Camilo Gracias.
PANAJI
Camilo Sylvester Gracias was still a teenager studying in Goa when he got a job in the royal palace in Kuwait. He had travelled there with his parents, who were working in Kuwait. Camilo was not very interested in studying and was living in a boarding school away from his parents, so he gladly took up the job as a house help and driver in the palatial home of Sheikh Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, the father of Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, who served as the prime minister of Kuwait from 2011 to 2019, and earlier as minister of defence and deputy prime minister.
“I was just 19, and had not completed my education yet, had gone to Kuwait with parents on a vacation. My father Victor Gracias was working as a porcelain driver at Al Rashed tiles factory, and my mother Annie Gracias was working in the royal family as aid. For me, this opportunity was huge and I grabbed it immediately. In those days, getting a job in the Gulf countries was looked at with awe, in Goa. I worked there for 11 years,” recalls Camilo, who will turn 50 in a few weeks. Now in her seventies, his mother still works with the royal family, while Camilo lost his father eight years ago after 45 years of working in Kuwait.
Camilo would have continued working in Kuwait, but an accident changed everything. During a holiday in Goa, he met with an accident that left him disabled for life. “I was 29 then, and it was May 2003. Our family had returned after a tour of 21 days to Vailankanni by car which I drove. With my international driving licence I was expert in driving. I drove all kinds of vehicles in Kuwait, from Mercedes and BMWs to jeeps, trucks and buses in Kuwait,” recalls Camilo, who met with a scooter accident in Goa, injuring his spine.
The accident caused serious damage to his spine. His legs stopped working, his hip bone broke, and a deep wound took a long time to heal. “I was bedridden, got bed sores, making life hell. I could not resume my job in Kuwait. I couldn’t even walk. I began using a wheelchair to move in the house. My parents continued in Kuwait. I once visited the family I was working. They were kind enough to offer me accommodation, and sponsored my physiotherapy exercise, but I detested living on the mercy of others, and returned to Goa,” shares Camilo, who lost his source of income.
However, luck favoured him again. He received a marriage proposal from Cenove Fernandes, a Goan nurse working in Kuwait, who had known Camilo since childhood. Despite his condition after the accident, she willingly chose to be his life partner and take care of him. Camilo accepted, and they married on August 7, 2007.
Cenove left her job in Kuwait, and the couple started living in Goa. She took up some nursing jobs in local hospitals but left them after Camilo suffered a heart attack while she was at work. She then decided to stay at home to care for him. “We managed with the money she had saved from her job, but how long would that last? My wounds are not healing, and I need regular dressing, which she does. With no job and no work at hand, I survive on the Goa government aid for the disabled, Rs 3,500 monthly, which is not enough for two people to sustain,” explains Camilo.
At home, he moves around in a wheelchair, does household work, and even cooks, but he cannot leave the house to work. He remains self-sufficient and is ready to run a shop if it is close by but wonders who would invest in it. “My friends also have stopped visiting me, and only few close friends like Domingos, Vishant, Avelino and better-half Cenove keep motivating me. After their encouragement, I began to indulge in sports like table tennis and badminton, which now keeps me engaged and joyful. I even won a runner up prize in TT,” says Camilo, who participated in the wheelchair category at the 1st All Goa Major Ranking Table Tennis Tournament, organised by the Ponda Table Tennis Sports Club with the Goa Table Tennis Association at the Sports Complex, Curti-Ponda on July 13.
Camilo has faced death closely multiple times but has emerged stronger each time, despite continuous infections in his blood. His bones have become brittle, and broken pieces often come out while dressing his wounds. Yet, he continues to smile and thanks God for giving him a caring life partner, whose sacrifices he will never forget.
