Circular No 597 Extra

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

Caracas, 14 April 2013 No. 597 Extra

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Friends,

So we do not lose the ideas on FACEBOOK, here is PART 2.

My personal input is as follows:

As you have read in the first part, there seems to be confusion as to the FACEBOOK page.

I wrote some time ago about my personal problem with FACEBOOK,

I have a page that was setup by my sons to upload some photos from old albums

I never look my messages because there are so many participants that I do not know.

But why are they on my page?? I have not invited them or gave them access,

Maybe the authors of my page did give them access, so I have no control on the amount of information, mostly undesired.

Why can´t we have a FACEBOOK page where there is only a photo of the old boy in his class group?? Maybe some of you remember their graduation year book?

Next to the photo or by clicking the photo, you can go to the individual’s page where he can do as please, as to access etc.

Just make it simple.

This way the FACEBOOK page remains simple, and could be set up by graduation year and or would have graduated year, so as to keep the class groups together.

In case that the individual changed class group because he was smart or otherwise, then we could let him choose his class group in case he left early, otherwise he stays in the graduating class.

This FACEBOOK page could avoid the shortcomings of having to comb thru hundreds of meaningless messages that the program includes because it thinks that it is important for the page.

Think of it, 1500 members and if each just writes one message a year, that would be 5 messages every day. That is without possible replies to the comments.

This would make the story simple for us guys, like Don and me. Maybe others have this same dilemma.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------.

From: Nigel Boos [mailto:nigelboos@eagles-wings.ca]

Sent: 22 August 2012 11:15

To: Subject: New Members

Gentlemen,

I believe that the time has come to decide on a matter that seems critical to me, for the very life of our little organization, the Abbey School Association. The issue is this -who should be considered a Member of the organization?

All Associations have a membership, and a policy, written or unwritten, as to what rules should govern inclusion in the group. However, to this point, the ASAA has been guided by one simple policy, even though it has been so far, unwritten:

"Membership" has been, so far, automatically been given to ALL past students of the Abbey School, whether or not they had spent 1 year or 9 at the school. Because of our shared, common experience, we felt that we understood the 'personality' of the school on the hill, the greatness of the opportunity afforded us by the sacrifice of our parents, the strangeness of our coming together from various parts of the world - B.G., Venezuela, St. Lucia, Surinam, Colombia, Hungary via Venezuela, Poland via Venezuela, USA, England, and so on (if I've forgotten anyone or any country represented, I apologize - this is not being done through malice, but if anything, through my personal ignorance of other places represented), the shared life as a scout of the 2nd MSB Scout Troop, the struggles at Sports Day, victories at the swimming pool, weekly downhill treks to our playing fields (and back again), Saturday movie nights, common friendships, hardships endured, and so on and so on.

"Membership" has also been automatically given to any and all the Benedictine Monks - Brothers and Priests - seminarians, teachers - male and female, groundskeepers, coaches, bus drivers, and in fact with anyone we knew who had been associated with MSB.

We have grown slowly, over the past 10 years, through the inspired leadership of our friend, Ladislao Kertesz in Venezuela, and we now have records of 1300+ ex-students of the Abbey School, many of whom have gone to glory, some of whom are sick and feeble, some still alive, well and kicking, and we have enjoyed some memorable days and evenings together through our occasional reunions.

These are good memories. These common experiences have helped to bring us together, to form an unique identity, to allow us to share our stories, out complaints, our ideas, etc.

But we are getting older! And with each OB who passes away, we lose a little piece of history, a part f the whole. Within 40 years, we 'ent goin' to be around any more. We shall all be pushing up daisies!!

And what then? The entire memory bank of our interesting past will float away on the breeze and people will wonder and speak in awe as the crumbling buildings on the hill evoke tales of haunted rooms, ghosts and goblins, (or soucouyants and douens).

Now, Fr. Imamshah, one of our members, has taken an unprecedented step, and has invited some of his acquaintances to join the ASAA, and he is stepping out to make changes to our membership "requirements" which have not previously been considered, far less approved. Indeed, there has been talk, but talk only, about including our wives, spouses and children as members of our group, and indeed, there have been reunions, both in Trinidad as well as in Canada, when our better halves and even some of our kids have been welcomed. Would that there had been many more!

As an organization, though, we need, I suggest, to formalize some sort of policy about membership, so that things do not get out of hand altogether. And here's my take on it, for what it's worth. . . . .

I welcome Fr. Harold's initiative.

The ASAA needs new blood, new ideas and the Monastery needs an infusion of vocations. There are wonderful people in our islands of Trinidad and Tobago who would enjoy being part of a well-run organization and who would be willing to contribute to its growth. The ASAA can be used as a focal point to introduce an expanded membership to life at Mt. St. Benedict, children can get an education into the life of a Benedictine monastic community, seminars can be organized at the old school, with accommodations for weekend sleeping arrangements, spiritual retreats can be planned, cricket and football games can be arranged among the kids, picnics at the Mount can become common-place, and perhaps the good Lord can use the ASAA as a force for the good and the betterment of life in Trinidad and Tobago. Perhaps, out of this, a renewed interest in the use of the old school buildings as a regular boarding and day-school can slowly emerge. Certainly, as Andres Freytez has already pointed out, there is tremendous interest in Venezuela to send their sons to Trinidad to learn English and to experience our culture. Out of this melee of new ideas, new interest, more youngsters visiting the Mount, yes, out of this wonderful new blood, perhaps a few will accept and joyfully accept a call to a vocation in the service of God and help to bring about a change in the spiritual life of our people. Only God knows where this can lead . . . .

I therefore propose that:

1. Any Member of the ASAA should have the right to propose anyone else, anywhere else (in TT, in Venezuela, in Australia, in the USA or Canada, etc.) as a member of our Association.

2. Approval of new members should be the prerogative of the ASAA directors, who should encourage and welcome them. Appropriate registration forms and normal management controls should be established and maintained, to keep track of this expected flood of members.

I should point out, at the same time, that I do not propose to try to keep track of all new members in an expanded database. This would have to be responsibility of the ASAA Management, and I shall rather, merely keep track of the Old Boys of the Abbey School - those who attended the school as students.

Finally, in case anyone is wondering why the above names have been selected as recipients of this message - it's simply that you are the folks who have been trying, from time to time, to keep in touch with us via emails, attendance at reunions, and so on. If I have forgotten anyone, believe me, it isn't intentional. The old brain is shutting down, perhaps.

I should appreciate inputs from everyone, please.

Nigel

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------.

Sent: Wednesday, August 22, 2012 1:32 PM

Subject: Re: New Members

I believe we have come to an inevitable junction in our association. The crossroads of expansion or exclusion. However, in order not to lose our unique identity, we may need to show some form of recourse to the original membership so that we don't walk into a meeting someday and not know anyone from the original group. The need for a possible 2 member (original members) referral and introduction may be an idea. Not so much to be a watchdog but to foster better continuity and interaction in the association. We also need to positively and wholly identify the original membership in concrete terms and to add the other components afterwards. I again suggest the idea of a 'Sermon On The Mount' ASAA Plaque as per my previous emails. In finishing, I support the ideas presented by Nigel Boos, Joseph Berment and the Trinidad Contingent. We must also remember that the primary members of the ASAA in order of rank are:

1) Past Students of Abbey School (Including their spouses & Children)

2) Past Affiliated Clergy of Abbey School

3) Past Teachers

4) Past Support Staff Affiliated to Abbey School

5) Other Affiliated Scouts, Swimmers, Musicians, Etc...

6) New Members Clearly Affiliated to any of the above groups and 2 original members have referred them and they should be given a short history of Abbey School to review...

These are my feelings on the above subject matter...Thanks,Hudson McKoy.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------.

FROM: Gmail Jan

Monday, August 27, 2012 1:59 PM

Dear guys,

Looks to me a good idea.

I am not a Facebook user, you can put me with Don's on that.

Is it possible we can look at the Facebook MSB-page without having to subscribe to Facebook?

Jan Koenraadt

MSB '63-'67

----- Original Message -------------------------------------------------------.---

From: Nigel Boos

To: Attila GYURIS

Sent: Thursday, August 23, 2012 4:35 AM

Subject: New Members

This makes sense to me, Attila. It makes a clear distinction between the Old Boys and all others, who should not find in this distinction any cause for complaint whatsoever. Both memberships could expect to be included in whatever functions we might decide to hold from time to time.

I would also ask that any new OB who signs up on Facebook could be asked to let me have his email address, so that I can update the database for us all.

Might I also, in passing, suggest that insofar as it is possible, we should all be using the "bcc" function whenever we are sending out an email to many recipients. I understand that, if only one (1) of the recipients of the email has a virus on his computer, that virus will also be able to "see" the other email addresses of anyone included on the email, because it is visible, and the virus can use that information to spread itself to other computers.

Further, I am informed that we could be opening ourselves to having our addresses exploited for spam or phishing or other fraudulent practices.

A word to the wise . . . .

Nigel

-------------------------------------------------------------------------.

On 2012-08-22, at 10:17 PM, Attila GYURIS wrote:

How about just having TWO types of memberships to make it simple?

1) "Full membership" to only the Old Boys who have attended the School as students.

2) Everybody else is an "Associate member".

Attila Gyuris

(Make it simple and it sticks, editor)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------.

Ladislao Kertesz at kertesz11@yahoo.com,

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Photos:

261937LKFB2009,

09LK0100EDIMSB, Teacher´s House

61IF0027MFE, Matias Fedak

10LK0163LKE, Ladislao Kertesz in Madrid.