and the Government was regarded as best in class. For many years the agency Astra founded, Ample, was regarded as the competitor to be feared in any agency bid and along with her partner Alfred Aguiton, she staffed her agency with outstanding professionals committed to the same high standards as her own, including her sister, Adonna Da Costa Headley. 

 At a Divali dinner last Saturday evening TCL's marketing manager commented on her professionalism: "Many executives wanted to deal only with Astra, her level of confidentiality was remarkable."

Don’t get me wrong with the praises. Astra was not soft. 

On the contrary, and perhaps it was just because she pounded on so many doors in the early days, I found her exterior to be  somewhat turtle like, almost formidable. In her capacity as Queen's Hall Chairman I worked closely with her, writing her speeches, presenting campaigns and  managing events. I was surprised one day when in a meeting with the Queen's Hall Board discussing their 50th. Anniversary celebrations that Astra talked excitedly on her Iphone to relatives at the hospital asking if her niece had been born.  It was the first time I had seen her so animated and she was startled when I inquired about her newborn niece some weeks later. It was as if she was surprised that she had let her armour down.  

In a documentary interview just a few weeks ago before her death, she was even more animated when I asked about her love for the performance arts. She talked about her father, her deep love for the performance arts came from him. I could tell then and there that the care her father had for his children was the base for Astra’s work ethic and reputation, which seemed to be forged over a lifetime of effort, excellence and trusted relationships.

Last Friday, I searched my quote book for an appropriate phrases for a Queen's Hall memorial ad that would surmise 63 years of excellence, I stumbled across this from Robin Frost's famed poem, "The Road Less Travelled." 

" Two roads diverged in a wood

And I took the one less traveled by

And that has made all the difference.”

 No words describe Astra Da Costa’s work in PR more. With her passing an entire library of PR knowledge has gone up in flames.

On behalf of all the communicators and marketers in Trinidad and Tobago, thank you Astra. Now go on. Rest in peace.