Santa on a fire truck

Prof Ramesh Deosaran writes a weekly column for the Newsday. 

Of whatever religion you belong, the Christmas season brings a special opportunity to meet, greet and share – be it with family or strangers. When we were children, we looked forward to toys. Some of us still do. When I saw published pictures of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley sharing Christmas toys, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Works Minister Senator Rohan Sinanan also sharing toys from a moving van, I couldn’t help remember the days when I too shared Christmas toys and musical cheers from a different moving van.

The San Juan Fire Station in the Croisee annually lent us their big red truck to carry our well-padded Santa Claus, ringing bell, waving and handing out toys, balloons and sweets along the streets of El Socorro, Aranguez and east Barataria. For several years during the sixties, this exciting community project was carried out by a group of young people, members of the Georgian Youth Assembly, collecting bags of Christmas gifts donated by stores in the Croisee. Some of us with Santa on the fire truck ringing bell, waving, stopping and sharing.

The Christmas carols and the ringing bell from the fire truck signalled that Santa Claus was coming to town. And the children, many with onlooking parents, rushed out giggling. Apart from a cricket team, hikes, concerts, all-fours, public-speaking, etc, this Santa Claus parade was one of the group’s most-anticipated projects. Our Santa Claus was a district medical doctor, Dr Omar Ali, who did not need much padding. The project was hard work for members, but done so willingly and high-spirited, and with such wide community support, that the Georgian Youth Assembly members seemed to enjoy it as much as the children who eagerly waited their turn to touch Santa Claus. Looking back now, I recommend all youth organisations (those left over) should do something like this for their districts. It was really fun, also gaining residents’ affection in a district that had its own share of political this and that.

Today, well, I am not sure with the irritating traffic congestion in El Socorro, Aranguez and nearby parts, whether a Santa Claus fire truck Christmas parade will be welcome. Apart from the likelihood that Santa and his toys may well face a sudden gun-driven robbery. Indeed, things have changed. Where is the village that is supposed “to raise a child”? Where are the district youth groups? So many expensive youth and community centres have been left idle, even dilapidated, leaving the gates open for the gang culture.

As casual and fun-giving as that Santa Claus fire truck parade was, it provided some basic training in project management. As the group’s president, I can never forget the smiling support in those early years. But project planning was necessary. Knowing I run the risk of leaving out some names, I remember Razack Mohammed, Hatim Mohammed, Myra Juman, Wendell Wilkinson, Hubert James, Deodath Ojah-Maharaj, Brenda Shillingford, Basdaye, Monica, Basdeo Gopie and his family.

When things got tight, members never backed down from putting in some of their money for the Santa Claus suit and some additional toys. As a means of helping ourselves, we sponsored cinema shows to help fund the Christmas parade and children concerts. We got use of Ritz cinema free.

The Georgian Youth Assembly had another Christmas treat for children. This was for the children at the Tacarigua orphanage and the Santa Cruz School for the Blind. With the help of a singing group and a small combo (Ken Charles), we staged a concert accompanied with gifts at each place.

With the other youths groups in the district, we headed the drive for a youth centre for the El Socorro-Aranguez area and presented a memorandum to Dr Eric Williams during his meet-the-people tour. Community development officer Vernon Guischard and I even chose a location for it. The Georgian Youth Assembly plan was to work with Mr Guischard in having a series of programmes for “unattached youths”.

But politics interfered and the centre was built in Malick instead. Two youth centres would have been ideal – one north, one south.

But that didn’t stop us from having the Santa Claus fire truck parades and keeping the children happy.