Circular No 508

Newsletter for alumni of The Abbey School, Mt. St. Benedict, Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.

Caracas, 30 July 2011 No.508

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Dear Friends,

Looking for Hackett, Stirling. Would he be alive???

Who were his friends?? Is he really in Trinidad?

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Missing Circulars

Friday, July 8, 2011 9:12 AM

From: "Nigel Boos" <nigelboos@eagles-wings.ca>

Terrence,

In case you're not receiving the MSB Circulars, I must refer you to Ladislao Kertesz, who sends them out.

Perhaps, one way or the other, your email address may have been lost.

By copy of this note, I'm asking Laz to update his records and to add your name to his recipient list.

Thanks for bringing this to our attention.

Keep well. Have a great summer.

Nigel

P.S. Laz: Please handle this request from Terrence Ferreira.

He’s apparently not been receiving the Circulars.

Thanks.

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On 2011-07-07, at 10:21 PM, QNOISE@aol.com wrote:

Nigel,

These days, how do locate the Abbey circulars?

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Newsletter for past alumni of The Abbey School, Mt. St. Benedict, Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.

Caracas, 25 of May 2002. Circular No.28

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Dear Friends,

News for you, direct from the Trinidad Express.

Abbey library needs help

By ANTHONY MILNE

ORIGINAL editions of early works by Sir Vidia Naipaul, Sir Louis de Verteuil’s 19th-century book on Trinidad, works on West Indian sociology also from that century, and writings by French priest Père Labat on what the Caribbean was like 300 years ago are among the treasures in the 89-year-old library at the Abbey of Our Lady of Exile, at Mount St Benedict in St Augustine.

Talking to the Express last week, Fr Christopher Theunissen, now in charge of refurbishing the library, spoke about other works there, the library’s history, and plans to continue refurbishing the library.

Funds and equipment, including proper lighting and air conditioning, and computer facilities to help catalogue the library’s collection, are also being sought. The library has just received a gift of a dozen chairs from Bewil & Co, of Philips Street, Port of Spain.

Original works by Eric Williams are also on the library’s shelves, as are the complete works of Sir Walter Scott and Voltaire, political writings by South American Liberator Simón Bolívar, books by Charles Kingsley, ancient musical manuscripts.

There is also, of course, a comprehensive collection of scriptural and theological works for use by monks, students of theology at the Regional Seminary of St John Vianney and the Ugandan Martyrs, just down the hill from the abbey, and members of the public allowed to use the library.

The library now houses about 20,000 volumes.

Rev Theunissen explained that a library of sorts was established at the 90-year-old abbey the year after it was founded by Dutch Benedictine monks who had been expelled from Bahia in Brazil where they had fallen foul of the government.

“In 1979,” Theunissen explained, “one of the monks at the abbey, Fr Ildefons, was appointed librarian.” Other monks had helped with the library before this, including Revs Adelbert van Duin and Francis Friesen.

One of his first tasks was to break through the concrete wall separating what was once a tailor shop from a former vestry, to make access to the library possible from within the main monastery building.

He was helped by other monks, including Rev Francis Alleyne, now Abbot.

“In 1982 Fr Ildefons began the daunting task of proper cataloguing,” Theunissen explained. “It had become necessary to introduce a recognised standard system, the Dewy Decimal Classification”.

He got help from a Mr Nadar, a trained librarian at the University of the West Indies, also in St Augustine.

The task was completed in seven years, with the then-10,000 books in the library catalogued and a special card system introduced. Theunissen nevertheless bemoaned the fact that a number of valuable books in the library have disappeared, some borrowed and never returned, over the years.

Afterwards Rev John Pereira, another monk, did a lot of work in the library. The abbey, to celebrate it 90th anniversary later this year, also has archives, kept carefully by Abbot Francis. One of the oldest buildings at the Benedictine Abbey is to be bulldozed on Wednesday, April 3. Monks at the Abbey explained that the ornate old building, constructed of tapia, was to be demolished two years ago. Citizens for Conservation, they said, got the authorities to hold their hand then, promising to help raise the $2 million needed to restore the old building and make it safe.

The building remained standing but no funds were forthcoming. Each Benedictine abbey throughout the world, it was explained, must be self-sufficient and so must be able to raise its own funds or create income.

Theunissen said the abbey library “is one of the oldest of its kind in the Caribbean”, and has a wide and large selection of monastic and spiritual books as well as secular and inter-denominational books.

Caption of the photo

“Fr Christopher Theunissen proudly displays some of the books in the library”

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Continuing the Who is Where, thanks to Roger Henderson:

17. Brian Lewis is an architect in Trinidad

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david decastro

27 Jun

Thanks-never was in scouts or did woodwork was too busy fighting and being in trouble. "bandit"

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Date: Sun, 26 Jun 2011 12:29:53 -0430

Subject: Re: LADISLAO--CIRCULAR 494 JUST JOGGED MY MEMORY

From: kertesz11@gmail.com

Dear Dave

Thanks for the comments, I need this type of article for the Circular.

How about something about the woodworks??

or the Scouts

God Bless

Ladislao

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On 17 June 2011 12:30, david decastro <calypsobandit@live.com> wrote:

ANOTHER STORY ABOUT MOUNT [the golden years}

BY DAVE DE CASTRO--"THE BANDIT"

In 1947 when DOM ADELBERT VAN DUIN was made Abbot of Mount Saint Benedict I was 11 years old.

Father Dom Adelbert was also a teacher in a class.

One day I guess I was interrupting his class with my stupid antics and he called me out and said De Castro you are interrupting my class and you will write 1000 times

“The way of the transgressor is extremely hard indeed-indeed-indeed.”

And you will give it to me in 2 weeks.

I said under my breath this S.O.B is mad no ass.1000.00 lines no body ever got that.

The most in those days was about 50 lines.-- remember 11 years old.

The 1000 lines was now the talk of the school and that this new Abbot was mad no ass.

I said to the other boys well**** him I am not doing that he is crazy.

After fuming-- fussing-- and cussing for a day I decided to take my case to the headmaster father Bernard.—

Let’s see what BOBO will say, and what do you think that IDIOT said ????

The sooner you start writing it --the sooner you will finish it.

You talk about cuss--ah cuss every priest and every body in that school to the boys.

But it took every spare minute of my time for 2 weeks to write the dam thing.

Even up to today at 75 years of age every time I remember that incident ah still cussing.

Some people just have to learn the hard way and that was how it was in those days.

Peace and love

"bandit"

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david decastro

27 Jun

No I had 60972 and it should be 69072 will try again this time at Christmas time .

regards

"bandit"

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Date: Sun, 26 Jun 2011 12:24:07 -0430

Subject: Re: RETURNED CHRISTMAS CARD

From: kertesz11@gmail.com

Dear Dave,

The address is correct, but remember we are heading to be a socialist state, so expect the unexpected.

All knowledgeable persons are kicked out of their jobs and replaced by young inexperienced guys.

It is as to say Destroy to Conquer.

God bless

Ladislao

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FW: STORY ABOUT --JULES OF TRINIDAD ALL STARS IN 1954. NOW PANORAMA CHAMPIONS 2011 BY" THE BANDIT"

david decastro

28 Jun 2011

Hi Ladislao,

Here is another story for the mount boys.

Best regards

"bandit"

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Subject: STORY ABOUT --JULES OF TRINIDAD ALL STARS IN 1954.

NOW PANORAMA CHAMPIONS 2011 BY" THE BANDIT"

Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2011 11:02:23 -0400

The year was 1954—

I Dave De Castro was at Mount Saint Benedict College in the mountains of Trinidad.

We had a little steel band called MOUNT MARINERS and as we not allowed to go home or into the city of Port of Spain for carnival we amused ourselves playing around the college at carnival time.

As carnival was fast approaching that year I told the band we needed to tune the pans properly by a professional pan tuner as I was no pan tuner although I did by best touching them up.

They all laughed and said and how the very struck head master father Ildephonse [every body was afraid of him] go let you go into the city to find a pan tuner??

As a young man I was never a kind or afraid person.

So I went to father ildephones' explained him the situation and to my surprise he said O.K.

Dave you can go for 1 day and be back before night fall.

The fellows were in amazement.

I had known about Jules and Elle Mannett but for some unknown reason decided to go to all stars pan yard met with Mr. Jules discussed the tuning of the pans which was only 3 pans:

A 4 note bass—

A 13 note guitar pan—

A 22 note first pan.

Jules after much discussion about going way up in the mountains decided that he would do the tuning for $50.00 plus transportation by taxi back and forth in one day

I gave him a down payment of $25.00 dollars made arrangements for a particular day and left and went back to Mount Saint Benedict,

I explained the situation to father Ildephonse and told him the day I would go back into the city to get my pan tuner and so all was set all

we had to do now was scramble to find the money to pay Mr. Jules and the taxi man back and forth as it was over 20 miles to go and 20 miles to return.

The day arrived I got the taxi and picked up Mr. Jules the captain of the famous all stars.

The road up the mountain was a terrible winding road most people were afraid of and as we started to ascend up the mountain Jules became very nervous saying I don't like this

--I don't like this at all maybe we should forget about tuning the pans and go back.

I was in shock, here was this fearless bad man who most men were afraid of--afraid of the mountain road-it took some doing to convince him that all would be well but he was sweating profusely and grumbling like hell.

We soon reached the school and I had to inform Jules that the pans were further up the mountain in the bush in our den.

He started saying he aint going in no bush he afraid snake.

I told him we would all be around him protecting him and there were no snakes and if any snakes came out they would bite one of us first.

After much persuading we went into the bush he tuned the pans in a hurry and said never to bring him back here again

I thanked him --took him to the taxi and he was gone very upset.

When I graduated from college I went on my wild streak in Trinidad visiting all stars yard often as I knew Jules and he was always nice to me.

There I met a lot of other badjohns in the panyard.

They were all nice to me {this little white boy I was very small} and they knew, I knew Jules and he was the captain.

I would sometimes go drinking with fish-eye {he was real tough and loved to fight} and my little gang.

There was a bottle pelting incident at a drinking hole called FRENCHY in the ARCADE with fish-eye and my boys and some other gang but that is a story for another time.

I am so happy and proud that my favourite band Trinidad all stars won panorama champions this year 2011.

Unknown fact; Mount Saint Benedict college was the first college to have a steelband in 1952 and not Saint Mary’s or Fatima college.

The steel band was my "MOUNT MARINERS"

Dave de Castro.--"the bandit"

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Ladislao Kertesz at kertesz11@yahoo.com,

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Photos:

Mount Inside No. 6404 page 02

70UN0001CLASS1972, resending with some new names.

11SC5563SFAWFE, Sarkis Farchak and wife Janneth.

62UN0004StFRANCIS, The proud St.Francis marching during sports day.