Saturday 27 February 2016

Circular No 747








Newsletter for alumni of The Abbey School, Mt. St. Benedict, Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.
Caracas, 27 of February 2016 No. 747
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Dear Friends,
I now dedicate this issue to the Monks and Mt. St. Benedict.
Articles that I have had for some time and would like to share with you.
First article is the CV of BROTHER GERARD, Brother Rupert
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Bruds’ of St Benedict
BY ANGELA PIDDUCK Monday, October 6 2008
BROTHER GERARD, Brother Rupert, or just plain “Bruds”, are the names by which Brother Gerard (Rupert) Alexis OSB, the beloved swim coach of the Abbey Aqua Lads and Lasses of Mount St Benedict, is known.
An Aqua Lads and Lasses reunion luncheon is being planned in celebration of 40 years (1964-2004) of swimming, friendship and fun, under this Benedictine Monk, on October 18, his 75th birthday. All past Aqua Lads and Lasses are invited to contact 352-3526, or e-mail aqualadsandlasses@yahoo.com for more information about the function. 
It came as a surprise when, at age 19, this Woodbrook boy decided to enter the Monastery at Mount St Benedict on June 1, 1952. Brother Rupert, his given name as a monk, has never been ordained priest: 
“I was never inclined to the priesthood and wanted to be a monk living that life in the monastery where I still live to this day since monks never retire, and through vows of stability, must remain for life with the monastery. Monastic life starts as a novitiate, then goes on to different classes, taking five years to be fully professed as a monk. I am immensely happy and would not have changed this life for any other.” 
Says the quiet-spoken monk: “I was always involved in sports and thought I would have to give it up, but actually got more and more involved in sport up there.” 
In 1956, Brother Vincent, sportsmaster at The Abbey School, asked the then Abbot Adelbert Van Duin, if Brother Rupert could assist him in coaching sports. “My first love is cricket so I started off coaching the two sports which I played, cricket and tennis.” 
In 1964, seven students, Gordon Mitchell, Russell Cunha, Bernard Lange, Peter Boland, Edward Watson, Douglas Watson and Richard Knox, formed the Abbey Aqua Lads swim club. Brother Rupert was assistant sportsmaster to the late Father Gregory Kloeg, who foresaw that while a student swimmer would leave after sitting their Senior Cambridge exams, Brother Rupert, as a member of the Benedictine community would provide continuity as swimming coach. 
Bernard Lange, one of the founders of Aqua Lads and Lasses also served as assistant coach to the team, a position he held for 18 years. 
“By 1967 the first four Aqua Lads had made the National swim team,” says the former coach. 
In 1970, while on a swim tour to Venezuela, the Venezuelan coach was astounded that there were no girls in the club, and told Brother Rupert it was the norm to have swim teams of both boys and girls. How was Brother Rupert to get girls into the Abbey in 1970? 
“Such was the attitude that the Abbey was off limits to girls. But always ready to support change, I got the headmaster, the late Father Bernard Vlaar, to agree to my sourcing girls from the Convent in St Joseph. A survey of the school by the principal produced 45 girls to the 12 Abbey boys, so great was the interest. And that’s how the club became Aqua Lads and Lasses.” “It’s like a whole other family you have,” says Heather Hutton, who swam with the Aqua Lasses in the mid-70’s.
“The beauty of being a part of a swim club like Abbey Aqua Lads and Lasses is that you have a whole new family, everyone is still in touch. It’s just great in that sense. We have benefitted so much from being part of the club in friendships, discipline and in life generally. This is why we are looking forward to the reunion.”
“Obedience,” says Brother Rupert, “a word never popular, moreso today, but I obeyed the sportsmaster, gave up cricket and tennis and concentrated on swimming.” For 12 consecutive years from 1974-1986, Brother Rupert took the Aqua Lads and Lasses to the Miami Springs Swim Meet and other meets in the United States. 
“In 1987, we won a meet in Pennsylvania. It was the best bunch of swimmers that we happened to get in all age groups,” says the proud coach. 
Other Abbey teams went to Martinique, Guadeloupe, Barbados, Grenada and were in winner’s row many times. 
Although the Abbey pool is currently under repair, the indomitable Brother Rupert is sure “there could be a resurgence of interest when it is completed, with all forms of competitive swimming including the masters, water aerobics, water polo and life saving”. 
“Bruds” says Hutton “is still very much a part of our lives, we still go to him with our problems.” Says this dedicated monk: “It is my joy from 40 years of hard work and discipline with thousands of young people who have passed through Mt St Benedict and as a result through the swim club. 
“Meeting them now and seeing their development into wonderful men and women, I thank God for the opportunity which was given to me to deal with these youngsters, and that He gave me health and strength to work with them for 50 plus years in sports. 
“Sometimes my boys come back from large American universities and are always thrilled to give me the news that the people up there cannot understand that their swim coach was a Benedictine monk. The foreigners had never heard of any such thing.”
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You guys know about this..
Happy 80th Birthday to my amazing Dad! 80 years, 29,219 days, 701,265 hours, 42,076,800 minutes, 6 amazing children, 14 beautiful grandchildren, ONE BLESSED LIFE! Love and Miss You and hope to see you soon!! Xo
Happy 80th to The bandit, you have good genes.
We would like to wish our brother, Great Grand Master Knight Sir David Decastro. (Calypso-Bandit).
A Very Happy Birthday. Sir Bandit, how can we begin to thank you for the energy and inspiration you have bestowed upon us since the late 1940's.
You have shown us what it is to stay young and live life to its fullest, you have certainly done that.
It gives us great pride and honour to be associated with you big brother.
Big Party @LeClub.
All Knight affair, we have a small pan side, a limbo dancer, and a few local calypso singers will be there with the band.
Special dancers from Aruba, just for you buddy ha! ha!
All the best. Love You. Cheers from all your brothers - Abbey Boys International.
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Monks help fight blaze
...Mount St Benedict saved
Stories by Kristy Ramnarine kramnarine@trinidadexpress.com
Friday, May 18th 2007
MONKS at the Monastery in Mount Saint Benedict, fire officers and woodsmen spent most of Wednesday night and yesterday morning trying to control raging bush fires, preventing what could have been the destruction of one of Trinidad's most historic buildings.
Using fire hoses, buckets, garden houses and even sand, the team had a tough task battling the flames which threatened the Monastic Building (where the monks live) and the church.
The fire, which started in the pine forest last week spread closer to Mount Saint Benedict, St Augustine, on Wednesday. Firemen were able to prevent Benet Hall-Top of the Mount, The Hermitage and the Astronomical Society Observatory, from being damaged on that day.
Mount Saint Benedict Abbot, John Pereira, said 15 monks live at the Monastic Building, which is located next to the church.
"Mainly the younger ones were able to assist," he explained.
"We were quite impressed by the fire officers who attended to the fire and would like to commend them for their work. They really did a good job in containing the fire."
Abbot Pereira said with the absence of rain and the high winds in the area embers can be ignited, so staff will continue to monitor the situation.
During the commotion the fire spread further East to the rear of the Pax
Guest House where staff there also spent most of Wednesday night controlling the fire with boxes, fire extinguishers and garden hoses.
"We tried to put a fire break in the ravine at the back of the guest house to prevent it from coming up," said Gerard Ramsawak, Proprietor of the Pax Guest House.
"It was very crazy because there were fires all over. Both appliances were fighting so many fires that they kept running out of water really fast."
Ramsawak said the fire was very close to the western side of the guesthouse.
"Everywhere was covered in smoke but luckily nothing was damaged.
More of the monastery was affected by the ashes because the wind by blowing North East," he said.
Tunupuna fire officer, Mohan Sooknanan said officers spent most of the night on the Mount.
"There are walls right around the building so the fire itself was not a threat," Sooknanan explained.
"However people were being bothered by the thick smoke and ashes in the air."
Sookanan suggested efforts be taken by the administrators of Mount Saint Benedict to clean the surrounding areas of the building which make of the popular site.
"Approximately 25-50 feet around all the building should be cleared," said Sooknanan.
"The fallen dry leaves and branches help the fire to spread faster. If these are removes then the fire will be controlled easier."
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Along a winding road, high on a hill, overlooking the Caroni Plains is The Abbey of Our Lady of Exile, popularly known as Mt St Benedict.
Founded on October 6, 1912, by Abbot Dom Mayeul de Caigney of the monastery of San Sebastian, Bahia, Brazil, after the Order of St Benedict of Italy, it recently celebrated 92 years.
Abbot John Perreira and a cloister of 15 monks are looking forward to the 100th anniversary celebration in 2012. In preparation for this auspicious occasion, the abbey has invited Irish monk Dom Mark Tierney to write Mt St Benedict’s history.
Pereira said: “We would be 100 in 2012. We would like to celebrate 100 years with the writing of a more detailed history of Mt St Benedict. We want something on which we can put our stamp on our 100th anniversary. It is something of which our society could be proud.
“We are upgrading our archives to preserve the records of the monastery which has become a historical site. We are trying to bring it up to international standards. Tierney is world-renowned and we are in safe hands.”
Beyond Mt St Benedict walls
Beyond the stone walls to the main entrance of the compound, at the heart of the monastery is the Mt St Benedict Church.
Abbot John Pereira said: “People from all walks of life...all religions...come and spend quiet time in the church. People do not identify it as a Catholic Church... Hindus, Muslims, Baptists, Christians, Catholics...people from all faiths come and spend time here.
“Some people come at the point of suicide. After a bit of quiet contemplation and meditation, they go back down the hill refreshed, to face the reality of the situation with which they are dealing. They leave with a more positive impression.”
Flowers are left at the feet of a statue of Our Lady of Fatima.
Flickering candles cast a soft glow. The light illuminates St Benedict, who clutches a chapter, reminding monastic’s to put “Christ Before All.”
Beyond the reception area, a door leads to a pathway overhung with pretty blossoms from the trees sloping the hills. Birds chirp on outstretched boughs. The view from the top of this secluded haven presents a delightful panorama of villages and towns nestled in the distance.
At the end of the walkway, is the Mt St Benedict Credit Union which has evolved to include the wider society. Further along, is a former abbey school, which was converted into a rehabilitation centre for cocaine addicts and gamblers.
Apart from a yoghurt factory, the remaining 6,000 acres are under mango and cocoa trees.
Just as they protect the water basin which engenders life and first attracted the pioneering monks, the abbey clings tenaciously to the Benedictine way of life.
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EDITED by LadislaoKertesz, kertesz11@yahoo.com,  if you would like to be in the circular’s mailing list or any old boy that you would like to include.
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Photos:
13GD0001GDIGRP, Garnet Diaz and ladies
12BR0001BRUMPR, Bro. Rupert and Manuel Prada
15PB0001PBOWFE, Peter Boos and wife
15CM0001CMA, Carlos Maneiro and Daughter






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Saturday 20 February 2016

Circular No 746








Newsletter for alumni of The Abbey School, Mt. St. Benedict, Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.
Caracas, 20 of February 2016 No. 746
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Dear Friends,
Please could anyone rectify the situation of the following old boys.
David De Verteuil, Middle Bage, My classmate 1960, last known address in Oakville Canada
Nicholas de Verteuil, Meow, last known address in Houston Texas.
Eion Oconnor, last known address in Canada
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EVENTS
From: Don Mitchell
Sent: Friday, June 19, 2015 2:00 AM
My contribution:
1950s-1960s – singing “Glory, Glory to the Prison on the Hill” (to the music of the Battle Hymn of the Republic) in the Volkswagon bus on the way back to Mount after every excursion to the beach;
1950s-1960s – making maps of the trails in the bush around the Mount;
1959 – standing along the roadside to wave at Fidel Castro as he drove in convoy up to the Mount;
1960s – swimming in Katchikam pool, in the river below the swimming pool;
1960s – cutting lianas (vines) and daring each other to swing on them further and further above the gorge on the way to the Reservoir;
1960s – baking ripe breadfruit on small bonfires along the river flowing down from the Reservoir;
1960s – hiding behind the bushes on the hillside above the sportsfield firing reed (bamboo) arrows at the hated sportsmen on the cricket field;
1960s – getting six licks on my backside from BoBo every Monday morning at 9:00 AM for 5 years for the above activity;
Keep well.
Don
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From: gyuris
Sent: Thursday, June 18, 2015 7:01 PM
Hi Antoni,
I was there from Sept 1964 till July 1969, starting in Prep A and graduating from Form V.
Yes things did get a bit more liberalized after you left. So our paths never overlapped due to the time difference in attendance.
For example, One of the main reasons was Fr. Theo, ( a Dutch parrish priest on a two year sabatical at the Abbey School during 1966 and 1967. He was the brother of Fr. Gregory, - Duck- and he was put in charge of discipline at the school during his 2 year tenure).
He was a very progressive & liberal minded priest who believed in us having social interaction with girls, that it would be good for the boys' morale and social skills.  He influenced the school management to allow for supervised social interaction functions with girls at the school. Hence the parties and social gatherings at the Abbey. After he left in 1967, these social gatherings sadly stopped. Too bad!
I just remembered and added a bunch more items of memories to the list below..... They are in no particular order.  Some pertain only to my time at the Mount,  others are more general stuff that everyone can identify.
Attila Gyuris
1964-1969
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On Jun 18, 2015, at 8:01 AM,
ANTONI MICKIEWICZ <amickiew@att.net> wrote:
Which years did you attend? 
My perception is that the Monks became more liberal as the years transpired.
Muchisimas gracias, Attila, for your valuable additions. 
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On Thursday, June 18, 2015 7:28 AM,
gyuris <gyuris@yahoo.com> wrote:
Ok, I will add a few to the List... :-)
Regards,
Attila Gyuris
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On Jun 18, 2015, at 7:07 AM,
GEORGE MICKIEWICZ <amickiew@att.net> wrote:
When reflecting on this topic, it is amazing how many and varied they were. 
To the best of my recollection for my years there, they were:
·        Sports – Football, cricket, volleyball, basketball, tennis, table tennis, baseball (played by the “pagnols”)
·        Track and Field
·        Swimming, diving, water polo
·        Reading
·        Music
·        Theatre
·        Serving mass
·        Stealing and pelting mangoes, oranges, grapefruits
·        Liming
·        Climbing and exploring
·        Eating
·        Ogling our brothers’ “Sistas”
·        Photography
·        Trips to the beaches and the islands
·        Listening to the radio
·        Attending cricket test matches
·        Board games: cards, chess, checkers, monopoly
·        Extra studying hours in last year in preparation for the GCEs
·        Playing marbles
Adding some more things I remember:
- playing Tops during recess.
- Scouts, and scout troop meetings every Saturday morning.
- Playing an instrument in the Marching band. In my case the drums.
- playing an instrument in a rock band.
- building dens in the bush, and camouflaging it.
- going hunting in the bush behind the refectory with pellet guns
- hunting cats around the Refectory at night with bow and arrow and flash lights.
- Forms IV and Form V "boys rooms" (where smoking was allowed and we had a record player and played dominoes at the tables)
- throwing paper airplanes down the hill from  the study hall windows.
- Zampat! In the hedges.
-Saturday night movies in Bennet's Hall above the Refectory.
- Waiting on the staircase by the Refectory for Fr Rughead to open the library to borrow library books.
- Private Piano lessons in Bennet's Hall.
- Playing hide and seek with Br Camillus(?) down  by the beehives to steal mangoes from the trees.
- standing in line every 5pm to take cold water showers.
- Supervised dancing & parties in the basquetball court with the the girls of St. Joseph's Girls Academy down the hill.
- arriving to the scholl for the very first time in Sept 1964 into Prep A. Pablo Kecskemeti, Gabor Hoefle and Paul Stein were my first "old boy" friends on that first day.
- scout camping and building bamboo structures in the river.
- "borrowing" the priests’ Lambretta motor scooters from the garage shed at night for joy rides down to Tunapuna and St. Joseph's then returning them. I was introduced to this by my good friend Jan Koenraadt at first, then I did it occasionally by myself after he left the school. If I had been found out I think I would have been expelled for sure... But I never got found out, lucky me! I took a few friends in the backseat with me on those night rides. One I remember well was the older of the Malaver brothers, because we almost got busted since Fr. Cuthbert was returning late that night in the school van. He was coming up the hill, and we saw the headlights in the distance. We had to quickly turn around and race back up. We skated on that one.
Since then I am a motorcycle long distance travel aficionado. 
- long hikes up to the White Stones ... and beyond. Sometimes practicing morse code communications using a pair of ship's semaphore lanterns we had, with other scouts stationed down by the Refectory.
- the stench of the septic tank behind the toilets during dry season ( around March / April).
- in the Form V dining hall, waiting for Fr Bobo to leave so we could snatch up his orange juice and toast that he didn't finish.
- during breakfast, shaking the bread slices in the bread dish to get rid of the occasional ants. Also swatting the black bees from the honey bottles.
- being sent by the table prefect to go stand up in front of the supervising Father's dining table as punishment. This meant being put in the black list, and no movies on Saturday night.
- having to raise the bread dish or the rice steel dish at the table to get axtefill for more food.
- standing in 3 separate lines outside to enter the three dining halls. Prep A , Form I and II in the one closest to the kitchen, Form III and IV in the middle hall ( Fr Cuthbert supervising at the head table) , and Form V in the last one furthest away from the kitchen ( Fr Bernard supervising).
-  playing backyard cricket during recess using the wooden soft drink boxes as wickets.
- the yearly "Marching of the Flags," put on by the scouts during Parents Day, for a few years I was there. Each country of ancestry or origin for every student was represented by its country flag. It turned out to be a LOT of flags from all over the world. It was quite a show.
- every student using his bathrobe to go to class during the "cold/ rainy and windy days",  usually around November - December.
- the Ray-Ban gold wire rim aviator sunglasses craze. Everyone had to have one for the " Bad-boy look". It was the fashion.
- While playing " Wall-Tennis" against the Refectory retention wall, the tennis balls would occasionally go into one of the many square drain holes in the wall, and having to climb up precariously to get them out.
- sneaking out behind the Refectory for a smoke.
- buying sweet tamarind balls at the religious store down by the Guest House on the way down  to the sports fields.
- Passing by the little cemetery on the right, opposite the Guest House, and looking at the grave head stones. There was one in particular grave head stone that always drew my attention, it was of a "Lt Cdr Wilson". I wonder who he was.
- up in the dormitory, chatting with the always friendly and wise seamstress lady, Mrs. Wilson, and getting good worldly advice about everything.
- having to store the travel suitcases in the Attic in the top dormitory.
- making emergency long distance phone calls to home at the office of Mrs Kitty.
- getting soft drinks and the occasional fresh popcorn from the soft drink window at one of the two back cross hallways. The Cantore brothers were in charge of that concession. Soft drinks and the bag of pop corn were 10 cents each.
- getting your sundries, toiletries and weekly pocket money ( $1) disbursed at the Bursar's office in the back cross hallway.
- racing down the stairs at bath time to be the first in line for showers.
- Watching the Cantore brothers' father buzzing the school with his Bonanza airplane as he flew back to Anaco, Venezuela after leaving the two Cantore brothers ( Fulvio and Oscar) and Pablo Kecskemeti at the school during the start of each Term.
- getting "licks" (swats)  in the bare ass with a cane in the office for misbehaving.
- going down to the school nurse after faking a fever, hoping for a sick slip to skip class, and not getting one.
- waiting in line to brush teeth in the morning.
- in Form V, hosting tours of outside visitors to our Chemistry lab. Our school had the best school Chemistry lab in the country at the time. They said it was better equipped than the University of West Indies had. We were proud of it. The lab was equipped so well thanks to Mrs Kitty Marcus, our Chemistry teacher, and it was the reason I chose to go on to study Chemical Engineering in college.
- "graduating" from "small boy" short pants to "big boy" long pants in the school uniforms.
- changing the formal (external) uniform pants colours from white to blue, and all long, sometime around in 1965 or 1966.
- finding and eating the rare ripe cashew fruits from the cashew trees on the way down to the sports field.
- watching Roger Gibbon, the Trinidadian bicycling world champion and a national celebrity at the time (mid 60's) come visit the school and do a bike racing demonstration with the boys around the sports field.
- while doing a Scout honour guard, watching Haile Selassie, the ruler of Ethiopia at the time on a State visit to Trinidad in 1966, ride by on the road in a open car, looking straight at me and acknowledging and waving at me.
- getting on the school VW van to go to Port-of-Spain for shopping on Saturday mornings.
- Hiking through the northern mountain range from the White Stones all the way to Maracas Bay for as one of the requirements for my Venture Scout badge.
- getting into a fist fight with some bully in the school yard to defend Salvador Coscarat (he was a small boy at the time), because this bully took away by force Salvador's pellet gun.
- My school clothes tag number was No 9. It was sewn into all my clothes. And my clothes still got lost in the laundry.
- The cubicles with privacy curtains in the Senior boy's dormitory. Paul Quesnel was the Head Prefect in Form V that year, and he had the best cubicle, with a lockable and all,  it was almost like a suite!
- Finally getting my Queen's Scout award in Form V, along with my good friend Andres Larsen.
- Leaving the school for the last time on the VW van enroute to Piarco in July 1969. I had donated all my left over stuff to my friend Alfredo Montiel.
.... I will add more as I remember......
Regards,
Attila Gyuris
1964-1969
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EDITED by LadislaoKertesz, kertesz11@yahoo.com,  if you would like to be in the circular’s mailing list or any old boy that you would like to include.
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Photos:
13GT0001GTO, Giacomo Tomaselli
58CN0002CNO, Charles Henri de Noirmont
13JH0001JHA, Joseph Habib
13AK0001AKE, Allen Keith






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