Calypso Reggie – the father/mother figure
…advises parents to be more committed

By Terresa McCall
Reporter-SKNVibes.com

Reginald ‘Calypso Reggie’ Thomas

Seldom, however, do we hear of or take time to focus on those men who are charged with the responsibilities of nurturing and caring for their offspring on their own.  In St. Kitts and Nevis, the role of male single-parents is often downplayed because these parents are far outnumbered by females with the same responsibility.

Today, Sunday, June 15, is globally recognised as Father’s Day and SKNVibes would like to pay tribute to a particular single-parent father and highlight the contributions and sacrifices he has made to the development of his children and, by extension, others.

Almost on a daily basis, he drives through the streets of Basseterre and other parts of the island with a PA-system attached to his vehicle providing an advertising service for major businesses on the island, NGOs and whosoever may be in need of said service. 

Reginald Thomas, popularly know as ‘Calypso Reggie’, lives in Tabernacle with three of his six school-age biological children [16, 13 and 11] and their eight-year-old sister. The elder siblings are adults and are shouldering their respective responsibilities.

When asked how he views the responsibility of providing and satisfying the needs of the four children while committed to his daily task of advertisement, Calypso Reggie said, “Being the father and the mother at the same time is a responsibility; one which I take very seriously and will do all within my power to ensure they are taken care of mentally, emotionally, spiritually and physically.”

Reggie said that as a father, he is very much involved in his children’s lives and it is that factor that strengthened the ever-growing relationship he has with them.

~~Adz:Right~~ “Fathers’ belts are not only worn to keep their pants up. It’s normally at your hand reach when necessary. When a mother would be talking, talking to correct their children, she would say it once or maybe not even at all.  Sometimes he uses the belt…Supporting a child is not the only part of it. You can put in a dollar, you can buy the shoes and other things the child needs, but there are times when a father still needs to go by when the child is with its mother to see how there are doing, help them with their homework and help them with whatever they may need. There are times when there are PTA meetings and fathers should step in, instead of leaving the responsibility to the mothers. There are also times when mothers would go to the PTA meetings and not tell the father what goes on there and what is discussed about the children. So fathers should make the effort to be there,” Reggie explained.

Reggie posited that knowing one’s limitations and from who and when to seek assistance, greatly contribute in making one a good father.

“After they reach a certain age, the tables turn. For instance, when they reach the teen years, that’s when I realise it’s time for the mothers to step in for the girls. Remember, girl children start going through changes in life which father’s are not capable of dealing with…The most difficult part is dealing with the female aspect of it. Even though I am both mother and father, I know my limitations.”

Questioned on his past lifestyle, a topic which has often been the talk of the town, and how it has affected his relationship with his children, as well as how he deals with naysayers who refuse to accept he has made a change for the better, Calypso Reggie said  he sat with his children and explained to them the kind of life he once lived and cautioned them not to make the same mistakes he did. 

“I am one of the most outstanding individuals that you should use as a role model because those who could best empower people are those who already went down, made a u-turn and are back on par today and able to tell anybody what it was like then and what it is like now.

~~Adz:Right~~ “I stopped drinking alcohol in May 1998. This year makes 10 years since I stopped drinking alcohol. I can tell anyone that alcoholism can affect families. My children were one of the factors which made me turn from alcoholism. When they attended the Sandy Point Primary School then, the report had an impact on me. It said three things: ‘absent, late and untidy’, and I decided I can handle all three if I only make that change. I did that, and in a one-room wooden house I lived, I head water in buckets, bathe my children’s skin, took them from their mother and fathered them. I started working that PA-system around and around. I bought my piece of land, started building my house out-of-pocket until I had to run to the bank to finish it. It’s that three-bedroom house is what we live in now. I did all of this because I realised what I had to do to make my children comforted, relaxed and so on. It was not easy, but I had to do it for them!”   

Reggie said he believes he was allowed by God to go through certain experiences to now prove to be a fitting example.

“Sometimes what people don’t understand is that God has a plan for everyone on earth.  He knew you before you were born, He knows you while you are living and even up to how and when you will die, He knows. So when He allowed me to go through those hardships in life and the U-turn that I have made, it was for me to be able to feel the feelings that is felt by those who are now going through the same thing.” 

The public advertiser gave a bit of advice to those single fathers who may be at the end of their wits or who may feel that all efforts made appear to yield disappointment. He said serious consideration should be made of an equation, which he has proven to be true: “Effort plus determination equals success. For those who have it hard, there is always a way out. Do like me and look at this…You must make that effort and make up in your mind that you going to do what it takes. Start it and don’t stop until you get it…”

SKNVibes wishes to take this opportunity to wish Reginald ‘Calypso Reggie’ Thomas and all other fathers a blessed, wonderful and Happy Father’s Day.