March 27th, 2014 -- On Wednesday, 22 January, at a small ceremony at the Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College, Ms. Tamara Morton received the Joshua Obadiah Williams Monetary 2013 Award (EC $2, 500). The Award was established in 1995 and is given annually to the graduating teacher in the Division of Teacher Education, who receives the best results in the University of the West Indies examinations, as well as the best marks in the teaching practicum.
Tamara wishes to publicly thank the Williams family, especially Victor and Joyce, who presented the Award. Tamara delivered the Valedictory speech at the Silver Commencement Ceremony of the CFBC on 1 December, 2013. She is a past student of the Gingerland Primary and Secondary Schools and The Nevis Sixth Form College. She is the daughter to proud parents Weston Jeffers and Edrice Morton and grew up in Hanley’s Road, Nevis.
Tamara, who scored a near perfect GPA, was a Social Studies major/History minor in the Secondary Teachers’ Programme at the CFBC. Tamara has always been dedicated and hardworking when trying to achieve her goals. She does not let obstacles get in her way; she perseveres and keeps working towards her dreams. Such resilience and ardour is reflected in Tamara’s words:
When I first came to CFBC in August of 2011, I was a bit apprehensive because I was leaving the sheltered environment of Nevis and entering the metropolis of our Federation. This was no easy task for I was leaving my comfort zone. But as I made myway through the first few weeks, it became clear that my classmates and peers were compassionate, upbeat, curious, respectful and highly talented individuals. They helped to set my mind at ease. Of course, we possessed all the qualities needed to excel at socialising, but we soon realized that social skills were insufficient for the journey through the minefield of academia. That was when we arrived at the startling realisation that we lacked discipline.
It was this disquieting detection on Tamara’s part that made her acknowledge the need to revert to her childhood habit of spending a chunk of her spare time reading. With this firm resolution, the library became her second home, and she read anything she could put her hands on, especially material recommended by her lecturers. She appreciates the unswerving dedication of the Division of Teacher Education, lead by Dean Pennyfeather, as she extols lecturers like Mrs. Morris and Mrs. Rawlins, Ms. Darylie Williams, Ms. Lawrence and Mr. Taylor for the love and support they extended towards her during her enrolment at CFBC. Tamara is eternally grateful to them, as well as to others as she thankfully articulates:
They touched my spirit and I will truly miss them. To all who have helped me to reach this milestone—God, parents, grandparents and guardians; spouses or other loved ones and loyal friends. I hope to one day become a graduate teacher. I have a passion for teaching just like Joshua Obadiah Williams. I strive to do my best at it daily at the Gingerland Secondary School where I now teach.
Joshua Obadiah Williams was born 11 October 1926 in Barnes Ghaut, Nevis to Albert Victor Williams and Adosha Elisabeth Williams. After attaining the Seventh Standard Certificate, he became a pupil teacher in 1942 at the age of 16 and taught at St. Thomas School, Lowland, Nevis. In 1948, he came to St. Kitts and continued teaching and studying. He went to Erdiston Teachers College in Barbados (1955-1957) and on his return, taught at the Cayon School and then the St. Paul’s School. In 1965 he went to UWI, Mona in Jamaica, where he successfully completed the Professional Certificate in Education. On his return to St. Kitts, he was made Headmaster and was assigned to the Molineux All Age School (re-named The Joshua Obadiah Williams Primary School) on July 2, 2010 in honour of the sterling work he executed there.
Joshua Obadiah Williams retired from the Basseterre Boys School in the early 1980’s. He will always be remembered as a pioneer in the field of education, and an advocate of high morals and strong family values. During his journey along the path of life, he has touched hundreds of lives through his teaching. He has molded many characters by way of maxims and has transmuted a melancholic spirit through poetry and song. In his eyes, as long as you were taught by him, you became his student for life. Many of his students like two of Tamara’s lecturers—Gairy Knight, Randolph Taylor— are not only long standing teachers but also lovers of nature, poetry and song.
They often remember one of his beloved maxims:
Look on World as a mountain,
Think where the millions stop,
There is always a crowd at the bottom,
Push on – there is room at the top.
He was a man who assiduously taught his students the school’s curriculum, but he also prepared them for life by reiterating words of wisdom:
The shortest piece of pencil is longer that the longest memory
Waste not, want not
A little learning is a dangerous thing, drink deep or taste not of the Pierian spring
Tamara has expressed her desire to be as passionate of an educator as Joshua Obadiah Williams was, and it is hoped that she will achieve that goal, and aspire for a higher level of greatness.
Joshua Obadiah Williams – Educator, Philosopher, Philosopher, Poet, Disciplinarian and Humanitarian.
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