Sealey – lifeblood of National Lotteries

McGregor Sealey can be considered the lifeblood of the national Lotteries Authority. He was there when the institution opened its doors in 1984. He still remains in charge and assumed the manager’s chair in the new state of the art facility.

But he is humble about his association with the body and pays tribute to a number of persons for their contribution to the National Lotteries Authority’s growth and development. {{more}}

High on the list for recognition is Joseph “Burns” Bonadie. Sealey attributes Bonadie with setting up the lottery here. That was a game called “Let’s go the races”, with a maximum $5,000 jackpot.

The National Lottery was launched April 1991, with a $10,000 prize. By then Hudson Williams had been entrenched and he is still the longest serving chairman of the Board. His stint ended in 1999, and by then, he had overseen a multitude of advances for the Lottery.

Sealey cites him as an “astute negotiator.” And he commended Williams for his insistence on “integrity” in the National Lottery.

Sealey credits Williams with some shrewd negotiations with the Canadian Bank Note International, but once the contact had been established, the lottery grew from strength to strength.

The NLA has become something of a success story, and the transfer to their new headquarters is a fitting tribute to the company’s expansion.

Williams is not the only person in line for commendations from Sealey.

Sealey praised the contribution of persons like Keith Boyea, and Lloyd Lewis.

The game has also grown from a number base of 27 numbers to 36 with five numbers for the winning Jackpot.

There have been additions and deletions to aspects of the operation. But the emergence of the 3D game in 1996 has turned out to be a pillar of success.

Besides Sealey, there was one other person on staff in the initial stage. That person was Joan Gonsalves.

And Sealey was happy to refer to Antoinette Culzac Hamilton, who worked with the Lottery from 1987 to October 1999.

Sealey also highlights a number of vendors and outlets, which have taken the sale of lotto tickets as a full time responsibility.

Among those are George Howard, Ferdinand Toney, owner of Ferdie’s Footsteps in Georgetown, and the scouts Lotto Booth.

Sealy speaks highly of his collection of agents from Sandy Bay and Fitz Hughes to Union Island in the southern Grenadines.