Osei's on fast track to success

Eric Osei sat on the largest of three cozy, black sofas in his tiny living room -- with nearly his entire immediate family surrounding him -- and seemed stunned by the information provided by a visitor.

When told he would be the top seed in the 45-meter dash at Sunday afternoon?s R.I. Indoor Track and Field Championships at the University of Rhode Island?s Mackal Field House, his eyes widened, almost as if he couldn?t believe the news. His mom and dad, Festus and Margaret, reacted with similar amazement.

"Do you realize that, after what you did last Saturday, you?re the top-ranked sprinter in the state?" the visitor offered to the still-new East Providence High junior.

His reply: "I don?t know what to say. I?m surprised. I didn?t get here (to the United States) until November. I don?t know much about it."

What Osei does know deep down inside is that he?s always loved running, and has been pretty good at it. What he doesn?t is this: He?s on the verge of becoming one of the premier sprinters in Townies? history. In fact, he someday may have his name mentioned along side such phenoms as Russell Frye and Michael Blair with continued improvement.

Osei (pronounced oh-SAY) earned that distinction when he captured the 45-meter event at the R.I. Class A Indoor Championships at the CCRI-Lincoln fieldhouse last Saturday. Not only did he manage a best-ever clocking of 5.3 seconds -- in an event he had raced only a few times previously -- but also crushed the meet record, stunning the field.

Not bad for a thin 16-year-old kid who doesn?t understand much of the English language -- or the technical aspects of "drop-dead" sprinting.

***

Osei didn?t arrive in the "States" until just before Thanksgiving Day. He, along with his parents and five brothers and sisters, hails from Ghana, a small seaside country located on the upper west coast of Africa. Honestly, it?s amazing luck that the family is here at all.

Given Ghana standards, Festus and Margaret Osei had a pretty decent life in their native land. Festus worked with the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) as an equipment man, and his wife stayed home to care for their children, then a total of five. All along, though, they pondering seeking better opportunities for the family. That?s why Margaret, on the urgings of her brother, Edward Kyei, who lived in Brooklyn, N.Y., sent them forms to apply for a "green-card" lottery.

That was back in 1994, though neither parent know exactly when. Both filled out the necessary applications and immediately mailed them back to the U.S., anxiously awaiting a response.

"We wanted to come here to America to seek greener pastures," said Festus, now a truck driver for Garelick Farms Dairy, located in Franklin, Mass. "In Ghana, it?s tough to live there because there?s so much poverty. We wanted a better life for us and our children."

It took some time, but a piece of mail arrived at their home on Africa?s "Gold Coast" one summer day in 1995.

"I don?t know what month it was, but I remember it was sunny and hot, and it was about 11 in the morning," said Margaret, with a grin as wide as St. Louis? Gateway Arch. "That?s when we opened the letter and found out we had been accepted. We knew we had to follow a process, as United States law requires, but we were so excited. We were so happy. I remember lying on the floor and waving my arms in celebration. We wanted so badly to come here.

"We signed those papers and sent them back, and then (U.S.) officials sent us some more papers, and we filled those out," she added. "The United States sent back the approval papers to the (U.S.) embassy in Ghana, and that?s when we started to plan."

***

There was one monumental problem. What were they to do with the children? The green-card visas awarded to them excluded the young ones.

Margaret asked her mother if she could care for the contingent, including eldest daughter Dina, second daughter Felicia and sons Eric, Maxwell and George. "Grandma" agreed, promising a loving and nurturing home, and the Osei parents prepared to leave for the "Promised Land."

That was in June, 1996.

"We had to come over to get settled and get jobs to raise money," Margaret said. "At first, we went to Brooklyn to stay with my brother, and then we moved to Pawtucket (in 1997) to stay with Festus? sister (Bernice Oppong Baiddo). Later in the year, we moved into our own apartment."

It didn?t take long for Festus to snatch a job working as a certified nurses assistant at a nursing home in South County, and spent two years in that position. After that, Festus decided to enroll at the New England Tractor Trailer Training School on Prospect St. in Pawtucket, and graduated.

A few months later, the Oseis sent for Dina and Felicia, who had received their visas after near-frequent contact with the government. Both, despite understanding little English and still speaking in their native "Twi" tongue, became students at Tolman, and -- like their "papa" -- graduated.

The three boys, however, remained with Margaret?s mom, going to school and finding camaraderie in sports and other activities. They were then ages nine, five and two, respectively.

"We missed them so much," Margaret stated sadly. "We would call them almost every day, and you could tell they missed us, too. I recall Eric saying, ?Mommy, when are you coming to get us?? One day, when we had called, Eric said, ?Forget it, Mommy. Don?t come and get us. We will stay here with Grandma.? You could tell he was frustrated, and it was understandble.

"I had to tell him, ?Eric, honey, we have to wait because we have to go through a process. The government hasn?t said it?s OK.? We had the money to bring them here, but we had to wait ..

"We didn?t go and visit them," she added with a sorry smile. "We knew we couldn?t see them, and then leave them to come back here. It would?ve been too hard for them. It was really sad. We wanted them with us. We wanted to show them a better life."

Finally, last November, the Osei parents -- who had given birth to a sixth child, Jacqueline, in 2001 -- received word they could send for the boys, and all were thrilled at being united.

***

While Maxwell was finding a niche playing soccer, Eric was doing the same running. While attending Koforidue High School (in Ghana, they refer to grades 10, 11 and 12 as "forms 1, 2 and 3"), Eric captured a first-place cup for winning a regional 100-meter dash. His time was 10.6 seconds, outstanding not only in his country but in the States as well.

When he decided to sign up for the East Providence indoor track team back in late November, however, there was a glitch. His credits and grades from Koforidue hadn?t arrived, and he was forced to sit out the initial part of the dual-meet season.

"He wasn?t eligible because his manuscripts hadn?t transferred," said Townie assistant Debbie Bellamy. "For lack of a better phrase, he was on hold. He couldn?t compete and he couldn?t practice. He was pretty sad about that, but we kept telling him that if he waited, everything would be OK."

If there was one thing Eric was good at it, besides "flying" with his legs, waiting was it.

Eric finally got his chance to "strut his stuff" in a few dual meets, and -- though undisciplined in arm swing technique -- he listened intently both to Bellamy and head coach Bob Lyons.

"I know Bob spent a lot of time on his starts, because he seemingly never really had a lot of coaching in Ghana," Bellamy said. "But you could tell he had what it took. We?d be in the corridors working with the sprinters and hurdlers, and he?d blow everyone out of the water. We knew he was fast, but we didn?t know how fast once he got on a track.

"His arms would flail a little bit, but he had flat-out speed," she added. "After what he did at the Class A?s, now he?s up in the ranks with guys like Russ Frye and Mike Blair. I told him that, when we?re at the states at URI, he would have to run 55 meters and not 45. He just looked at me and said, ?Oh, good. That?s better.? I asked him why, and he said his natural race was the 100."

***

Even now, Eric Osei doesn?t truly understand his being one of the top sprinters in Rhode Island.

In fact, last Saturday, before the Class A championships, he believed it be just another dual meet. That?s why his parents, brothers and sisters didn?t attend.

"I didn?t know it was a big meet with statewide competition," he said. "Once we got (to CCRI-Lincoln), I asked Mrs. Bellamy if I was going to run three times (that is, trials, semifinals and finals), and she said, ?Yes, if you win the first race, you run in the second, and, if you win that, you run in the third.? That?s when I understood it was a big meet."

Said Margaret: "I was on the phone when he got home, and he said, ?Mom, look, I wo a gold medal!? I couldn?t believe it. I wasn?t expecting that. I hung up the phone and hugged him. We were all so proud of him. I kneeled down and prayed, I was so happy."

That?s one thing about the Oseis. They are devout followers of the Lord?s work.

Festus and Margaret don?t know where or how their eldest son got his talent, but his dad offered this: "I?d say it?s a gift from God."