Ashbury College - Ashburian Yearbook (Ottawa, Ontario Canada)

Page 9 text:

THE ASHBURIAN We have come to the end of an era, an era spent under the watchful eye of Alr. Perry, the headmastcr of Ashbury College. l lc was thc guide and inspiration in the religious, educational and athletic phases uf a schoolboy's life at Ashbury. As we, looking at thc cadet corps motto - Acer Acerporin - realize. that it was indeed Nlr. Perry who carried out its full meaning. Acer acerpori can be translated as - as the twig bends so grows the tree. l le used his green thumb talent to cultivate in the boys an appreciation of honesty and truth, and endeavoured to make them correct and upstanding gentlemen that would be exponents of honour, courage and grace. Mr. Perry is a man whose background is deeply rooted in the arts and humanities. XYhen he first came to the school, sixteen years ago, the arts and humanities were of predominant importance in education. Since then however, science and technology have been accentuated, and Nlr. Perry has greatly helped the school to progress and expand in these fields. At the same time a student at Ashbury is given a solid grounding in the arts, an important essential even in science. We IHUSI also take note of the great steps that Alr. Perry has taken to make the school an enjoyable place in which to live and learn. During his long association with Ashbury, the physics and chemistry laboratories have been built and constantly renovated to provide the student with the equipment to learn about the world he lives in. Nlr. Perry has con- scientiously laboured to instill the school with the spirit of a community where boys work and live together. He has taught the students of Ashbury the qualities of altruism and self-discipline. He has trained them to face the Brave New XVorld. However there is in the lives of all great men, a point of time when the torch is handed to others, when a man may simply say: I have given of my best and it is now the turn of another generation to assume my burden . Such a moment is a moment of great honour, a moment of infinite sadness and a moment for profound gratitude. Such a moment was met by Thomas ei Becker with a display of fortitude that has illu- minated history, although his Constitutions of Clarendon were no more significant to his purpose than were Alr. Perry's hierarchical difficulties to his. We honour Mr. Perry for the courage and conviction with which he pursued his course, we mix our sadness with his in human acknowledgement of a deep personal relationship, and we offer him our abiding gratitude for his deep understanding and unfailing compassion for the problems of a schoolboy.

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5 THE ASHBURIAN EDITORIALS The inevitability of change is apparent to everyone so it comes as no great surprise to some, that many changes are taking place at Ashbury before the next School Year. This year the changes have been perhaps a little more far-reaching than ordinarily, but we are hopeful that they will prove to be benehcial and keep Ashbury on the move. The departure of a Headmaster and those who have served their School for an extensive period unquestionably triggers off a series of changes. Things will never be quite the samev, they say. This of course is true, but the desire to get away from the sameness and the expectation that everytding will be better is the argument for the change. May it be so! To all those associated with Ashbury during the past 16 years- Students, Staff, Old Boys, Parents, Friends and Governors may I say that the past 16 years, even though there have been lesser moments, have been generally happy and exciting. This has been an experience that I shall always treasure. Thank you for your many kindnesses and friend- ship. R.H.P.

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5' THE ASHBURIAN The heartbeat of a Boarding School is a delicate function which cannot be understood by those who are not intimately familiar with the daily routine, the unexpected problems, the Worries of the students, the contacts with parents and visitors. A School cannot be properly directed from outside by those whose information arises from second-hand in- formation. There must be a sympathetic understanding of every aspect of School life, seen through eyes which have an intelligent appreciation of how a boy thinks and acts, and by those who are interested in how they study, worship and play their games. Adults cannot make a boy think and act like an adult before the boy has been guided and lived through the boy stage. All of us, who have spent many of the best years of our lives at Ash- bury earnestly hope that the future policy of those who offer direction from outside will be one of understanding, sound judgment and an appreciation of the infinite number of problems that arise in the daily life of the School.