Louis Patrick Arnold was born in Tobago in 1939. He sat and passed the Government Exhibition exam to gain entry to St. Mary’s College which he attended from 1952 to 1957. He had started playing the steelpan from a young age and was instrumental in the formation of the Our Boys steelband in Tobago in 1955, and although he was the youngest pannist, he was made captain. While at school in Trinidad, he played with Casablanca and he would visit the Invaders panyard where he observed Ellie Mannette and Emmanuel Riley and developed his pan tuning skills. In 1962 and 1963, Our Boys was a finalist in the National Music Festival, while Arnold himself was a finalist in the Pan Soloist competitions on three occasions.

Patrick Arnold migrated to the United States in 1965 to attend Manhattan College and later studied at the University of Toronto, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in 1972. Even while pursuing tertiary education, Arnold continued to play the steelpan and make important connections for steelband performances overseas. His efforts led to Our Boys touring Africa, the United States and Canada.

Returning to Trinidad and Tobago, Patrick Arnold deepened his involvement in the steelband movement, becoming the Tobago regional representative of Pan Trinbago, the non-governmental organisation (NGO) which represents steelbands and pannists. He was also appointed a Government senator in the Second Republican Parliament from 1981 to 1986.

In 1996, he was elected President of Pan Trinbago. The leadership skills he had demonstrated as a teenager and young adult came to the fore during his term as President. The steelband movement in Trinidad and Tobago is notoriously fractious and Pan Trinbago has the task of advocating for the movement with the Government. During Arnold’s term as President significant strides were made. Pan Trinbago became more business-oriented. It moved to institutionalize pan in schools, thus creating a conduit for young players into the adult steelbands, many of which were no longer community-based. Opportunities were created for activities in which pannists could perform outside the annual Panorama competition which is linked with Carnival. The Panorama competition itself was reorganized by instituting three categories — Large, Medium and Small— thus expanding access and opportunities for more tuners, arrangers and pannists. Prize money for the Panorama competition was increased, and pannists were able to get paid for their performances. The new policy limiting the number of steelbands that an arranger could work for, allowed newer arrangers to emerge into national prominence. Arnold’s tenure as President of Pan Trinbago ended in 2009.

In 2011, he was appointed chairman of the National Carnival Commission and was the recipient of the Chaconia Medal (Gold) for his contributions to the steelband movement. Patrick Arnold died in May 2023.

Samuel Frank Ghouralal was born in Guapo, South Trinidad on 27th February 1925. He attended Naparima College in San Fernando before attending St. Mary’s College. He later attended McGill University in Canada, graduating as a medical doctor in 1949. He chose Neurosurgery as his specialization and was certified in the state of New York, USA in 1956.

Encouraged by former classmates Drs. Carl Lee and Winston Mahabir, Dr. Ghouralal returned to Trinidad to practise, even though there was initially no hospital post for him. According to one source, a relative of the Minister of Health suffered a neck fracture and partial paralysis. He was operated on by Dr. Ghouralal and recovered. Thereafter, a part-time post in Neurosurgery was created for him at both the Port of Spain and San Fernando General Hospitals. This became a full-time post when Winston Mahabir became Minister of Health.

In the 1950s and 1960s, neurosurgical practice was, by today’s standards, crude. Neurosurgeons did not have access to modern imaging and diagnostic tools such as angiograms, MRIs or CT scans. Anesthesia for neurosurgical operations was similarly limited. Mortality and morbidity rates were therefore high. The neurosurgeon was more of a ‘clinician-neurosurgeon’. Outcomes depended on the neurosurgeon’s diagnostic and surgical skills. From the accounts of his associates and students, Sam Ghouralal had both these skills to a high level.

As the only Consultant-level Neurosurgeon in Trinidad and Tobago and indeed the southern Caribbean at that time, Sam Ghouralal was much in demand to deal with cases requiring his skills. In one famous incident, during a cricket Test match in Barbados, the Indian cricketer Nari Contractor was struck on the head by a delivery from a West Indian fast bowler. Sam Ghouralal was flown to Barbados to attend to the stricken cricketer. Reportedly, patients came even from neighboring Venezuela to be attended by Dr. Ghouralal.

As the country’s pioneer neurosurgeon, Sam Ghouralal was tasked with building neurosurgery capacity while setting and maintaining standards of practice. This involved the training and development of young surgeons entering neurosurgical practice. These young neurosurgeons who trained under him were able to excel when they went abroad for their specialist training. This was because of the limited number of trainee neurosurgeons so that whereas in developed countries the neurosurgeon might have three assistants, Dr. Ghouralal used only one. Therefore, the better young neurosurgeons became proficient quite quickly.

Samuel Frank Ghouralal died on April 6th, 1991.

Clyde Martin Harvey was born on 9th November 1948. He entered St. Mary’s College in 1960. He represented the college at basketball and public speaking and was one of the last students to study Greek at Advanced Level. He graduated from CIC in 1966 and taught briefly at the college before joining the Seminary in 1967. He obtained his BA in Politics and Sociology at UWI St. Augustine before going on to Catholic University at Leuven in Belgium where he obtained a Masters in Theology in 1975. He also did postgraduate studies in England and the United States in Comparative Religion and Ethics. He was ordained a priest on 27th June 1976.

With outstanding academic credentials, Fr. Clyde Harvey was initially appointed as chaplain to the UWI St. Augustine campus and lecturer and Vice-Rector of the Seminary. Archbishop Jason Gordon says of Clyde Harvey:

“As a theologian he formed many generations of seminarians and theological students in the way of compassion and in his keen insights into the beauty and complexity of pastoral and moral life. He is a man who has the capacity to hold the rich paradoxes of the faith and of life. He is one of the best pastoral theologians of our region and has challenged both church and people to reflect again on the gospel in the light of the complex Caribbean reality. In one instance where he challenged the church in its moral assessment of a dimension of the HIV community, he was way ahead of his time. It took years for another brilliant theologian, Pope Benedict XIV to agree with his position and settle the matter within the church.”

However, he asked for a parish appointment and in 1979 was appointed to the Laventille parish with subsequent appointments in Maloney, San Fernando, and Rosary in Port of Spain. As a parish priest, Fr. Clyde Harvey was welcomed into the homes and the hearts of his parishioners wherever he worked. At Rosary parish, he oversaw the restoration of the historic Rosary church building.

His parish duties were but one aspect of his pastoral work which actually extended across the nation. For Clyde Harvey, the work of the Church is meant to touch the lives of people where they are, with them in their joys and their sorrows, their trials and their triumphs. It was as his motto says: “to make known to Caribbean people the loving-kindness of the heart of our God”. He became involved in the care of those infected with and affected by HIV/AIDS. He helped found Lifeline to counsel suicidal persons. He was chairman of the Morris Marshall Development Foundation which supports educational and personal development for the people of east Port of Spain. Other community organizations with which Fr. Harvey was involved were Community Intervention for Transformation and Empowerment, Pride in Gonzales Initiative and the East Port of Spain Mentoring project.

Known for his powerful sermons, lectures and commentary on social issues, Fr. Harvey became recognised as a prophetic voice challenging the society to deeper reflection and understanding of its responsibilities to the poor, the marginalized, and those who are hurting in our society. For a Church transitioning after Vatican II and a society transitioning from the turbulence of the Black Power movement, Clyde Harvey’s outspoken comments were not always well received within the Church or the wider society. Archbishop Jason Gordon would note:

“He was neither afraid of controversy nor being labeled. For this he paid a price. But this quality expresses the depth of the man and his discipleship to Christ. His first ‘public’ was Christ and then the poor, and all others were often left feeling uncomfortable. This is the lonely road of the prophet which he embraced and embodied.”

Clyde Harvey enjoys the music of the liturgy and has composed several hymns which have become liturgical staples and whose lyrics provide insight into his theology of loving service to his fellow human beings.

In 2011, he was the recipient of a national award, the Humming Bird Medal for community service. On 23rd June 2017 he was appointed Bishop of St. George’s in Grenada, Carriacou and Petit Martinique and ordained a bishop on 29th July 2017.

Carlos Hee Houng attended St. Mary’s College from 1949 to 1955. He was a double graduate of UWI (BSc. London (UCWI), and B.Sc. Hons. in Chemical Engineering. Hee Houng entered UCWI as the only Trinidadian to be awarded an Open Scholarship by the university. Throughout his stay at St. Mary’s, he was a high performing student inclusive of winning a House Scholarship as one of the top sixteen students in the country at Senior Cambridge (O’Level) exams in 1953.

He entered industry in 1964 joining Federation Chemicals as the company’s Yield Statistician and by 1971, had advanced to the position of Ammonia Plant Engineer. In a career shift to energy development, he joined the Economic Studies and Planning Unit of the Industrial Development Corporation in 1972, as a Consultant Project Analyst and between 1975 -1978, served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Co-ordinating Task Force that had responsibility for coordinating activities related to the development of the Point Lisas Industrial Estate. He was actively involved in the planning and development of the following projects:

- The establishment of an iron and steel complex at Point Lisas serving as Project Officer
- The capacity expansion of Trinidad Cement Limited
- The regional aluminum smelter project involving the Governments of Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and Guyana, serving as Project Officer, Trinidad and Tobago
- The joint venture fertilizer project (FERTRIN), with Amoco Chemicals, serving as Government’s representative on the Project Executive Group

Following the investment decision on the FERTRIN project (1978), he returned to energy sector operations joining FERTRIN, serving as the company’s Project Coordinating Officer during the engineering and construction period. He was appointed as a Government representative of FERTRIN’s Technical Advisory Group (1978-1981). in which role he was able to successfully promote the early recruitment of nationals to fill positions at the Company.

On FERTRIN’s commercialisation, he assumed the executive role of Marketing Manager, and was responsible for developing a strong international marketing and shipping network while establishing FERTRIN as a reliable and reputable supplier of ammonia to the international market. Moreover, he was responsible for the delivery of approximately 800,000 metric tonnes of ammonia to customers in the US Gulf, Northwest Europe, North Africa, Mexico, Brazil and Venezuela. He accomplished this through his unique abilities to build strong business relationships with key players in the international ammonia market.

In 1988 he joined the Trinidad and Tobago Methanol Company (TTMC), as that company’s first General Manager, and in 1992 was appointed to TTMC’s Board as Managing Director at TTMC, he led a team of locals who were responsible for the management and operations of this world-scale process chemical plant without any multinational oversight. This was a first on the Point Lisas Estate and indeed, in the local energy sector. The locals were not mere bystanders but active participants who would take complete responsibility for managing the facility entrusted by the shareholders to them. It was this sense of national pride and “can do” attitude that saw the debottlenecking of the plant which increased its daily rated capacity by fifteen (15) percent. A major milestone during his tenure was the Electrical Reliability Improvement Project (ERIP) which successfully insulated the plant against the then frequent power fluctuations. With the company’s improved operational improvements, by 1990, methanol’s market price had risen to render TTMC profitable for the first time. Hee Houng moved a pioneering national company into the global market space and cleared the way for more expansion in the local methanol business.

Since retirement, he has worked as a private consultant in association with several local professionals and has been associated with two of the leading international energy companies, Gaffney Cline and Associates of Houston Texas, and Haldor Topsoe A/S of Denmark.

Between 1995 and 2000, he served as Project Director of the University Project Implementation Unit, of UWI, with responsibility for the implementation of all aspects of a US$84 million project funded by the Inter-American Development Bank and the Caribbean Development Bank.

OTHER COUNTRY/COMPANY REPRESENTATION

He has served on several Government appointed bodies responsible for the long-term development of the energy industries in Trinidad and Tobago, including the following:

- The first economic delegation of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago to the Far East, Europe and North America. (1974)
- The GOTT negotiating team responsible for the acquisition of Trinidad Cement Limited. (1975 – 1976)
- Representative on GORTT Team responsible for the expansion of UWI, Faculty of Engineering. (1976)
- Member of the team appointed by Cabinet to review the performance of ISCOTT. (1984)
- Member of team appointed by Cabinet to prepare a Strategic Plan for the marketing of nitrogenous fertilizers. (1988)
- Member of Task Force appointed by Cabinet to prepare proposals for rationalization of government’s petrochemicals holdings. (1988)
- Board of Trinidad and Tobago Methanol Company. (1991 – 1993)

Hee Houng has served in various roles in the private sector including Board Member of Trinidad Cement Limited Group; Board member of Polymer Limited; Chairman of Arawak Cement Company; Board Member of Diproinduca Trinidad Limited; Member of the Emancipation Support Committee’s Business Forum in its deliberations on energy, representing the Committee in the promotion of opportunities for collaboration between Trinidad and Tobago, African countries and the Black American Caucus.

Board Member of Several Other Non-Energy National Organizations: Trinidad and Tobago Bureau of Standards; Chairman of the Caricom Foundation for Art and Culture; Chairman Pan Trinbago industrialization Company; Member of the Trinidad and Tobago Women’s Cricket Board of Control; National Stadium of Trinidad and Tobago.

AWARDS

- In 1985, Carlos Hee Houng was honoured at the 25th Anniversary of the establishment of the Faculty of Engineering, UWI for outstanding contribution to national development.
- In 2010, he was among the 50 awardees honoured by the University as Distinguished Alumni in celebration of the St. Augustine Campus 50th Anniversary.
- In 2017, he received the Henri Sylvestre Award of Excellence from the Emancipation Support Committee. - Carlos Hee Houng is a member of the A. S I. (African Scientific Institute).
- On Republic Day 2023 he received a National Award, the Chaconia Medal (Silver) for his contribution in the energy sector.

Addendum by Bishop Clyde Harvey

In addition to his academic and professional pursuits, Carlos became an engineer’s engineer. He used his professional work and contacts to develop numerous relationships, not only with St. Mary’s alumni, but with anyone who was interested in walking with him on paths of excellence. He became a mentor to many in the energy sector and helped many who dreamt dreams for their country and for their own self-advancement. In the context of his Lodge membership, he was truly a brother, a man’s man.

In 2008, he began working in East POS with a group of CIC alumni on a project to help boys at risk. The project encouraged successful men to reach out and mentor young men of promise who were very much at risk because of the poverty and violence in the area. They made a difference in the lives of a significant group of teenagers. What began as a one-year experiment continued for five years. Carlos was the anchor of the project, giving of the range of skills he had acquired in his professional life to make a difference in his retirement. Between his farm in Tobago, his writing of the story of the energy sector in Trinidad and Tobago and his mentoring of family and promising young people, he continues to make a sterling contribution to the land he loves.

Julian Stanley (“Jake”) Kenny was born on 27th January 1930. He attended St. Mary’s College from 1941 to 1945, thereafter proceeding to Ridley College in Canada where he obtained his Grade 13. He obtained a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Toronto in 1951. Between 1948 and 1952, Julian Kenny worked during summers at a fisheries laboratory in Toronto. He returned to Trinidad and between 1952 and 1961 worked in the Fisheries Division of the Ministry of Agriculture as Fish Culturist and then Senior Fisheries Officer. He proceeded to London where, in 1963, he obtained his PhD from Birbeck College of the University of London. He joined the Department of Biological Sciences at UWI St. Augustine as a Lecturer in 1963 and was appointed Senior Lecturer in 1968 and Professor of Zoology in December 1970.

Professor Kenny had begun to make his mark even while he was a Fisheries officer in the 1950s. He developed statistical systems to evaluate fish catch by age and a method to identify fishing vessels. He helped to establish the flying fish industry in Tobago. As an academic, his research interests in ecology and zoogeography led him to document Tobago’s Buccoo Reef and other shallow water corals in the context of coastal zone management, the Tamana caves, the Caroni swamp, the Aripo savannas, and other ecosystems. He supervised many PhD students whose work extended our knowledge of various fish, insect and mammalian species in our natural environment. His later academic work documented some of the flora of Trinidad and Tobago and the Eastern Caribbean, especially its varieties of orchids.

Julian Kenny lent his expertise to many reports and policy initiatives. He was an advisor to an Inter-Ministerial Committee on the Law of the Sea, chairman of the Institute of Marine Affairs, member of the boards of the Environmental Management Authority and Guardian Wildlife Trust, and he helped inform legislation on national parks.

By no means was Professor Kenny an ivory tower academic. As a naturalist, he was deeply concerned about the protection and preservation of the environment at a time when such advocacy was rare. He wrote articles in the newspapers, drawing public attention to environmental issues. However, his contributions as a public intellectual were not limited to science or the environment. He wrote on social issues such as the death penalty and our heritage, and on integrity, morality and ethics. He served as an independent Senator in the 5th and 6th Republican Parliaments from 1995 to 2001.

Professor Julian Kenny died on 9th August 2011.