BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – HIS story of saving, investment and entrepreneurship is one that has been heard throughout St. Kitts-Nevis and has won him over 50% of the popular vote in this year’s Everyday Financial Heroes Promotion.
Anthony Jones of Newcastle, Nevis was nominated by members of his community to tell his financial life story through the initiative, which was launched as a collaborative effort between the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), LIME, SKNVibes and the nation’s financial institutions.
Nine individuals from both islands with compelling financial success stories made it to the finals of the promotion and the public was asked to vote during the period November 2-10 via text message.
By midnight November 10, Jones had accumulated an overwhelming 52.2% of the votes, some 13.4 percentage points ahead of his runner-up.
After hearing that he was named this year’s Everyday Financial Hero, Jones thanked the organizers of the promotion for taking the initiative to magnify the success stories of normal citizens.
“I feel elated and happy that my small work has inspired so many. I am pleased that the public voted for me, and I hope that this would encourage them to save and to invest because they would be shocked to see how much they accumulate. Plus, saving gives you a good attitude; an attitude of discipline and interest to teach others to save,” he said.
Jones began teaching at the age of 17, and through ardent saving was able to finance his tertiary education and return to Nevis, where he served as principal of two primary schools during his career.
He is recognized as a popular community icon and has played instrumental roles on various community and national committees. As a second job, Jones invested in poultry farming and currently offers the people of Nevis the freshest locally produced chicken and eggs available.
What is unique about Jones’ story is that in January 2005, he was the victim of a tragic, life-threatening vehicular accident that crushed one of his legs and broke the other in about 12 different places.
Jones was forced to amputate the crushed limb and undergo lengthy surgery to salvage the other. Today, he does his work thanks to a prosthesis that he received in 2005. The accident could have evaporated his hope and quenched his fervor for entrepreneurship.
In an exclusive interview with SKNVibes, Jones said, “Even though things have been so hard since the accident and I lost my leg, we can still do a little good to help ourselves. Everyone has challenges. They may not be physical, but you should never sit back—take whatever good you can get out of the bad.”
He said he hopes his “small story” would help to inspire others to never give up on their goals and dreams.
Deputy Director of Corporate Relations at the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), Sybil Welsh said the Everyday Financial Heroes Promotion falls within the mandate of the financial institutions to educate the people of the region.
She said the personal stories given by the finalists made it clear to the nation that through wise spending, prudent saving and investment and entrepreneurship, any common citizen can transform his or her life.
“This is the first time we’ve done this initiative, and it’s a testimony of the power of the individual to make small changes that really produce big results on their path to wealth creation. For everyone who was nominated, I think their stories resonate throughout the country and inspire those who read and voted,” Welsh said.
Runner-up in the promotion, Irvin Daniel hails from Sandy Point and was able to command an impressive 38.8% of the total vote. Finalist Agnes Crossley of West Farm received 5.2% of the votes, while the success story of Greenlands resident Joycelyn Hazel won 2.8% of votes. The five other contestants included Mercyer Gumbs, Orvis Mills, Corrine Small, Jack Spencer and Desmond Manners.
On Tuesday, November 24 Jones would be presented with his cash award of EC$ 5000 during Telecomms Talk and the names of the lucky voters who were selected to claim prizes from the promotion would also be announced.
