IN the small Demerara River community of Dora, off the Soesdyke/Linden Highway, lives a born resident, Stephen Hilary Cornelius with his family, and they all work very hard to develop that community.

Cornelius, called ‘Steve’, 65, has been married to Shelly for the past 36 years, and together they have ten children. They are a wonderful family, and observing their way of life is truly a marvel.

Despite being of humble means, everyone is very contented and happy with whatever they have. Eating together has been a family tradition in the house. At mealtime, every member can be seen at a large wooden table with benches.

The family is so organized that each individual has his/her own cup, spoon and plate. Asked how they each know their own, Cornelius said it’s just about the feel. “Take, for instance, if I pick up someone else’s spoon, I am so accustomed to the feel of my own thing. If my spoon or so gets lost, I go looking for it; and when I find it, I rejoice.”

Cornelius has lived in Dora for all his life. He did quite a few things to support his family financially, but has eventually decided to take up farming. “It’s in my blood,” he said, before explaining that his mother also did farming while being a teacher.

Only after he married and “stabilized” his life did he decide to take up farming. Before then, he worked along with the Roman Catholic Church body as a youth leader, and this took him to work in the North West District, and even the Rupununi District around the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s.

He is presently overseeing things on ‘Shigam Inc. Smart Agriculture Development’, a farm that is owned by Israeli Liran Peretz and Brian Younge, and is located some 30 minutes’ walk from Dora.

Varieties of melons, cucumbers, sweet peppers and tomatoes are only some of the vegetables produced on the farm. There are six greenhouses and two ‘shade’ houses at Shigam.

PROUD FATHER

Because he grew up in a loving family, Cornelius is confident that love in a family makes it work. He thinks also that parents must be able to understand their children. “I’m proud to be a father when I look at how all of my children turned out.”

Some of his children have married and moved away from Dora, but they frequently return to spend time with the rest of the family. “They still come to us for advice. We are still parents to them. That’s what I admire. A parent must understand their child, not just bring them into the world and give them whatever they want.

“One must understand what a family is, and the structure of a family. You have to have that closeness in the family for it to go the right way,” he said.

His wife has “tremendously” helped him with the family, Cornelius disclosed, and though she was at home to look after the house, she would help him with his work once the children were at school. She would, however, return home when it was time for the children to come home.

“My wife is very kind-hearted. She doesn’t like to see people punish. If she sees someone with a baby that hardly has clothes, she and my daughter would go on the machine and find pieces of cloth to sew.”

Despite being such a big family, because of their kind-heartedness, they have even adopted some of the children whose parents could not afford to look after them. “We try our best to help others who are lesser endowed,” he said.

Christopher is their eldest child. He formerly taught at the school in Dora, Cornelius said. Then there’s Susanne, who works part-time on the farm. Marcellus is a trained and senior teacher at Dora Primary and Secondary. Paul is in charge of construction and development at the farm. He is the one who sets up the greenhouses and drip systems, and who built the pump house.

Angelina is also a trained teacher at Dora, teaching sixth grade. Then there’s Olivia. Patrick is the man who sets the seedlings, and controls the work on the farm. Annette also works on the farm. The final two are Lisa Marie and Stephen Charles, who are yet in school. Terriann is an adoptee who is currently part of the family.

Mrs. Cornelius has been a real helper in bringing up a successful family. In dealing with the kids while they were growing up, Cornelius said, once he found an attitude in the kids he didn’t like, he would speak to his wife, and allow her to talk to them. “I didn’t like to beat. Even animals I don’t like to beat,” he said.

Meanwhile, he pointed out how his entire family is trying to “put back” into the community.

SHIGAM INC.
Cornelius has been working on Shigam Farm for approximately the past three years. He loves farming, and advises that to be a good farmer, one must love nature and the environment. You must be prepared to do a lot of hard work too, he cautioned.

Meanwhile, produce from the farm is sold right here in Guyana; but according to Cornelius, with help from government and other organizations, it may be possible for items to be shipped overseas.

He related how they use the New Guyana Marketing Corporation’s (GMC) price list as a guide in selling their produce. Supermarkets such as Bounty, Survival and Nigel’s are some of the businesses that are supplied with vegetables from Shigam. Fast food outlets are also among those supplied.

Shigam’s office is located at Waterloo Street in Georgetown, close to Lamaha Street. If anyone wants to get in touch with the farm or pay a visit, they can call 641-1544, or can send an email to shigam.com, Cornelius related.

Cornelius is of the view that Guyana has a lot of land and soil that could be used for agricultural purposes, but the people capable of handling new farming techniques are not readily available. “On the whole, even though we are a private farming group, we still look out for other farmers in the Demerara River. We explain and try to involve them in our new techniques,” he offered.

His desire is for Government to educate farmers about the new technological advantages available, and to help them obtain ‘soft’ loans and grants to aid them in farming. “We even try to involve the students by allowing them to visit the farms.

“I’d like to see my community develop. Most of my time is taken up to develop the farm. If it is developed, people would have access to work. Each family could have a greenhouse. So we are asking Government to help all who love farming to develop a greenhouse.”