Minister Grange Pays Tribute to Late Veteran Sports Photojournalist, Headley “Dellmar” Samuels

Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange, has paid tribute to late veteran sports photojournalist, Headley George “Dellmar” Samuels, noting his more than 35 years of distinguished coverage of West Indies cricket.

In remarks delivered on her behalf by Communication Specialist at the Ministry, Granville Newell, during a thanksgiving service on September 12 at East Queen Street Baptist Church in Kingston, Ms. Grange said Mr. Samuels was “at the top of his class as a sports journalist”.

She remarked that his illustrious career covering West Indies cricket and international sports “speaks for itself”.

The Minister noted that Mr. Samuels covered 175 Test Cricket matches, seven Cricket World Cups, numerous One-Day Internationals, and the 1976 Montreal Olympics, followed by 13 years covering Premier League football.

Ms. Grange pointed out that, despite failing eyesight and health challenges in his later years, the highly respected photojournalist remained steadfast in his commitment to the sport of cricket, “rallying around the West Indies for more than 35 years”.

She also noted that he authored and published two books – ‘Caribbean Cricket Spectacular’ and ‘Cricket Spectacular’.

“Both publications are superlative pictorial collections focusing on extensive documentation of Caribbean and international sports,” the Minister said.

Ms. Grange recalled Mr. Samuels’ thoughtful gesture of visiting her office to personally present her with copies of the books, noting “I will always feel honoured”.

She said his contribution to West Indies cricket was officially recognised in 2002 when he was awarded the national honour of Order of Distinction in the rank of Officer (OD).

Minister Grange also highlighted the other honours Mr. Samuels received during his career, including being conferred with life membership in the Press Association of Jamaica (PAJ).

Describing her relationship with Mr. Samuels, Ms. Grange said, “It would be fair for me to say that I could reasonably call Dellmar a friend from West Kingston. During the time we knew each other, he called me “Babsy” far more often than he called me Minister.”

She extended condolences to his widow, children, family, friends, associates, and members of the photojournalism fraternity, particularly those involved in sports journalism.

“Rest in peace, Headley George Samuels. With your lens, you improved our look on life,” Ms. Grange said.