GHAZALI YASIN: GREETINGS TO MR. M.C. CHACKO. YOU'RE GREAT!

90-year-old Mr. M.C. Chacko in fine shape and looks great.

This is a greeting from one of your former students of TBS Tampin. How are you doing Sir? I am delighted to have one of my favourite teachers connected with me again through Facebook - after losing touch with you for more than 46 years. I had the opportunity of knowing of your whereabouts through Cikgu Halimah (Senior Assistant HM of TBS, in charge of pre-U students). Cikgu Halimah, who used to b...e your neighbour in Kampung Dusun Tampin told me that she is still in touch with your daughter, Mrs. Susheela Stephen, who was her childhood friend, through Facebook. It was through Halimah that I am able to know a little bit about you and your family in India. We hope you are still strong and healthy.

TBS Group Excyrsion to Penang 1961. Anyone remembering anybody. Mr. M.C. Chacko is squatting in the front row (left).

Since you have a Facebook account my schoolmates and I would appreciate very much if you could recall your interesting experiences being a teacher of TBS at your Facebook account that can be shared with some two hundred members of our group (Grup TBSST) - comprising mainly ex-students of TBS who completed schooling during the years 1957 to the 1980s. Our alumni group was formed in May last year and is headed by Zahriman Alias from the 1966 batch, ie the same batch with me. The purpose of forming this informal body is to bring together old friends of our Alma mater for social gatherings as well as trying to do charitable work for the needy. 

TBS Historical Society 1961 (?): Historical Society teacher, Mr. M.C. Chacko (front row centre) with Ghani Manaf (2nd back row) and Anwar Othman (right back row). AFY is in front (left).

Some of the prominent members of the group are Normalis Nordin (1957 batch and later became staff member of TBS), Zakaria Osman (1957 batch, who is married to Normalis), Abu Aman Bachik (1961 School Captain who received his teacher training at Brinsford Lodge and who later taught at TBS until his retirement age), Ahmad Fadzil Yassin (1962 Vice School Captain - a writer and publisher), Monica Lim (1965 batch - ex-nurse trained in England), Getsy Rajendram (1965 - ex-Hospital Matron), Mohd. Karim Abu (1963 batch – the School Cross-Country Champion) and Mohd. Ashraf Manzoor (school cricketer from the 1965 batch). 

There are many other ex-TBS (some of them were your former students) who are very successful in their careers and doing well in life. It is impossible for me to mention them one by one here. Most of them have been very active participating in a number of activities organized by our group since its inception.

 Mr. M.C. Chacko (left) and daughter Susheela Stephen: We miss both of them.

Recently, on Sunday 10 February, some 30 odd members of our group had the opportunity visiting our former school. We were warmly received and welcomed by Cikgu Halimah, a few teachers as well as a number of pre-university students. All of us felt very excited as through our visit back to our school we were able to recollect sweet and bitter memories of our school days. Unfortunately, we could only imagine and visualize the classrooms and the favourite spots that we used to group together and walk around in the school compound those days as almost all the school buildings have been demolished and replaced with new ones in order to accommodate the ever increasing student population. The only old building that is still standing today is the science laboratory. It was in that lab I could remember vividly you were fond of referring me as “Mr. Ambrose Mutumuthirajah” and that made you my favourite teacher! Even the lab building has now been transformed into the School Gallery.

Mr. M.C. Chacko centre front row strolling with the Group at Penang's Botanical Garden 1961.

Sir, if you happen to be in Malaysia in the near future, please do not hesitate to let us know so that we can arrange for a re-union with some of your former students and ex-colleagues who are still around and remember you very fondly. My friends and I are very much looking forward to having the opportunity of meeting you one day in the near future. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you very much for having taught me. It was through your guidance that I laid the foundations that allowed me to become a slightly better person. I am very much grateful to you, Sir. Hopefully, your good deeds would be rewarded accordingly by The Almighty. May God protect you always!

Ghazali Yasin <1948zali@gmail.com>

               

2:08 PM (5 hours ago)