–MoE to buy books for schools

YESTERDAY at the Oasis Lounge at the Pegasus Hotel in Kingston, the Alvin Kallicharran Charity Foundation book and outreach programme was unveiled.
The 75-year-old former West Indies batter and his wife Pasty are in Guyana for several charity events before departing on November 24 and are here to launch their book.

Tony McWatt wrote the book titled, ‘Color blind,’ which chronicled the life journey of Kallicharran who’s international career spanned between 1972 and 1981 and began with a debut ton against New Zealand at Bourda.
“[the] Mixing of races journey started [when] Basil Butcher gave me [my] first bat, [from] Lance Gibbs greatest mentor, Rohan Kanhai and Gary Sobers, [they] are big paths of my life and we’re all [of] different colour[s].

“Going to England, playing, making money off the white man how can I turn back and say it is prejudice, bringing oneness to us as a people,” the iconic left-hander explained how the name of his book was born.

Diving deep into the outer realms of cricket, the Kallicharan Foundation’s latest gift to cricket was unveiled in grand fashion.
Kallicharran who played in Clive Lloyd’s winning World Cup teams in 1975 and 1979 disclosed that the game of cricket was good to him from the village of Port Mourant to the international world.

“Hard work, persevering, hunger, passion and desire to play this sport is what would be the end result.
I believe it’s my time to give back to Guyana and Berbice,” informed Kallicharan, one of 21 Berbicians to wear the maroon West Indies Cap in Test Cricket and one of seven from the famous Port Mourant club.
Standing just 5ft 4ins, Kallicharran’s strength, despite his diminutive size, was his magnificent timing and exemplary footwork as he gloriously demonstrated by dishing out a sound beating on hostile Australian fast bowlers Dennis Lillie and Jeff Thompson in the 1975 World Cup.

Kallicharran proved that good things, in fact great things, come in small packages and being the Guyanese with the most first-class runs, spoke of the help he got from Lloyd, Gibbs and Sobers.
He scored 87 centuries and 32 50s, 620 runs from 505 first-class games, emphasising that talent without hard work and patience produces mediocrity.
Deputy Chief Education Officer Dr Ritesh Tularam speaking on behalf of Education Minister Priya Manickchand, posited that the Minister and the Ministry of Education congratulate the Kallicharran family and by extension and our own Guyanese veteran on this milestone achievement.

“Minister Manickchand highly applauds the initiative and will move in [the] direction of purchasing some of the books for students studying sports, especially cricket, in Guyana.
“Minister has a clear vision that every child must be exposed to one sport, one foreign language and the skill of playing a musical instrument,” continued Dr Tularam.
The Education Ministry is sure that this book will help students to understand fundamentals of the game.

“We [ministry] [are] proud of the achievement by our Guyanese looking to network with the Kallicharrans as they roll out programmes across the country.
The author said that he was grateful to ‘Kali’ for the opportunity to author the book and thanked everyone involved.

Reverend Lawrence Whyte of the AME Zion Church in the US, expressed excitement to be there to as part on a spiritual standpoint.
“I am glad to [be] able to give the youths the spiritual need to North Carolina to bring cricket to the curriculum for schools,” the pastor stated.

Last night,[members of] the foundation were guests on Sean Devers’ Sports Watch programme, while today they are scheduled to be on NCN TV before the official launch of ‘Color Blind’ at the National Library on Thursday.
There are several other events planned for the remainder of the trip including visits to schools in Georgetown and a trip to Berbice.