Saltus Grammar School - Yearbook (Hamilton, Bermuda)

Page 13 text:

11 F. B. R. Frank Barrier Rogers joined the Staff of the Sakus Gram- mar School in the Xmas Term of 1936, as a result of a personal interview in England with the Headmaster. He took up resi- dence in what was then the Masters ' Lodge and at once made his presence felt amongst his colleagues by his cheerful nature and by his feats of derring-do — it is reputed that he once, for a wager, rode a bicycle from the back of the Lodge all the way ilown to Hamilton without touching the handlebars— an under- taking not as easy as it may sound when the nature of the ter- rain to be covered at the school end is considered. Again in the 1947 hurricane the roof of the old Boarding School building was only saved from destruction through the energies of F.B.R., two boys and an axe, at the height of the storm when a falling tree threatened its safety. Buck , as we have all affectionately called him (a nickname shows character in a school), has always been a real schoolmaster: his every waking thought and act has been on behalf of the school and he has lavishly spent what to others would be spare time upon tutoring those of his Latin pupils who have found that admittedly difficult subject more than usually hard. A man of strong views bluntly and quite frequently expressed, his opinions have, for all that, never been selfish but always, as it were, in favour of the interests of his pupils. At all times ready to protect the position of his House or his Form, it was, nevertheless, as a Duty-master that he really excelled and more than a decade of Saltus boys will carry with them always memories of his voice (both the loud and the soft!) encouraging them in the way in which beyond doubt they should go. In the days of the Saltus Boarding School, too, his worth was apparent and the out-of-school pastimes of the Boarders, sailing, swimming and so on, owed much to his never-flagging interest and availability. For the last nine years he has organised the House Boxing Competition with such success that Admiral Sir Irvine Glennie, R.N., and Admiral Braisted, U.S.N., who attended the com- petition in 1946, agreed together afterwards that it was the best schoolboy boxing that they had seen. It has become, perhaps, the most popular of all the school functions. His subject , Latin, perhaps the hardest of all in a school not actually orientated towards Common Entrance, he has tackled with determination and shown clearly that he believed in its essen- tial as well as its scholastic value: a list of Bermuda and Rhodes Scholars of the last 12 years bears testimony to what they owe him.

Page 12 text:

10 aiul inU nds Lo proceed lo the Hiiiicd Stales of America in the hope thai he will lind iliere tlie field of endeavour in which he feels he can best use his talents. To Mr. Booker the 1 rustees tender their grateful thanks for the splendid work which he has accomplished in the interests of the Saltus Grammar School, and their appreciation of the services which he has rendered if) this Island Colony, whose interests he has id( n- tifitd with his own while it has been his home. With him will go the best wishes of the School and its affiliates and of a host of friends which he has made during the years that he has been among us. Carol Booker School years are impressionable years and the process of time will show what things are most likely to survive in the storehouse of memory. To the grief of our instructors, we fear, it is not the liard facts of the textbook which feave the most lasting impression, rather it is the impact of personality. To the many generations of Saltus boys who have come and gone during the past fifteen years the Headmaster ' s wife has meant a real, live person, not merely one who has been content to w ork behind the scenes, but a dynamic individual who has entered into the arena of school life. Studies and sports alike have been stimulated by her presence, in the organ- ization of school functions, such as Founder ' s Day, she has worked indefatigably, and all will remember the charm with which she has presided as hostess on the innumerable occasions where a woman ' s presiding genius is indispensable. There are those, too, chiefly among senior boys, who have had the privilege to be entertained at the Headmaster ' s House, there to make a closer contact with the sympathetic charm of the Headmaster ' s wife. To the staff, who perhaps more readily discern the insistent demands upon her time and patience, she has been a friend and helper. Some will remember the tremendous energy, enthusiasm and patience which she gave to the organisation of the Boarding School, functioning with such success until the vicissitudes of war- time led to its dissolution. All have enjoyed her hospitality, her friendly advice and help. To those cut off from the homeland by three thousand miles of ocean, to those particularly, her kindly sympathy and practical help in finding them a home and in find- ing them friends has meant a great deal, the difference between dis- comfort and happiness. Has she found a place in our hearts and memory? I think so.

Page 14 text:

12 In a school il a man genuinely has character his jjlace can never really be filled . Frank Rogers, already a lieqiienl topic of con- versation amongst Old Boys ol his time, will soon become part ol the Saltus Grammar School legend. He will be very much missed: our very best wishes go with him. R.E.E.B Old Boys News At the Annual General Meeting ol the Saltus Old Boys ' Association, held early in the year, the following officers were elected: President T. W. P. Vesey Vice President 1. S. Outerbridge Secretary-Treasurer Duncan A. Gosling Assistant Secretary Colin Young COMMITTEE J. U. Christensen, LI. Vorley, LI. Gibbons, Jr., Ralph Patterson, H. A. Leseur. Among other business discussed at the meeting, Old Boys will be interested to know that a set of plans for the proposed Gymnasium was offered for preliminary consideration. Since the first estimate was made, however, the costs of building have risen to such an extent that the original fund of £5,000 is now less than a third of the estimated cost. The Annual Celebration of Founder ' s Day took place last year on June 19th. In the morning there was a Commemoration Service in Hall, at which Dr. W. E. Talbot was the Orator. After the ser- vice the Headmaster, Staff, Prefects and the Senior School proceeded to St. John ' s Churchyard, where a wreath was laid on the tomb of the founder, Samuel Saltus. After luncheon the usual Cricket Matches took place against Old Boys ' teams and the School celebrations closed with the Cadet Band Beating the Retreat on the Field. In the evening the Saltus Old Boys ' Association Dinner was held in the New Windsor Hotel, at which function Mr. N. H. P. Vesey was the chief speaker. Marriages: Ernest Young to Dorothy Andison in Bermuda. John Adams to Mary Ellen Noonan in the United States. H. R. Evans to Dorothy Ann Outerbridge in Bermuda. J. W. Kempe Jr., to Mary Elizabeth Reid in Canada. R. H. Mullin to Phyllis Ann Smith in Bermuda. Ormond C. Zuill to Katharine Wainwright Church in the United States. T. J. Wadson to Judith Cecilia Moore.