Newsletter for
alumni of The Abbey School, Mt. St. Benedict, Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.
Caracas, 22 May 2016
No. 759
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Dear Friends,
The Circular is slow drying up of
articles. Maybe it has turned into
obsolescence.
So in this issue, at the end I shall repeat
Circular No.69
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Don Mitchell <idmitch@anguillanet.com>
May 24
at 1:36 PM
Hello, Cornel,
David was more Nigel’s generation than mine,
and I hope he can help you with the details you ask for.
I did not know David until he began to
regale us with his circular messages and links to his songs in very recent
years.
I’m copying this remembrance message of
yours to Ladislao so he can place it in one of his Circulars, where it properly
belongs.
Best wishes,
Don
---------------------------------------------------------
From: Cornel de Freitas
Sent: Tuesday,
May 24, 2016 1:16 PM
Subject: RE:
BANDIT - OBITUARY AND MEMORIAL MASS
Hello Mitch,
There are no words to express how it feels
to lose a brother like David i.e. "the Bandit''.
I met him for the first time when he came up
to Canada, Toronto to celebrate a "Mini Reunion",
Of course having heard so much about him, it
was like unto meeting a celebrity,
Especially one from our beloved Abbey School.
He was a burst of Sunshine.
I was privileged to drive him and his wife
Jenny to the reunion, and at my most favourite time of the year,
It was Christmas time. David and his lovely
wife were up here to celebrate Christmas with his family, what a large and
beautiful family it was.
We all had a wonderful time at that reunion,
he even got to meet my two Grandsons,
Lorenzo (11) and Christian (10).
It was wonderful; he took to them and even
serenaded them playing his "Quatro".
(I hope I spelled that right)
Salah Wilson was also there with his Steel
Pans.
He and 'Bandit' played Christmas songs,
Salah on his Pans and 'Bandit' on his Quatro and others keeping the beat
Tapping on a 'Carib' beer bottle with a fork
or knife and others singing along.
We have kept in touch since, using 'Hotmail'
him sending us Christmas cards.
He will be missed.
We all Loved him.
A wonderful Grandfather, father and very
dear friend to many,
a "GRAND KNIGHT" of the order of
the brotherhood of the Abbey School, Mount St. Benedict.
May GOD Bless his family, watch over them,
and comfort them in their great loss.
May David de Castro rest in Peace.
Cornel
P.S.: If you can, I would like an address so
I can express my condolences to Jenny, and the family.
Thanks
-----------------------------------------------------------------------.
From: GEORGE
MICKIEWICZ
Sent: Tuesday,
May 10, 2016 1:48 PM
Please share with your distribution lists as
there might be a few old boys who might be able to attend the mass tomorrow in
his memory.
In
Memory of
David
Noel De Castro
February 13, 1936 - May 5, 2016
Obituary
DAVID NOEL DE CASTRO, 80, "The
Bandit" was a musician who always lived life to the fullest and never
missed a 'Carnival'.
He leaves us a message of "Peace and
Love" and died quietly on May 5th, 2016, with his wife, Jenny by his side.
Born in Trinidad, he was the son of the
late, Lucille Wiles and Virgil De Castro, brother of Delano (deceased).
The first Calypso King of Canada, his legacy
lives on through his 6 children, Patricia, Mercedez, Cassandra (deceased),
Charmaine, Duane, Ryan, and spouses; 14 loving grandchildren and his many dear
friends.
Although he is gone, his music continues to
touch our hearts.
Dearly missed, we celebrate his life at St. Paul's Catholic
Church on Wed. May 11 at 11:00am
I believe that this
is the web page of the church where the celebration will be held in case some
of us can make it
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------.
david
decastro
31 mar
Hi Ladislao,
Just put this out there, see if any one
remembers.
In the early years of Mount we use to go
down to a river without permission and would bath in a little pool called Katchecam.
I think it eventually became popular and
there were supervised visits for the boys, or was this another pool in the
river nearby??.
Did anyone ever take over our den in the mountain?
We called ourselves the Bar Bell Boys and
built a wooden hut with a swing rope
dave de castro
malcom boyack
lawrence mc cauley
colin phillips
peter dos santos
donald boyd
delano de castro.
We would go off and lime and lift weights
and swing to our hearts content twice a week.
What beautiful memories of Mount.
I feel sorry for anyone who does not share
fond memories.
"bandit"
--------------------------------------------------------------------.
From: Llewellyn
Mac Intosh.
trincoll@tstt.net.tt
Date:
Tue, 17 Dec 2002 16:48:26 AST4
Hi, Let me introduce myself.
The name is Llewellyn Mac Intosh.
I taught at the Abbey School from 1969 to
1984.
I have been receiving these Circulars ever
since I met John Gioannetti the other day.
I think that this is all a great idea.
In fact, I was very surprised to see my
photograph in a previous circular, about one month ago.
It was very interesting, because standing
right behind me in the photo was Colm Imbert who is now the Minister of Health
in Trinidad & Tobago.
I am writing because I do recognise some of the
guys in the current photo.
Do not remember all of the names though.
I am sure of the following:
No.7
Campbell. I do not remember his first name a bright and quiet guy.
At one time he ran a tyre shop on Charlotte Street,
POS.
No. 11
Paschal Barath. He was quite a character!
No. 2
Glen Mcoy. He also had a brother at Abbey.
I met the brother, Hudson, a few months ago
at Piarco.
They were both very good musicians.
Sorry I do not remember any others.
How are things in Venezuela? I hope that you
and your relatives are safe and okay.
Llewellyn Mac Intosh
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In my last circular I mentioned, Wayne Brown´s
article on P.G. Wilson.
Here are some additions to the WEB article
that might give further the information to a possible biographer.
It is about a visit to the U.S. in 1965 by
P.G. to assist to workshop on coaching skills.
-----------------------------------
I am glad to have received from Robert
Huggins the following note.
Las,
I don't know if you know, but PG as he was
fondly know, went on to complete his PhD in Sports training many years later.
He then worked with the Government of
Trinidad and Tobago as a Coach.
(Also had a programme on TV, can anyone
remember seeing it?).
PG passed away some years ago at a ripe old
age. (75)
Can't remember how old, but some of the
other past students might remember.
Robert.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
In this circular I am going to narrate my
part in PG Wilson´s curriculum vitae.
At the bottom of the photo that I have
included, the dedication was signed in 1965.
My graduation year from MSB, Form V, was in
December 1960.
This personalized dedicated photo was given
to me during my last year by PG in Washington D.C., where I attended and
graduated at the Catholic University of America. He stayed a couple of days
there before going to a scholarship somewhere in the US,
I do not remember those details but I do
remember the bottle of good Fernandes rum he gave me and the photo that I still
keep.
At that time I was in the swimming team of
the university, when I noticed that scholarships were given to foreign coaches
with good records.
I made a comment to my swimming coach on PG.
Again by fortune I had kept communications
through post cards with PG after I left the Mount, so I asked PG for his
curriculum, which by the way he sent in hand writing, next I had to rewrite it
in my portable typing machine.
I am sorry that I did not keep the
memorabilia of his hand writing and letters.
He was accepted and I met him in a Hotel
next to the University after he had arrived, he was very excited and I presume
all went well.
From the above note he got the opportunity
the he deserved and placed him in the position to continue to help others as he
had done with us, thank God.
I have still have fond remembrances of his
person and coaching, since I was in track and field team at MSB, remembered mainly
for throwing Discus and Javelin.
I lost contact with him after that, as I
left the US in July 1965 for Venezuela and started to work in an area where
communications was not the best, and all I remember is that someone told me
later that he had a TV programme in Trinidad.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------.
Douglas Fraites
<dafraites@sympatico.ca>
Mar 16
at 11:03 AM
Thank you Glen for your kind response to my
query.
I must first apologize for the delay in
getting back to you,
It is very unlikely that you are connected
with the missing McKoys of my search.
I note that although you are Glen Mckoy your
surname origin is MacKoy from Suriname and of course Ireland.
Family names got all mixed up during
diaspora in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, mine was de Freitas from
Madeira but in St Kitts became Fraites.
My aunt Doris Fraites married Allan McKoy
who was a grandson of Nicholas McKoy born in Ireland in 1836 and came to St
Kitts in the 1850’s, likely fleeing the turmoil in Ireland.
Allan and Doris emigrated to Trinidad in
1937 and moved on to Venezuela where they found more lucrative employment.
They left their teenage children at boarding
schools in Trinidad, daughter, Marie, at St Josephs Convent and sons Tony and
Vincent at Mt St Benedict.
Vincent graduated from Mt St Benedict around
1957, went on to St Mary’s in Halifax then to Yale University in the USA and
has had an illustrious career in theoretical chemistry, google “Dr
Vincent McKoy”.
Reluctantly he is about to retire as a
professor at Caltec in Pasadena, California, due to illness.
Tony became an aeronautical engineer and
retired two years ago after a long career with the US military. He lives in San
Diego, California.
Best regards to all,
Douglas
------------------------------------------
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.
----------------------------------------------
Photos:
07WK0010REUNION2007, Bro. Rupert and Manuel
Prada
15LK1416FBKCA, Kerry Castillo
16LK0001BGOGTA, Brian Goddard and Gustavo
Tar
16LK0002GTALKE, Gustavo Tar and Ladislao
Kertesz
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