NAME OF FEATURE | THE GLEANER | FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2023 4 R. DANNY WILLIAMS TRIBUTE and encomia. Not bad for a man who has never worked a day in his life. Strange from a business icon, builder of several institutions, and mentor to many. “If you enjoy what you do, you will never work a day in your life,” was the simple yet profound statement coming from this sage. Raby Danvers Williams (yes, now you know what the ‘R’ stands for) can trace the name back to the House of Cornwall, but his boyhood life was one of humble circumstances (mother a dressmaker and father a clerk at the Jamaica Public Service). He rubbed shoulders with sons of the gentry at Jamaica College, but he knew from early that entrepreneurial drive and taking advantage of opportunities would make life better. “When I was living at Holborn Road, around 1946-47, I started selling cigarettes at age 12-14! I knew I had to do that because that money would be needed to fund my further education,” he said. ROBOT TAXI DRIVER The enterprising spirit didn’t stop there. By the time young Danny Williams reached sixth form, he had saved enough to buy a 1938 Morris A8 car. “I was effectively running a robot taxi,” Williams remembered with a laugh, knowing that in present-day Jamaica, a certain senior superintendent of police would look on disapprovingly. “I would transport my classmates for the fare they would normally pay to get to school,” he said. No conversation about Jamaican insurance is complete without recognising the work and worth of R. Danny Williams. “I started in insurance very early; my brother-in-law was bringing home all the books and I read them ... then I started acting as a spotter (making referrals) and getting paid to do it,” he recalled. Most leaving high school in those days had only a few but prestigious options: the civil service, the standard professions (law, medicine, etc), or a place in the nascent University College to do medicine or the sciences. The not-yet 19-year-old Danny Williams chose insurance “because I saw that I could make money if I worked hard at it”. Williams took his lifelong partner early (age 20); since then,“Shirls”has been the ever-present help, solid business partner, the hand that rocked the cradle, and an insistent yet gentle reminder of the value of family time. “We were blessed with six children, and the one thing she wouldn’t back down from is that I had to set aside family time every other week ... no matter what I was doing, that weekend would mean going into the hills up in Greenwich, St Andrew, and spending quality time with the family. We’d ride bikes, work on the coffee farm ... all that sort of stuff,” he said. Meanwhile, Williams was racking up the achievements. North American Life Assurance of Canada (NALACO) gave the energetic, young family man a clear run. By age 23 he was recruiting agents. He rattles off legendary names like Adrian Foreman, Victor Murphy, Herbert Hall, and the list goes on. “We guys formed a fantastic team!” He interlocked his fingers as he conveyed the passion. “We studied hard and we did our homework as we looked for business ... Working till 10 at nights, normally we met clients on the weekend because that’s the only time we could see them,” the old sales lion roared, gesticulating all the time. By age 26, it was R. Danny Williams, CLU and branch manager, if you please! “It wasn’t about me, it was the team around me and the complete support of my wife.” His only regret being lack of formal finance training. The Danny Williams-headed NALACO branch would become the number one branch in the world! The record must show that he respectfully resisted all the entreaties of his father-in-law, Lister Mair, to join Dominion Life. “I wanted to chart my own path. I didn’t want anyone thinking ...,” He stopped just short of calling out nepotism. “We competed head-on, while maintaining a very good relationship.” LIFE OF JAMAICA Fast-forward to 1970 when Danny Williams and his tight circle of mates formed Life of Jamaica. “We saw the need to localise the industry ... keep the profits here ... started out with a princely sum of $2.5 million.” He managed a satisfied smirk as he credited mentor Douglas Fletcher and a list of powerful men (Matalon, Alexander, and so on) who lent their name to an idea that was as audacious as it was timely. Edward Seaga moved roadblocks; that tells why Danny Williams’ politics has received respect and admiration. He still marks the 1970s as senator as most fulfilling because he bridged the socio-political gap. Mentorship came up often, and Danny Williams dishes out credit to Douglas Fletcher for business acumen, Lister Mair for philanthropic spirit, his mother for entrepreneurialism, and his father for working hard and looking after family. He doesn’t resile from the effect he has had on others. “Whatever love my mentees have, it’s because I loved them first ... by giving them the opportunities and advice and watching them grow ... nothing was more satisfying.” R. Danny Williams and his wife Shirley Williams at Sagicor Life Jamaica celebratory dinner. FILE
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