(Letter to the Sports Editor)
“OH Death, where is thy sting, Oh Grave, where is thy victory!” It is with a great degree of emotional grief and shock to have read in your newspaper publication of 02. 07. 10 of the sudden demise and untimely passing of the late Kenneth ‘Ken’ De Abreu, former Director, Banks DIH Limited and former Chairman, National Sports Commission (NSC), who died in the United States of America the previous day.
Uncle Ken as he was commonly referred to would remain as a National icon in the field of sports locally, and his untimely passing would have left indelible footprints that today remain irreplaceable. And it would have been a grave injustice to me and by extension football, if I had failed to subscribe in writing my contribution.
Instinctively, I can recall being the youngest participant in the Banks DIH/Demico House Club Leadership Training Seminar, way back in 1984.
And what a proud moment upon receiving my certificate! Yes indeed! At that time football in Georgetown was properly structured and efficiently run from an administrative perspective, since I was only a Divisional representative at that time, subsequently progressing to a Divisional Secretary, Asst: Secretary/Treasurer and then Hon. Secretary. Reflecting upon the past; from then to now it is with great pity and a colossal shame that the sport’s administration today is seen as a quick fix, rather than resorting to the divisional councils, as a catalyst for administrative development – a position that was always advocated by the late Uncle Ken.
Finally, the Demico House Division 1 League, which used to be played over two rounds – Demico House Challenge Cup Under -16 K.O. and the Demico House Under-11 Pee Wee Knockout were his entire brainchild while he was in charge of the Demico Complex.
However, it was the Pee Wee one-day, competition that was never without its pomp and ceremony. The late Uncle Ken would have always ensured that the ground was marked even before registration began for the Annual Sunday morning competition.
Snacks and beverages were laid out, and last but not least I had to be at Demico House no later than 06:30 h to coordinate the various pickup points for participating teams, with the Banks DIH Bus, something I did for nine (9) consecutive years.
Sadly, Uncle Ken’s vision for the Pee Wee participants never materialised – which was to select a team to participate in the Annual Robbies Tournament in Canada, competing at the Under-11 level, but at least the ground work was laid.
I am pretty sure that Uncle Ken, would have been proud to know that the first Guyanese to play in the Major League Soccer in USA, Gregory ‘’Jackie Chan’’ Richardson was once a MVP at the Pee-Wee Tournament, while representing Beacon under the stewardship of coach, Gordon Braithwaite.
To his immediate family, relatives, friends, colleagues and the management of Banks DIH Limited, kindly accept my sincerest condolences and by extension from all those youngsters many of whom went on to the professional arena in Trinidad and Suriname.
May His Soul Rest in Peace!

Yours in Sport,
LESTER SEALEY.