Callender humbled by national award: 'My life has always been about community service'

STANFORD CALLENDER says his life has always been about community service.

The former PNM Tobago West MP was among 18 people who received the Hummingbird Medal Gold at the Republic Day National Awards at President’s House, St Ann’s, on September 24.

Callender, 73, who hails from the small, seaside village of Black Rock, was recognised for his contribution to community and public service.

“I am humbled that some persons have recognised my contribution and decided to recognise me publicly,” he told Sunday Newsday on September 27.

Callender said community service was the foundation on which he built his career in politics.

“I got involved in politics based on my upbringing and my involvement in community service and community work. I have been involved in community activities from about 13 years and I got involved to help people.

“My mantra has always been, ‘I would do my best to make other people’s lives better.’ So I got involved in politics not to gain anything from it per se but to be of service to people. I always see myself as a servant of the people and I do so with pride.”

He said even now, in the twilight of his years, people still thank him for the positive impact he has had on their lives.

“It comes back to me every time I would go out and someone would say, ‘I have never seen you to thank you for what you have done for me or for my mother or my father or my son.’ So that tells me that people would have appreciated what I would have done to help them.

“I have always felt that you can’t help everybody with every problem but if you can give them a listening ear, maybe an advice sometimes is worth more than money. That is how I see myself and that is how I set out to function in life.”

Callender praised his paternal grandmother and an aunt for instilling in him, a sense of community. He regarded his aunt, in particular, as a community icon.

“She was involved in a number of organisations and at the time she had no children. But if she was leaving home to go to any meeting, whether it was the village council or women’s group, I would normally be with her.”

He joked that he was probably the only young man who, at one time, was a member of the Black Rock Women’s Group.

“Wherever she went, I had to go. I had no choice.”

The father of three said he was also naturally gifted as a singer, folk musician, composer and dramatist.

Those talents, he said, enabled him to lead Black Rock in several Best Village competitions. Under his leadership and guidance, Black Rock also developed a reputation for excellence in the Tobago Heritage Festival.

Callender also composed several of the PNM’s election jingles over the years.

“So people always saw me as a leader.”

He said the respect the villagers have for him was always reciprocated.

“Black Rock means everything to me. Many years ago, I wrote a calypso talking about the village, where we are as a people, where we are located and encouraging our people, whatever they are involved in, to be the best they can be. You can be whatever you want to be and Black Rock gives you that opportunity.”

Callender said the Katzenjammers Steel Orchestra, led by Pan Trinbago president Beverly Ramsey-Moore, is an example of the good that has come out of the area. Ramsey-Moore was also awarded Hummingbird Medal Gold at the national awards ceremony on September 24.

Callender said although he has never played the steelpan, “I developed a strong nexus, because of most of my friends, to the Katzenjammers Steel Orchestra, which is the pride of Black Rock.”

Having started his political career in the Tobago Council in 1977, Callender believes he is perhaps the only politician to have served in every arm of the legislature, leading up to his tenure as MP in the Parliament.

There, he served as Tobago West MP for almost a decade under the former Patrick Manning administration. He later served as chairman of the PNM Tobago Council from 2016 to 2021 but resigned from the position after the party’ heavy 14-1 defeat to the Progressive Democratic Patriots in the December 6, 2021, THA election.

Callender, who once held the position of minister of state in the Office of the Prime Minister (Tobago Affairs), said winning the Tobago West seat in 2000 has been one of the highlights of his political career.

“Prior to that, the party had not won anything in Tobago for over 20 years. So having won the Tobago seat in 2000, I think, for me, it was a significant achievement because the PNM was virtually in the dog house.

“The following year, we were able to win the THA, something I have been a part of since its inception. So winning the THA in 2001 was like the icing on the cake because PNM fortunes in Tobago began to change starting from 1998. The PNM won the THA for the first time in 2001.”

Although he leads a relatively simple, quiet life, away from the public’s glare, Callender said people in and out of the community, still seek him for advice “believing that I could have some answers to their problems.”

He said he also functions in an advisory capacity in the PNM.

“Only last week, I went to speak to members of a number of party groups and installed officers. So I am called upon to do some things but I operate more in an advisory capacity these days.”

A devout Anglican, Callender said apart from and tending to his kitchen garden, he also enjoys watching shows on television.

He said he is following the Democratic and Republican campaigns for the November 5 US election very closely.

Callender said he also loves to travel overseas.

“I am hoping to do that in the early part of December to come back in time for Christmas.”