4 minute read
Letters from Old Boys
Staff OBITUARIES
CUDE a MENTOR
Continued from previous page always count on his friendship and loyalty. Dave was in my wedding party and became my daughter’s godfather.
After retirement, Dave returned to Selwyn House to help coach Bantam hockey for a season. He and I took the team to the finals.
He was an influence on all of us.—the quintessential team player and a teacher’s teacher. He set the standard. When you say “veritas,” he was an embodiment of that ideal. – Mike Maurovich, SHSAthletic Director
Firstly, David was a great friend. He took friendship seriously and enjoyed being one. Actions for him always were above words. To watch him teach was a significant learning experience for me. He did experiential education before it became a fad. He knew what kids needed to learn and saw to it that they would. He told them what they needed to hear even if they might not like what that was. The point of the lesson was always clear and he ensured that students understood. He was always prepared and organized, like a master craftsman, he had his tools ready to go, and each one accomplished a specific task. When I first started at Selwyn House, I co-coached Under-13 soccer with Dave. He set the example for me on how to be a pro. We were on the same page from the get-go, and he always had my back. One of my biggest joys was to watch Dave hold court at CAIS tournaments and at coaches’ dinners. He spun a tale with eloquence, much description, and humour that was infectious to all. David came of age in a generation that valued humility, and tough work and occasionally lamented the new parenting styles obsessed with self-esteem and self-promotion. My favorite times came on the occasional Sundays when he came down to Sutton and we would have lunch, just the two of us. Those converstions I treasure to this day. He went quietly and would not have it any other way—no fuss no muss.
He was a big mentor for me. – Alfie Paoletti, coach and phys-ed teacher ■
LETTERS from Old Boys
Igraduated from SHS in 1973, and attended Christ’s College Cambridge in 1974, graduating in 1977. I was very interested in your article on Bishop Selwyn. As an SHS student, I was unaware of the connection between Cambridge and Selwyn House. No one had mentioned it to me, perhaps because I started at SHS in Grade 8.
Later, as a Cambridge undergraduate, I did not even realize there was a Selwyn College. I know this must seem obtuse, but in my defence there are many colleges, and Selwyn is rather off on its own and quite a walk from most of the others.
One day in the mid 1970’s while I was at Cambridge, during an unaccustomed pilgrimage to the University Library, I stumbled upon Selwyn College. “Selwyn” is an unusual name, so I wondered at the time if there were any connection between the college and the school. I popped in for a walk around Selwyn College’s first court—it was very attractive with a large lawn fronted by tall handsome brick buildings. I remember wondering if Lucas had trod that same path.
Now you have conclusively cleared up that ambiguity for me, although I learned in my thirties that SHS was named for Selwyn College, Cambridge. The Brits commonly adopt “House” and/or “School” as a diminutive when referring to a an institution preparatory for a college or university. So it does not surprise me that Lucas used these words to differentiate his school from his college.
Cambridge colleges seem odd to North Americans accustomed to a more centralized university structure. The colleges are not just residences. They have a strong culture and great respect for their individual histories. Much of a student’s teaching is supervised by a college’s dons, and colleges have their own libraries, bars, dining rooms, sports teams, alumni events, sports grounds, endowments, rowing buildings, gardens, hierarchies, management, Latin graces, gowns, academic and sports prizes, etc. Yet, colleges are also part of the university, and each college student is necessarily a university student, and he/she must sit the university exams and (hopefully) attend university lectures.
The colleges are rivals, both academically and in sports, and only overcome their individual chauvinism when confronted by Oxford, the eternal enemy!
The older colleges are typically snobbish about their younger confreres, and so Selwyn College would not have been very fashionable when Lucas attended. The education would have been the same, but with fewer upper-class and more middle-class students. Perhaps a good thing! Cecil Hawkins ’73
