REMEMBERING WILLIAM MARCUS LOPEYBy George RichardsonI met William Marcus Lopey for the first time in early January 1943. I had won one of the four annual scholarships to the ST. Vincent Grammar School and the Girls High School offered to Primary School students. Thus, on that fateful Saturday morning, my mother and I had journeyed to the home of the Great Man to be briefed on the dress code, books and other paraphernalia required. As an eleven year old, I was struck by the profound courtesy of this man as he answered my mother's questions and provided much needed advice and information. He reminded us that school would reopen on January 18, 1943 at 8:40 a.m.Opening day was an extraordinary event. The school was a magnificent building with individual classrooms, individual desks, a far cry from the one room school house at Questelles. There were 35 new boys in a school of 130 students; all freshly scrubbed, hair appropriately groomed, the juniors gaily decked out in short khaki pants, white shirt, tall socks, school tie and cap; the seniors in gray slacks, white shirt, school tie, blue blazer and corked hat with the school colors emblazoned thereon. It was indeed a day filled with great hopes and expectations, a heady venture, as it were, into the unknown. At 8:30 a.m. on the dot, a bell summoned us to the Assembly Hall, actually, the Form V Class Room. Promptly at 8:40 a.m. a sudden earth shattering silence punctuated the air.
A procession was underway. This was to become a daily ritual throughout my six years at the Grammar School. The procession was led on that morning by the most junior master, F.J. Cooper Jacobs, followed by V.G.I. DaSilva, J.L. Eustace, J.A. Rodway B.A., and finally Don himself, regaled in flowing academic gown, William Marcus Lopey, MA (Durham). Assembly was a high point of the day. First came the procession, then the roll call, each boy present answering adsum to his name. Every day a different portion of the Scriptures was read, mainly the new Testament, which was invariably followed by an inspirational talk, commentary on current events, or guidelines for the proper behavior of young gentlemen who would be tomorrow's leaders in our society.Sometimes our morning homilies were used to address specific problems, and on many such occasions, Mr. Lopey literally struck fear into the hearts of his students. I vividly remember that morning at Assembly, when seething with white rage at a particular nasty incident, directed at him personally, his anger, ugly and venomous rising precipitously with every word he uttered, literally overwhelming him, he titled his message: "ODERINT DUM METUANT" (Let them hate, let the asses hate ME provided, provided that they fear).On another occasion, a student had refused to leave the wicket on a given LBW by the umpire in a school cricket match. He told us, in no uncertain terms if a ball passes mile from your wicket, and the umpire says you are out, do not linger at the wicket, leave quietly, you may deal with him afterwards.
Mr. Lopey's relationship with his boys was mainly proper, correct but distant. We were all known by last names, and may very well have been a badge of honor to be known as William VIII or John III, as was the students bearing the same name. The Headmaster made it clear that one could only succeed by hard work, and for hard work there was no substitute. Thus, if you worked hard and produced good grades you could bask in the glory, but woe befell the student who did not live up to his expectations. He never suffered fools gladly, especially if they were young fools. He could be sarcastic and biting to a youngster who in his view would never learn. In the fullness of time, such a student may very well be superannuated. He was mighty proud of those, who by their actions brought credit to his school, whether by academic excellence, debating skills, or artistry on the playing field. His goal was well rounded education which would equip the student to play a major role in the society.Mr. Lopey taught at every level throughout the school;..Scripture, English Language and Literature, History, French, Latin. His facility with Languages was awe-inspiring. Of course, these skills were honed after five years of practice, but it was obvious that the man was a classicist. Legend has it that he was equally fluent in Spanish, and Greek, as well as French and Latin.
He was exciting and demanding of his students, and many of us fell out of favor, if he suspected that we were coasting. At the end of my first year, I was in the top five, but according to my report, I had not fulfilled my expectations. The man was a disciplinarian; the cane was an indispensable rod of correction and he undoubtedly ruled by the old biblical adage: Spare the rod and spoil the child. On reflection, it was humiliating for a 15 to 16 year old boy to be caned 6 times on his backside, but in the days of Lopey, it was politically correct, and supported by all segment of the society, including our mothers and fathers. Perhaps in the final analysis, it may have made stronger men of us all.Over the years, many of us have continued to have a deep affection for William Marcus Lopey. We have copied his mannerisms, imitated his voice, and left index finger gesture, and imitation, we know, is the sincerest form of flattery. However, we have criticized the politics of the school.Was the Saint Vincent Grammar as conceived and operated by W.M. Lopey an elitist school? As a Grammar School, modeled on the British Public School system. It seems to have been conceived as a school designed to produce the elites to run the Civil Service, and from whose ranks the governing class would come. This concept was indeed a given , probably up to the 70's, although a plethora of secondary schools in the state may have dimmed this view.
As we look back at the legacy of William Marcus Lopey, many of us who sat at his feet, did not get the measure of the man. Although he impacted immensely on our lives, he was in a sense a distant figure, a regal man who loved and cared for us but did not seem to be emotionally involved with us Our relationship was a master/pupil; our lives touched only in the classroom. And after he retired from the classroom, he was gone, back to his native Barbados, never to strengthen and cement the bonds he may have created with many of us. When William Marcus Lopey retired in 1955, 25 of his Old Boys were then living in Curacao. We thought that having labored assiduously in the field of education, he richly deserved some token of our affection and esteem. We agonized over an appropriate gift and settled finally on a beautiful lamp. It was our way of telling him that he had lightened our darkness. Our letter to him expressed our deepest affection and appreciation for the interest he had shown in our well-being, and our best wishes for many exciting years of retirement. Mr. Lopey was obviously moved by our letter, and his reply exposed a humility that he had rarely exhibited to us as his students. He ended by acknowledging that his life's work was predicated on making a difference, and that the values and standards which he tried to inculcate were appreciated.
I sincerely hope that the memory of William Marcus Lopey will be perpetuated in the annals of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It will be more than fitting that whenever the Grammar School Auditorium is erected, the Board of Governors will move to name it "The William Marcus Lopey Auditorium" in honor of a brilliant scholar and a great Headmaster.
