Circular No 983

 

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

Caracas, 5 of September 2020 No. 983

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Dear Friends,

Here I am including some old emails as there is no new emails from you, oldboys.

Help the Circular reach issue 1000.

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idmitch@anguillanet.com

Tue, 1 Sep, 08:56 (11 days ago)                 

Hi, Tim,

Good to hear from you, and we hope the fires are leaving you alone.

We are good here in Anguilla. No Covid-19 cases since March, when we had three and they are all recovered. We are repatriating to Anguilla the last of our overseas students and medical patients. The deadline for that activity is 31 October. We are not looking forward to the coming Autumn, when cases internationally are sure to surge. 

Maggie and I have never had a flu vaccine in our lives, but plan on having one this year just to reduce risk. The optimum time for receiving the jab in the northern hemisphere is September or October, so we have reached out to our doctor, who tells us he will let us know as soon as he receives his stock. 

Keep well,

Don

cc:  Ladislao and George for change of address

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From: Tim Mew MHC / APS <mewhealthcare@bigpond.com>

Sent: Monday, 31 August 2020 19:45

Hi Don,

As the Aussies would say “No Worries”, no doubt you have enough on your plate.

Tim.

PS - please use timgailmew@gmail.com from now on.

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And now, some old emails.

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2725, 66th Terrace South

St. Petersburg, Fla. 33712

April 27, 2005

My Dear Ladislao

Greetings in Jesus’ Name and thanks a million for all the wonderful informational work that your circular is doing and providing for all of us.

The “mount” remains and unforgettable institution in the lives of all of us who were fortunate to be part of its history.

These few notes, handwritten instead of being typed in a computer convey a sense of brevity in order to send this off to you quickly.

So, I do not intend to be lengthy here.

But I want to embrace this opportunity to enclose the attached little donation to assist you in your wonderful work.

It is my hope that it would emphasize several things; such as how much I appreciate your Circulars, also my tardiness or inability to contribute many articles.

I hope later on to do better in this regards), and my thanks for providing me with at least the e-mail of so many “old boys” whom I intend to write when more time allows me to do so.

I have been in close touch with Doctor David Bratt and his family in Trinidad.

I also had the opportunity to meet with Mervyn Assam as well as Fr. Benedict and Brother Rupert.

I am also in the process of purchasing a house in Trinidad, where, God willing I hope to spend time.

Hoping to split my time between the U.S. and Trinidad.

I am also in close touch with Abbot John Pereira of the Mount.

So busy as I am, I have not been completely out of the “loop”.

That’s all for now, Ladislao.  I ask our dear Lord to bless you and your family abundantly.

Your Lionel

(Formerly Brother Vincent)

Now: Deacon Lionel V. Robert

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Reply-To: lionel.roberts@pobox.com

Date: 7 May 03:31 (PDT)

Ladislao,

I was delighted to receive your communication and pictures so I sat down and drafted such a long reply to you - somehow I seem to have lost it , did you by chance receive it?

Please let me know, but, yes, you have found me, Lionel, should you get this, please let us keep in touch and reply as soon as possible –

Warmest regards –

Lionel Roberts

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Reply-To:lionel.roberts@pobox.com

Date: 7 May 03:15 (PDT)

My dear Ladislao,

--My God what a surprise!

Well yes you have found the Lionel Roberts.

I am so happy to hear from you, and hopefully by this means I could be in contact with so many of my former students and precious comrades.

It seems that you have put together a newsletter which I would be most eager to receive.

I have been hungry for news of as many of you as possible and now thanks to you this might be possible.

I shall not be long in this communication, as I regard it as reintroduction to a whole generation of friends and former students which almost tragically was almost passing by.

Suffice it to say that I visited the Mount in early January, and had lunch with the new Abbot and remaining monks.

My wife Merlene was with me and what a thrill it was to us.

Thoughts and fond memories came cascading back to me of those days of yore.

On that occasion I met with Brother Rupert who gave me Isaias Farcheg´s address.

I promptly wrote him, but to date have not been graced with a reply.

I hope that I would more successful with!.

In my next communication with you I hope to provide you with more information about me and my family.

God has been good to me and my family.

You will be happy to know that I remain within the bosom of the church; two years ago I celebrated my Silver Anniversary Of my Ordination as a Catholic Deacon.

But more of anon.

Ladislao how beautiful it is to hear from you please reply promptly.

God bless you and your family my friend.

NB: I will be sending you a picture of myself and my wife soon.

Love

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There follows an old email from a great guy.

Unfortunately!!! he retired from work in happy Germany to contagious laziness of Spain.

I hope to hear from him someday again from the sunny Mediterranean shores.

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From: CJakobszen@aol.com

Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2002 14:08:01 EST

Hello Ladislao,

First of all, thanks a lot for having sent me various "Mount" circulars.

I’ve enjoyed reading every one of them and now I would like to participate more actively in the MSB circular mailing.

If you wish I can also send you in the near future a short rundown of my activities since I left Mount (1957) and since I left Caracas (1975).

I have had, of course, contact to various Mount boys during all these years, and as I had been flying over regularly to Caracas till the year 2000 (when my mother died).

I've had the luck to be able to meet personally many of my old and closest friends as Urbano de Fedak, Azier Atela , Isaias Farcheg, Ricardo Figuera, Roberto Lipavsky, Pedro Castro etc.

Now that I haven't been travelling to Venezuela for a couple of years this new communication method is in a way an excellent substitute to keep in touch with the old gang.

Besides that, now I'll have more time available for personal pleasures of this kind, first of all because my children have now become independent; my daughter Christine, 25 got married in June and my oldest son Gabor, 31 has set up his own company in Budapest and my youngest son Peter, 29 graduated from the University of Heidelberg.

Secondly, I'll be retiring at the end of May 2003 and right after we'll be moving to Spain, (next to Valencia) where we had bought an apartment some years ago.

I am closely following with anxiety the daily happenings of Venezuela and am very worried about what the future will bring.

Over here it's no cake walk either but nothing comparable to what you're having over there.

I would like to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year and please count on me for the future.

If you have any kind of "collective e-mail address list" of the Mount boys I'll be much obliged if you send it to me.

Un abrazo

Csaba

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From: CJakobszen@aol.com

Date: Fri, 6 Jun 2003 15:00:11 EDT

Hi Ladislao,

First of all, thanks a million for your constant and substantial flow of good calibre "MSB Information"

I appreciated it a lot and sorry that up to now I didn't have time to contribute to it.

As far as that goes, on one of the lists you have "Joel Blandin" RIP ???

Unfortunately, I can confirm that.

Joel Blandin died in Poitier, France where he had been for a long time export manager of the chamber of commerce; at that time, I had been in close contact with him.

As far as I'm concerned, I'll be going off-line as far as this e-mail is concerned on Tuesday, June 10, as we're moving for good to Spain.

As far as I get an e-mail connection, I'll let you know.

Cheerio till then

Csaba

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From: "Csaba Jakobszen" <csabajakobszen@yahoo.es>

Date: 10 Nov 05:27 (PST)

Subject: online again!

Hello Ladislao,

At last I'm online again!

As I had let you know some months ago it had been our intention to move to Spain for good and we'd bought an apartment in the vicinity of Valencia more than 6 years ago.

Now, thank God, we are finally here and enjoying fully the benefits of this subtropical climate which cannot be compared to the weather of central Europe.

I am actually in a kind of a "pre-retirement" stage and will retire officially in May 2004 when I'll be 65 years old.

Right now, my wife and I are pretty busy with all the changes we want to realise in the apartment, but in a month or two we should have most of these things done and then I’ll have more time to engage in more frequent communication with you and the "Mount boys".

As far as personal achievements go, I can brag about the fact that in August I've also become grandfather as my daughter Christine bore a son!

Postal address:

Apartado de Correos Nº 122

E-46220 Picassent (Valencia)

Phone: +34 96 117 5109

Mobile +34 627898511 or +34 627024049

I’ll be very grateful if you start sending me again all the circulars which you do so well and with which you contribute so much to help so many of us to re-establish contact with so many dear old friends.

Un abrazo

Csaba

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From: Csaba Jakobszen <csabajakobszen@yahoo.es>

Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2003 11:00 AM

Dear Ladislao,

I would like to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year in spite of all the adversities you are having locally at the time.

Thank you for your beautiful Christmas Card with music and all; I could open it without any problem.

Please keep up the good work with the Mount Boys' Circular which you are doing so well.

I'm sure that it has helped to re-establish many old friendships among the old MSB bunch.

As you published my message of late, Ian Cope, of whom I hadn't even heard since 1957, saw my address and we started corresponding: this is just great.

I'll also write Maroth de Marothy whose e-mail address I found in your Circular.

Un abrazo muy fuerte,

Csaba 

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From: Csaba Jakobszen <csabajakobszen@yahoo.es>

Sent: Friday, January 9, 2004 8:58 AM

Hello Ladislao,

Sorry for the delay to answer you regarding this picture; I'm flying to Germany today to attend the baptism of my grandson.

As soon as I'm back (coming Wednesday) I'll send you the names (of the ones I know) appearing on the picture.

I know the names of most of the boarders.

As far as other pictures go, I have one of the Class of 1956.

I’ll get it scanned and I’ll send it to you in the coming weeks.

Wish you and your family a happy New Year and good health.

Un abrazo

Csaba

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First of all, I wish to let you know that at long last I am online again.

We moved in June from Germany to Spain and since then we are fully enjoying this mild Mediterranean climate.

The move was naturally no cakewalk and we are still in the process of renewal, i.e. of adapting our apartment to our requirements.

This is no easy task here as you have to be chasing the electricians, the plumbers, etc etc and beg them to do something for you.

The reason for this is that at the time there is a construction-boom in Spain as they have never had before.

They are raising over 800.000 houses and apartments per year and the prices are skyrocketing (Thank God, we bought our apartment 7 years ago as we could hardly afford to buy something at the actual price level.)

Anyway, in a couple of weeks we should be finished with all this and then we can hopefully start to relax and to plan the trips we wish to undertake.

(Right now we couldn't undertake any trips anyway, as I am not officially retired as yet but am classified as unemployed in Germany until May 2004 when I'll be 65 years old and therefore I should be permanently in Germany.)

Next year, most probably in the late summer or in autumn we would like to make a big calibre USA - Canada trip to visit Nova Scotia, where I haven't been since I left Saint Mary's University in 1963, then Windsor (Ontario) and Detroit area where my cousins live and then most probably New York, North Carolina (to visit David Ames), Cleveland (Hungarian friends) and Houston (to visit Bill Groeschel whom you surely remember from PLC and with whom I've always been in touch.

He also visited us with his family in Germany) AND naturally I would also like to see you after all these years.

Please send me your phone numbers (home and office) as with the move to Spain a couple of things have been misplaced and I can't find the e-mail in which you'd sent them.

I hope you'll keep sending me all the corny and not corny jokes; I really enjoyed some of them very much and passed them on to other friends.

Un abrazo fuerte to you and your loved ones

Csaba 

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EDITED by Ladislao Kertesz,  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:

58RB0003b8, scouts

14LK4199FBISE, Ian Seuradge

18LK6873FBBLE, Brian Lewis

63LK9501FBAPL, Aered Plimmer