‘I could be relaxing at my computer for 4 or 5 hours’

This month we feature President of the Employers’ Federation Don Providence who was recently re-elected to this office for the third consecutive year. Providence is the Managing Director of A.I. Real Estate and runs Carmel High School. Up until this year, the school catered for children who were not able to access secondary school.

With the advent of Universal access to secondary education, all of his former students have been admitted to Government or Government assisted Secondary Schools. Providence will like to continue to contribute to the nation’s educational development and is willing to make his classrooms and other resources available throughout the day for adult education classes.{{more}}

Q: As a child, is this what you envisioned you’d be doing when you grew up?

A: Not particularly. After school leaving, I was teacher for a while. I left the teaching service in 1975 after the strike, and I started working with O.D. Brisbane. 1983 is when I started my own business because I felt you can work smarter instead of working harder. I had a van, and going through the country, I would see these little cardboard signs stuck up by people trying to sell their property. I knew that the people who most likely would buy these properties may be miles away, so I started doing Real Estate as a hobby. Then I got into property insurance. But after a while, more and more vans started coming on the road, as by then used Japanese vehicles were available. So the people I was selling to in the country now had their own vehicle. So it meant doing something else, but with a better income.

So that is where the concept started. After looking around and going to places like Israel, England, Hong Kong, and to all these big exhibitions all over the world where people want to invest in properties, and you look and see people coming and investing in Mustique and all these exotic places, they need some way to make a connection. Jules Ferdinand gave me a contact for the International Real Estate Institute, and they accepted me as a member, and that really opened the door to international real estate.

Q: What do you do to relax?

A: I come up with new and creative ideas. I feel that relaxing is something the body naturally does. There are times when I really want to do work, but I just have to sleep. Relaxing for me is not something I set aside time to do. It is a change in my normal routine. I could be relaxing at my computer for four or five hours. I find that very relaxing. I would go out sometimes with people, and they are in the bar, and they are sitting there drinking, and I would find it really frustrating sitting there for four or five hours and talking foolishness, as I don’t drink and I don’t smoke. So when I get to my computer, I can sit there for two days, that is relaxing. You break the stress, and learn different things. Some people think relaxing is when you lie down and do nothing, I think that is a waste of time.



Q: How do you spend your weekends?



A: I try to go to devotions for some time on the weekend. We really should give God thanks for his mercies to us. Apart from that, I get what wasn’t completed during the week, done.

Q: Where would you be on a Saturday night?

A: Maybe in the office or at home, unless Rotary has a function.

Q: What is your favourite meal?

A: I don’t have a favourite meal, as I just see eating as a bodily function. I spent some time in China, so sometimes I have a craving for Chinese food. Sometimes I like the local breadfruit and salt fish or green banana and salt fish.

Q: What challenges you most in life?

A: Getting people to understand that there is some purpose in life and the fact that we need to find ways and means of working better with one another. The only way we can get along is if we get better human understanding.

Q: What is the most enjoyable aspect of your job?

A: Helping people to solve their problems. Because when someone comes in with a house, and the bank is pressuring them or they need something, and just the fact that you can help them to achieve their goal, that is a sort of satisfaction.

Q: Where do you get inspiration to go on?

A: My vision as a Baha’i. I see work as worship and the fact that you can serve God in administering to the needs of your fellowman, that is motivation to go on. No matter what people may do, there is always something that you can do to make someone’s day, make them happy.

Q: Who has had the most positive influence on your life?

A: Apart from the readings from the Baha’i writings, my mother. I remember the time that she took to help me to read. I come from a background where there was just a single parent, and there were no books. She took the time to counsel me, I think that is very important. I think she had a significant impact on my early development.

Q: If you were given the power to change one thing in the country or the world, what would it be?

A: Educate people. Educate them and that doesn’t just mean sending them to school. Educate them that we have differences and these differences should be something that unites us, instead of

dividing us.

Q: Where do you see yourself in the next 5-10 years?

A: I am seeing myself being able to provide homes to people. In the next five years I am looking at a situation where we can provide a home on demand. Also to provide homes for young people. Everyone cannot have a house, it is not possible, but we can provide a home for them.

Maybe a condo or family-owned apartment. This is not something that is working in St. Vincent right now, but I think this is something that we can have here, something that is affordable, and comfortable and they have their own key, they don’t have to worry about some of the outrageous rents.