Windies Lose 'Uncle Les'

(Trinidad Express)

Lester Armoogam's heart was always in West Indies cricket. But no more.

Arguably, the most fervent support of the West Indies team, Armoogan, 63, known to fans and players as "Uncle Les," died around six o'clock on Saturday evening at the Sugimed medical centre in San Fernando from heart failure.

Armoogam, a building contractor and the managing director of Lester Armoogam Construction Services, had become a universally recognised figure in his trademark maroon broad-brimmed West Indies hat and matching flag which he waved at venues the world over.

Armoogam, who watched approximately 129 West Indies Test matches, was recently in South Africa viewing the four-Test series between the hosts and his beloved Windies.

And yesterday, according to his son-in-law Krishna, calls were being received at the family home from as far away as South Africa and Zimbabwe.

The shock waves and depth of feeling were no less here at home.

Dinanath Ramnarine, the president of the West Indies Players Association was expecting to see Uncle Les yesterday at his Alescon Comets' team's Carib Sunday League limited overs match against Merry Boys.

I'm lost for words...He's been an important part of West Indies cricket," Ramnarine said yesterday. "He offered to cricketers a kind of unconditional love. His support has been tremendous to West Indies cricket. The guys will be extremely saddened. I want to wish his family our sincerest sympathy."

Rangy Nanan, the former Trinidad and Tobago and West Indies off-spinner knew something was wrong when Armoogam did not show up for Clico Preysal's Sunday League fixture on Saturday as promised. He too was taken aback by news of his death.

"Great loss, a great friend," he said. "Even though West Indies were losing, he would sit down there and take it."

Nanan observed: "One thing about him, he helped the young cricketers. He was not afraid to give to the youngsters, he wanted to help them."

Current West Indies star Shivnarine Chanderpaul was just one such beneficiary. And Nanan recalled that Uncle Les' association with Chanderpaul began when the youngster was just 11 years old. "He was like a father to Chanderpaul," he said.

Armoogam himself was the father of two children, Wayne and Reena who he has now left behind along with his wife Jean.