Newsletter for past alumni of The Abbey School, Mt. St. Benedict, Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.
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Dear Friends,
First of all, my visit to TT is on and I have the airline tickets in my pocket.
The following preliminary schedule has been drawn up.
Arriving Friday 15th at Piarco.
Saturday afternoon meeting and evening dinner arranged by the ASAA.
Sunday, down the islands?
Monday afternoon meeting with the ASAA.
Thursday early in the morning leaving TT for CCS.
The contact person for the ASAA and scheduler is Christopher Knowles, (knowlescb@hotmail.com or (868)-345-7987, (868) 628 7487)
I would like to meet as many of you as possible, please bring memorabilia which you would like to include in the Circular.
Ladislao Kertesz kertesz11@yahoo.com,
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Now down to the serious matter, in this issue will treat the Abbey School Alumni Association website (ASAA) , and its webmaster Kazim Abasali. (Part 1) The next part continues in Circular No. 401.
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Date: Sun, 25 Jan 2009 19:30:52 -0400
Subject: Re: Abbey School Alumni Association website
From: kertesz11@gmail.com
Dear Kazim
I just looked at the web page, good job !!!!!
Looking at the pictures, I see that there are photos with lots of UNKNOWNS, these photos are updated in the Circulars once I get information, so maybe in the future you can make the necessary corrections once you get the weekly issue.
Since you are placing the pictures and getting input, please do not forget that those photos that are NUMBER CODED are filed in the Circular, due to time limitations I cannot check the inputs that you get at your website, please FW any pertinent information. Neither I check the messages that Don gets for the Blog.
It is a matter of time, I barely have time for the Newsletter and to codify the photos etc. so I would appreciate if you redirect interesting information or pertinent news to me, if you feel that it should appear in the Circular.
This is the coordination that we have between, Nigel, Don and myself. Hope that you would help doing the same.
All of us are autonomous but keep our work the best possible manner.
Please make the following change: Don Mitchell manages the Blog, I have nothing to do with the Blog, except that I send my Circulars first to Don who immediately inserts it in the Blog.
Since I mail out the Circular thru many servers to many addresses, and this takes time; those ALUMNI that wants to get down to reading as soon as possible can go to the Blog.
God Bless
Ladislao
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KAZIM ABASALI
24 Jan
Hi Ladislao,
I apologise if I did not send out this message to you before.
I have to organise my Old Boys database to include everyone in my emails.
Anyhow, this the message I sent to everyone (with blind copy) with a slight correction.
Hello fellow Past Students and our Clergy,
This email is to inform you that we now have a website to serve us. www.ASAATT.org
The website is in its initial stages of development.
It will take some time for us to incorporate all that we envision for us - the Abbey School Alumni Association to serve us.
So, kindly bear with us as we gather more information and photos to make our website more memorable for all of us.
We also will have to make corrections along the way, so in a nice way let us know when we have erred in our efforts to serve each other.
In addition, we are asking that you register on our site so that we can update our school records.
Please note that the information you send us will not be made available on the website, as we want to continue to protect our identity for security reasons.
The database will only be made available by those who have been keepers of this private information before.
Also, we feel it is imperative that we recognise and honour those who serve us and have served us so tremendously in the past.
From my reading of the blogs, Arthur Knaggs did a circular by mail to the Abbey School Old Boys: Mount Outside, and then the OASIS. And presently the work of Ladislao Kertesz, through his blog http://abbeyschool2005circulars.blogspot.com/, and Don Mitchell who supports Ladislao in publishing our weekly blog and is the behind-the-scenes man in Ladislao's blog project.
I realise there was a website before; http://www.theabbeyschool.com.
Can anyone let me know who was instrumental in this website? Thank you.
With respect to the photos we are collecting for the website.
We will be putting them in different albums: Archives, Reunions and After College with Family.
Lastly, with all this in mind, I thank all of you who have supported this project with their suggestions, and overall best wishes.
It is indeed a very humbling experience for me to serve so many of you with all your years of distinguished experience in so many varied professional fields.
Let me thank you for your involvement, and I look forward to continue serving you with the utmost respect for each one of you.
With loving regards to you....
Kazim Abasali.
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Nigel Boos
Tuesday, October 14, 2008 12:14:19 AM
Dear Kazim,
Thank you for your kind note.
Please understand: I am not in charge of any activities whatever, of the MSB Old Boys Association and I have no authority at all in this matter, Instead, I shall refer you to a few others who have far more knowledge than I, concerning these matters.
If any one of these folks wish to contact you referent your proposal.
As you rightly point out, however, there is already in existence, a website for the MSB Old Boys, and I cannot believe that we should spend any money in financing a new one.
With every good wish.
Nigel Boos
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On 13-Oct-08, at 8:40 PM, KAZIM ABASALI wrote:
Hi Nigel,
I googled something to research and I came upon The Abbey School.
A lot of memories flooded back as I am sure everyone experiences.
I am very much interested in the group and any activities I can support or assist in any possible.
I am a 'certified geek'.
I build websites and do multimedia productions.
I built a website for my college (
I am at present in
I am contemplating going home with the loss of a dear friend today for his funeral.
The
I am also using Facebook to bring together the younger past students of Holy Cross and it is overwhelming with the enthusiasm as well as the interest shown.
We have to embrace the new technology to serve the goals and the good we intend.
I will be very happy to do a website, whatever for this group of ongoing students of MSB.
Anything that assist in our togetherness and love.
This is truly wonderful for all of you who have done so much for this group.
My life's work is shown in my personal website, www.totalwellbeingcenter.org.
I have other websites for myself as well as clients.
So take a look and I am extremely happy to support our old boys as I am already doing for
Blessings to you....
Kazim Abasali
PS. I realised the Mount has its own website already. This website I will love to do for our group is for the old boys of THe Abbey Mt. St Benedict. And when is this gig in
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Nigel Boos
Tuesday, October 14, 2008 7:11:43 AM
Hold on, Kazim.
Are you saying that you ARE an Old Boy of MSB?
This is news to me, and I would really appreciate a little information from you.
Would you please let me know the years during which you attended school at the Mount?
Also, did you graduate from Form 5 there too?
Further, where do you live now, and what do you do for a living?
I regret not knowing about you in advance, but slowly, the Old Boys are creeping out of the woodwork and becoming known to the rest of us.
Of course, too, your offer now takes on a whole new meaning.
I had understood you to say, initially, that you had attended (only) at
I would think that a new website such as you mentioned (we had one previously) would be very welcome, but I'd leave any discussions on the subject in the hands of others far more capable than I: Ladislao Kertesz, Don Mitchell, Joe Berment, Winston Ramsahai and Chris Knowles, to whom I'm copying this email.
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Ladislao Kertesz (Class of 60) has been the proponent of the Old Boys for a number of years, now, and he is the accepted leader in most of the effort which has been undertaken to try to reunite and reconnect the alumni of the
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Don Mitchell Q.C. (Class of 64) lives in
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For my part, I am merely interested in updating and maintaining a respectable Excel-based "database" of as many Old Boys of MSB as I can find, living or dead.
If therefore, you have any information concerning guys from your era or otherwise, including photographs,
I'd appreciate any and all the information you can pass on to me.
With very best wishes, and welcome.
Nigel Boos
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On 14-Oct-08, at 1:18 AM, KAZIM ABASALI wrote:
Hi Nigel,
Thanks for sharing. I appreciate very much your quick response and for your personal thoughts on the matter.
With respect to the website, it is something I do at no cost to anyone, but myself.
I am just happy to do it, just as you are happy to support the group as you do in your own loving way.
It is a beautiful contribution you make.
I am so thankful to have found your contributions.
It gives me great joy to share in all MSB Old Boys journal entries or blog.
This is what I have strived to do in the website I created for
I attended this college for 5 years and then I came to MSB for 2 years.
Also, to the best of my research, the MSB Old Boys do not have a website.
I am not sure of this though, and I humbly stand corrected.
There are sites about the MSB though.
In addition, the website I would love to do for our Old Boys or Alumni would highlight sites or blogs or newsletters like the one you are currently doing or with which you are involved.
In this way, the website will facilitate all what you are doing.
The site I created for
However, I am now learning of what has been going on for some time with respect to your group.
It is only a offer I make to you all.
I am respectful of your concerns and I pray hope I have not step over any boundaries.
Please forgive me if I have. I mean well. My sincerest and best wishes for the group.
Blessings to you all....
Kazim.
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KAZIM ABASALI
Tuesday, October 14, 2008 12:22:44 PM
Hi Nigel,
So nice to communicate with you and get to know you better.
After leaving
I was persuaded to stay for 2 years instead of the 1 year I sought.
It was a very wonderful experience, meeting so many schoolmates not only from all over Trinidad, but the world, even
The 2 years I speak about are between 70 to 72.
My dad who was a director of the then national airlines BWIA, died during this time in my life.
We also owned a family business - Farm and Garden Supplies in Arima,
That is just a little history.
As I shared earlier I experienced something so transforming in my life at the Abbey. And I always remember with fond memories my schooldays as I believe all other schoolmates do about a school they love and cherish.
For most of my adult life I have been a social worker, community worker and humanitarian.
I have done extensive work in this field in Arima, Trinidad, and in
I am open to doing things to help transform and benefit our home country, and our world.
However, I choose to do my goodwill as a humanitarian.
I accept other peoples gifts in life, and the vocations and professions they have chosen.
I am just doing God's will by exercising my faith.
As the scriptures goes, "Faith without works is dead".
So I have to embody my faith and make it alive or living.
The projects I do are a manifestation of God's faith in me.
I believe my faith grew very strong while attending
On a more personal note, my most beloved soulmate died in 2003.
She had been ailing with cancer for many years, sometimes overcoming it only to see it return in her life more than once.
I gave up more or less everything I owned in
I never contemplated suicide, but I did not mind leaving this world just to be with her.
My mom in her eighties is here in NY and everyday she is alive is a gift to me, because she was ailing last year.
I am thankful for life, and am love life dearly.
I choose to do things to honour others and myself.
And I do my projects with this in mind, so I can benefit those around me and beyond.
That is why I made the offer to be of service and support my past schoolmates and colleges.
My skills are graphic arts, web design and multimedia productions.
I also teach computer literacy to others and I am open to helping anyone who wants to learn more with respect to computers.
That does not mean I know it all, for no one person know all there is about computing. It is such a broad field, like life itself.
Sorry for my extensive email to you.
I just wanted to share my story as I have read what others have written about their lives since Abbey days.
I also was so enthusiastic about the work and the journals you and your group have done over these many years that I emailed you with a very light-headed attitude speaking of my geek status and not paying proper respect to you and the group.
I humbly apologise to you all.
I am so thankful for all the work you all have done these many years.
It has brought so many of us together.
I have thought of the website for Abbey some time ago and after seeing the Pax website before, I was interested in why the MSB Old BOys Association was not featured or was there one in existence.
It was only yesterday that in researching for another project your blog turned up and I became so thrilled.
I have emiled 2 Glens. Glen Evelyn has already emailed me 2 or 3 times since yesterday and ask me to make sure and email you too with what I had to share and offer.
He has also emiled a database with some names and contact info.
From my experience with the other Alumni website I do for college students of
It is with this beautiful purpose I believe we serve as we do.
Again, I am so happy and blessed to get to know you and hope to work together for the benefit of others who walk this journey of life with us from
Blessings to you and the group and your families....
Kazim Abasali 70-72
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Glen Mckoy
Wednesday, October 15, 2008 5:22:12 PM
Hello Kazim,
I don't really know you, however I would like to get some more information, when did you attend etc. so we can move on from there, I thank you for showing your support, are you in contact with Nigel or Ladislao ??
It is also good for Nigel Boos to have you on the list, are you on the list??
Best regards
Glen McKoy.
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So now you have all the exchanges regarding the visit.
That is for now, till the next one
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56KA0016SCOUTS, Three unknowns of the1956 era.
08KA2035KABGRP, Group following Fr. Benedict's funeral
08KA2041KABGRP, Group following Fr. Benedict's funeral
08UN0384ESMERALDAGRP, Group photo at the docks.
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