Members of Parliament reacted with shock and sadness to news of the death of Eddie DeMello yesterday.Public Works Minister Trevor Moniz made the announcement to fellow Parliamentarians in the House of Assembly at the start of the morning session.“His reach was amazing for someone who arrived here at a very young age — he spent only a very few years in Dellwood School before he went into the workforce and he was one of those people in the community who grew up milking the cows in the morning before going to school,” Mr Moniz said.“So he was a fine example to everyone in the community, very well-liked and respected, and a friend and mentor to myself.”Shadow Economic and Social Development Minister Glenn Blakeney then rose to pay his respects saying: “I had a very interesting relationship with Mr DeMello. We worked together at the Bermuda Broadcasting Company and of course he was one of the most successful entertainment entrepreneurs in the country.“We had a very good relationship and whenever I did a record promotion, Eddie’s Music Box was the single store that sold the most copies. Unbelievable.“He was a very strong individual spiritually as well as physically and a fierce advocate for the Portuguese community”.Mr Blakeney added that, whenever Portuguese dignitaries visited the Island, it was Mr DeMello who made sure they were well looked after.St George’s MP Kenneth Bascome recalled that he worked with Mr DeMello promoting a Byron Lee concert and more recently worked alongside him on a Sunday morning radio programme.“It’s a sadness to me that he has passed,” Mr Bascome said.Opposition leader Marc Bean said he first met Mr DeMello when both men sat on the Bermuda Independence Commission. “Subsequently we were able to cultivate a very good friendship,” Mr Bean said.“In fact, I found him to be one of the most friendly Bermudians that I have ever met. Mr DeMello will go down as a genuine hero in the cultural development of this country.“Yes, he represented the Portuguese Bermudian community with aplomb but he was also able to show his range of cultural connectivity through soca and reggae and generally through music. I am very, very sad to hear of his demise.”Government Whip and Smith’s South MP Cole Simons said: “Mr DeMello was a constituent of mine and I always had pleasure visiting him. We talked about everything under the sun and I would say that this man had a true passion for his country he had a true passion for music and a true passion for Portuguese culture.”Mr Simons said Mr DeMello had told him was desperate to remain healthy until the last December’s general election so that he could vote.“I’m pleased that he was here for the election and that he was able to vote because that was very, very important to him and it demonstrates his commitment to Bermuda’s future success despite the fact that he knew that he had a short time to live.”Shadow Health Minister Zane DeSilva said that, as a young man starting out in the construction industry, he knew Mr DeMello as ‘stepdaddy’.“Eddie not only involved in the music and cultural industry in this country but also he was quite the developer and entrepreneur,” Mr DeSilva said. “I would hate to try and guess how many developments he was involved with and he certainly taught me a thing or two about negotiations.”Warwick West MP Jeff Sousa said he had known Mr DeMello all his life and that he his achievements were proof that “hard work does pay off”.Shadow Minister of Workforce Development Rolfe Commissiong said Mr DeMello had played a key role in promoting and reviving Portuguese traditions on the Island and was therefore a “giant” in promoting, recording and diversifying Bermuda’s culture.“The iconic Mr DeMello has now become the legendary Mr DeMello,” Mr Commissiong said. “He was a man that was always willing to put Bermuda first. Mr DeMello was also a consummate Bermudian entrepreneur and businessman. He had a keen eye for a dollar, which is something that we should not look down upon because that is something that has made Bermuda what it is today.”Shadow Public Safety Minister Michael Scott said Mr DeMello’s legacy would be “writ large across the Island” while House Speaker Randy Horton described Mr DeMello as “a giant of a genuine man, not only for the Portuguese community but for Bermuda itself”.“He embraced diversity, he valued differences and he was an absolute first-class citizen,” Mr Horton said.