Businessman 'Miguel' Moses lived by mantra: 'Never give up'

BUSINESSMAN Anthony "Miguel" Moses lived by a mantra of never giving up and went from peddling goods in the countryside to owning a fabric store on Queen Street, Port of Spain.

His funeral took place today at St Finbar's RC Church, Diego Martin. Moses died on December 24, hours before his 85th birthday on Christmas Day.

His son Michael, in the eulogy, spoke about his father's birth in a small village, Ein El Bardeh, Syria, before moving to Trinidad in 1947 to join his father Miguel and at age 15, peddling goods, which he continued to do for ten years.

Moses taught himself to speak Hindi fluently to communicate with his customers.

In 1962 he travelled to Syria, married his wife Amel and brought her to Trinidad along with his brother Esau.

"His early days in Trinidad were challenging, as it was for all migrants. After years of peddling, Daddy and uncle Issa opened their first tiny store with a dirt floor on Queen Street.

Michael said, "After relying on local suppliers for a number of years, they were finally able to take that brave step of going to New York to import their first shipment. Due to sacrifice and hard work, their business expanded as they sought, like their father before them, to provide a better life for their wives and children."

He said his father was a tough taskmaster who believed in hard work and lived by his mantra of "never, never give up."

"He raised his children to follow what he believed would bring them success in life: persistence, honesty and straightforwardness. So much so that decades later, when we ventured into business areas he knew nothing about, he would encourage us by saying, 'Go brave.'"

He said his father had a very special relationship with his eldest child Helen, who was the first to join him in the business and remained his right hand to the end, taking good care of him when he was ill.

He recalled Christmas Day was very special to his father since, besides the fact that it was his birthday, he was able to have all his grandchildren to himself.

"He would line them up in his bedroom and slowly count out their presents."

He said his father, an eternal optimist, suffered huge financial losses during the July 1990 attempted coup.

"Even though he cried upon seeing the destruction of downtown (Port of Spain), he immediately sprang into action to rebuild. And this he did with his usual confidence, hard work, and by this time the support of his mini-army, his five children."