Two important messages from Mumbai

53er Pushpa Bhatia (née Dongersee) sent me this Notice:



The second is an email from our Alumni Webmaster:

The Cathedral & John Connon Alumni Association

Mumbai
December 8, 2008

Dear Friend,

We mourn with Mumbai and the country as we struggle to come to grips with the tragic loss of lives in the city on November 26, 2008. No segment of society was left unscathed in the most brutal and heart-rending attacks on Victoria Terminus, Nariman House, the Leopold Cafe and the Taj and Oberoi/Trident hotels.

The Alumni Association is deeply saddened to announce the passing of our very own Ashok Kapur (Palmer '59; brother of 53er Satish, 56er Pramila and 64er Anil aka Billy), Sanjay Agarwal (Wilson '77; son of 49er Vijay Ram) and Sunil Parekh (Savage '81).

The tragic loss for the Cathedral family extends to the unthinkable - one of our young students, Udayveer Kang lost his life in the attacks as did his little brother, Samar Singh who was about to enter the Cathedral fold. Bereaved students and alumni, Karan and Nakul Agarwal, Anandita and Arundati Parekh, Vaibhav Garg, Armaan Harjani, Sanjana and Sarjan Shah, Nairika and Arshan Maloo and Radhika Bhatt, have lost either one or both their parents. Our students have also said their final goodbye to an outstanding former teacher, Mrs. Rupinder Randhawa, who taught biology and environmental science in the school for several years.

For them and their families words will be of little comfort but they do have our deepest sympathy in this, their darkest hour.

At this exceedingly difficult time, emotions have been running high in Mumbai, and citizens are surging forward to help create a more secure future for India. Among these efforts are those by Cathedral alumni to provide counselling services for affected children, provide supplies to lower income hospitals, to lobby for political accountability, mobilise public opinion and much more.

The Alumni Association has created a platform for you at www.catalumni.com/voices.asp where you can garner support for your initiative and help channelise this emotion and energy, browse listings to see how you can help, read through ideas and opinions, or simply reconnect with a long-lost school friend at this painful time in our history.

Let us alumni be there for every stratum of society in a positive and sensitive manner, in the age-old tradition of the true Cathedralite.

The Executive Committee

Memorial Service on 10th December for the lost lives on 26/11

The School will be holding a Memorial Service for those children, parents and alumni who lost their lives in the tragic events of November 26th.

Date: Wednesday 10th, December 2008.
Time: 5.30 p.m.
Venue: The Cathedral Senior School Quadrangle.

Please try and be there.

May I also request every single one of you who can get there to be PLEASE there.