Obituary
A brief view of the life of Mr. Joseph Seales, for whom we are, gathered here today. A very well known man who hails from the Island of Grenada, Belmont St. Georges. He was married to my mom Gladys aka (Tanty) who preceded him. He was a father to Cecil and Margaret (Dawn). Joseph was a great provider for the family and a very hard worker and always brought home fish, we had no bacon.
He initially worked in the Woodlands Sugar Factory where he had to haul and push big troughs of sugar all day long. Not satisfied with what he was doing he became a licensed driver and with this certification eventually he landed a great job as a chauffeur for the Right Honorable E. M. Gary, Former Prime Minister of Grenada. Back then he really loved and enjoyed that job. Mr. Gary used to call him Man. Joseph or Uncle Man as our side of the family called him had plenty stories to tell us of that era. He always chauffeured the prime minister wherever he needed to go and you could let your imagination wonder about what they were up too. On one particular occasion this is one of the stories he told me. Joseph said the prime minister had a very important meeting in Grenville. He drove him to the meeting and upon their arrival P.M. Gary realized that he forgot some of his important documents that he needed for the meeting. Joseph had to return to Grand Anse to retrieve these very important documents for him. This is how Joseph described his trip to Grand Anse and Back. He said “I took off under breeze, eating road, cutting corners, screeching brakes, flying low, down to Grand Anse. I got to the house, retrieved the papers and returned to Grenville same speed.” When he arrived back in Grenville his friends was shocked and asked him if he had a plane. Go figure. When he told this story to his wife Tanty she said to him, “take care you ever drive like that again.” He took her advice and never drove like that again.
Joseph loved boating and fishing. He took every Thursday off so that he could go fishing with his friends. They always had a good catch to make their fish broth or strong waters as they called it. He also loved music very much. He had his record player and a large collection of LP’s which he played for us all the time. His collection had Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, Ray Charles, Elvis Presley, Marty Robins to name a few. He sang right along with the music as he spun the records. He rocked a great voice especially when he sang Blue Moon which I could still hear him sing. And we cannot leave out his love of Calypso music that he enjoyed so very much. He loved to listen to the Mighty Sparrow, Calypso Rose, Singing Francine and many more. Later in life he became an entrepreneur and was the sole owner of a passenger bus known as “VICKI”. Everyone loved to travel with him because he was a very responsible driver, more mature and less daring than in the E M Gary days.
There is so much more that I could tell you but we would be here all day and night. Joseph migrated to the US in the early eighties and began working with a major utility company near the river. He said that the winters were very cold over there but he hung in there for many years in order to support his family. Unfortunately a problem with his foot proved too severe and had to eventually be amputated. He recovered very well with the help of strong rehabilitation and therapy; he was able to continue enjoying life hanging with his friend’s playing cards and dominoes. With the help of home care services he was able to continue taking care of himself and his home very well. As his health unfortunately deteriorated and needing more assistance he moved into the nursing home where he could received round the clock care. Even with all of that assistance he still attempted to do as much as he could for himself. However earlier this year Joseph suffered two strokes. The first he was able to recover significantly but it was the second one that has brought us here today.
He leaves behind to mourn Cecil and Margaret, his sister Agnes who resides in Trinidad, nieces Phyllis, Marcia, Sherma, Yvonne, Esther, Sylvia, Joan, Pamela, Rhonda and nephews Lenny, Nick, Selweyn, Terry, Carlyse, Charles, Rodney and many other loved ones and friends. May his soul Rest in Peace and Rise in Glory.
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