Worksheet – Read the following information and choose 5 (five) interesting facts to share with the class.

Also, include
the way in which the person contributed to the nation.

LORD KITCHENER – ALDWYN ROBERTS

Lord Kitchener ("Kitch"), the Grandmaster, was born April 18, 1922, as Aldwyn Roberts in Arima, Trinidad and Tobago
("T&T;"), into a family of six. His father was a succes sful blacksmith in Arima. Kitch attended the Arima Boys Gov't
School between the ages of 5 and 14, when he was forced to leave school following the death of his parents. He started
composing calypsoes at the tender age of 10, and also learnt to play the guitar. As a young man, Kitch was so thin and tall,
6 ft. 2 ins., that his sister nicknamed him "Bean." (Remember Jack and the Beanstalk?).

His first job as a singer was in 1936, when he was hired to serenade the employees of the Water Works. He got his first
break in 1937 while he was performing in an old time bamboo calypso tent in Arima. In 1938, he ventured into the realm
of big time calypso, and in 1939 he produced a hit called "Shops Close Too Early". In 1942, he joined the Roving
Brigade, a traveling group of young calypsonians who appeared at cinema houses in different districts in T&T. Kitch was
making one of these appearances when Johnny Khan, the manager of a calypso tent, spotted him and recruited Kitch for
his first professional tent appearance. He appeared at the Victory Calypso Tent on Edward Street with some of the great
calypsonians of the day, such as Tiger, Roaring Lion, Atilla the Hun, Destroyer, Pretender, Caressa and Iere. His song
then was *Green Fig*. It became a hit. In those days, Kitch was paid a dollar per night. Kitch has been a major force in
the world of calypso since then, destroying all challengers year after year with his incredible wit, humor, and lasting
melody.

In 1938, Kitch won the first prize in a calypso competition organized by the Arima Borough Council. He held the title
until 1942. At the outbreak of World War II, Carnival in T&T; was stopped until 1944 but the calypso tents were kept
opened. It was around 1944 that a friend, Alric Farrell, better known as Pretender, reportedly persuaded Kitch to turn
professional and join the great calypsonians of those days --- Beginner, Destroyer, Growling Tiger, Attilla the Hun,
Executor, Invader, Growler, and Roaring Lion --- in Port of Spain. Apparently, Kitch followed Pretender's advice. He
came to Port of Spain, and sang a calypso he called "Mary, I am Tired and Disgusted," before the critical and exacting
calypso lovers of Port of Spain. That calypso took Port of Spain by storm. Realizing the talent of the young calypsonian,
The Growling Tiger christened the "Bean" "Lord Kitchener." In 1945, Kitch scored again in Port of Spain with "I am a
Worrier."

In 1947, Kitch was proclaimed the best calypsonian of the year. His big tunes for that year were "Scandal in St. Ann's,"
"Mount Olga," and "Tie Tongue Mopsy." Soon after the success of 1947, Kitch left T&T; for Aruba, then on to Jamaica,
where he lived for six months, teaching calypso and playing to packed audiences. After Jamaica, the next stop was
London. Kitch arrived on a boat, the M.V. Windrush, at the port city of Tilbury on June 21, 1948. One of the other
passengers on that M.V. Windrush was Egbert Moore (Lord Beginner). Kitch got an immediate booking at the only West
Indian club in London, following his debut on the BBC. Six months later, Kitch was appearing in three clubs nightly, and
his popularity extended beyond the West Indian and African night club audiences, to include music hall and variety show
audiences.

Kitch has also been identified as the greatest composer of tunes for pan (the steel drum). His compositions have won
many Panorama titles:

 1964 - Mama, Dis is Mas

 1967 - "67"
 1968 - The Wrecker
 1969 - The Bull
 1970 - Margie
 1971 - Play Mas
 1972 - St. Thomas
 1973 - Rain-O-Rama
 1974 - Jericho
 1975 - Tribute to Spree Simon
 1976 - Pan In Harmony

http://www.tntisland.com/kitchbio.html
Worksheet – Read the following information and choose 5 (five) interesting facts to share with the class. Also, include
the way in which the person contributed to the nation.

WENDY FITZWILLIAM

Wendy Fitzwilliam was born to Juditha and Noel Fitzwilliam October 1972 in Diamond Vale, Diego Martin, Trinidad.
The first of two daughters, Wendy graduated from the University of the West Indies in 1996 with a Bachelor of Law
degree. She continued her legal training at the Hugh Wooding Law School. In her final year of study, two months before
writing her final exams to qualify as an Attorney at Law in her native Trinidad and Tobago, Ms. Fitzwilliam won the Miss
Universe Title in Honolulu, Hawaii on May 12th, 1998.

In June of 1998 she was honored by the United Nations with the title of UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador, a direct result of
her commitment to fighting HIV/AIDS and the stereotypes associated with it in the Caribbean and the world generally.
She has narrated videos for both UNAIDS and UNICEF on the plight of children and people living with HIV/AIDS in the
Caribbean. Her work with the UN continues as a UNFPA Face to Face Campaign Spokesperson.

The Hibiscus Foundation was one of Wendy's dreams that became reality on the 6th of September 1998. This organization
was established to heighten AIDS awareness in Trinidad and Tobago and to give assistance, financial and otherwise, to
children's homes in Trinidad. It is Wendy's wish to soon take this organization regional, establishing a presence in
Barbados and then the entire West Indies.

She has also been appointed the Red Cross Ambassador of Youth for the Caribbean. This is the first time the Red Cross
has appointed anyone to this high honorary office.

Since relinquishing her title as Miss Universe in May 1999, Wendy has completed her legal education and was admitted
to the Trinidad and Tobago Bar on May 31, 2000.

Wendy Fitzwilliam was born to Juditha and Noel Fitzwilliam October 1972 in Diamond Vale, Diego Martin, Trinidad.
The first of two daughters, Wendy graduated from the University of the West Indies in 1996 with a Bachelor of Law
degree. She continued her legal training at the Hugh Wooding Law School. In her final year of study, two months before
writing her final exams to qualify as an Attorney at Law in her native Trinidad and Tobago, Ms. Fitzwilliam won the Miss
Universe Title in Honolulu, Hawaii on May 12th, 1998.

In June of 1998 she was honored by the United Nations with the title of UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador, a direct result of
her commitment to fighting HIV/AIDS and the stereotypes associated with it in the Caribbean and the world generally.
She has narrated videos for both UNAIDS and UNICEF on the plight of children and people living with HIV/AIDS in the
Caribbean. Her work with the UN continues as a UNFPA Face to Face Campaign Spokesperson.

The Hibiscus Foundation was one of Wendy's dreams that became reality on the 6th of September 1998. This organization
was established to heighten AIDS awareness in Trinidad and Tobago and to give assistance, financial and otherwise, to
children's homes in Trinidad. It is Wendy's wish to soon take this organization regional, establishing a presence in
Barbados and then the entire West Indies.

She has also been appointed the Red Cross Ambassador of Youth for the Caribbean. This is the first time the Red Cross
has appointed anyone to this high honorary office.

Since relinquishing her title as Miss Universe in May 1999, Wendy has completed her legal education and was admitted
to the Trinidad and Tobago Bar on May 31, 2000.

http://www.in.com/wendy-fitzwilliam/biography-284341.html
Worksheet – Read the following information and choose 5 (five) interesting facts to share with the class. Also, include
the way in which the person contributed to the nation.

KESHORN WALCOTT

http://www.iaaf.org/news/report/walcott-gordon-tt-champs

Global champions Keshorn Walcott and Jehue Gordon enjoyed contrasting wins at the Hasely Crawford
Stadium in Port of Spain on the final day of the Trinidad and Tobago Championships on Sunday (28).

Walcott was in a class of his own in the javelin. The Olympic champion landed his spear at 84.84m in the first
round to break his own championship record.

Walcott followed up with an 82.71m throw in round two.

Having thoroughly entertained his adoring home fans, the 22-year-old national hero then passed on his last four
attempts and eventually won by more than seven metres.

Even though Walcott was a little down on his recent form in Europe, where he set national records of 86.20m
and 86.43m at the IAAF Diamond League meetings in Rome and then Birmingham, he was still pleased with
his first win of the year.

http://www.nalis.gov.tt/Research/SubjectGuide/Biographies/BiographiesSZ/tabid/292/Default.aspx?PageContentID=1089

KESHORN WALCOTT (Javelin)

Keshorn Walcott, born on April 2, 1993, is from the scenic village of Toco in North Trinidad and attended Toco
Secondary School. From a young age he was passionate about sports but proved unsuccessful at the various
track and field events that he tried. That all changed when Toco club coach John Andalcio introduced Walcott
to the javelin. Walcott soon moved to San Juan to be closer to the proper athletic facilities in Port of Spain and
in 2009 he began training with Cuban-born coach Ismael Lopez Mastrapa.

Walcott is a three-time Junior CARIFTA Games Champion, the 2012 World Junior Champion and the London
2012 Olympic champion in the javelin throw.

In the London 2012 Olympics, the 19-year-old Walcott won gold in the men's javelin, throwing 84.58 metres in
the second round to upset a strong field, including Norway's two-time Olympic champion Andreas Thorkildsen.
Walcott is Trinidad and Tobago’s second gold medalist and the youngest ever Olympic champion in the Javelin
throw. Walcott also made Olympic history by becoming the first non-European javelin champion in sixty
years,the last being US athlete Cy Young who won gold in the 1954 Helsinki, Finland Olympics.

Walcott was awarded Trinidad and Tobago's highest honour, the Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago,
by President George Maxwell Richards at the National Awards ceremony in August 2012.

http://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/keshorn-walcott.html

Olympian and javelin thrower who won a gold medal at the 2012 London games, as well as a gold at the 2012
World Junior Championships.

Prior to turning professional, he won two gold medals at the CAC Junior Championships.TRIVIAIn 2012, he
became the youngest Olympian ever to become a champion in the javelin throw.

He was born in Toco, Trinidad and Tobago.ASSOCIATED WITHHe and Rosie Maclennan both obtained gold
medals at the 2012 games in London.
Worksheet – Read the following information and choose 5 (five) interesting facts to share with the class. Also, include
the way in which the person contributed to the nation.

TUBAL URIAH BUTLER

http://www.nalis.gov.tt/Research/SubjectGuide/Biographies/BiographiesAC/tabid/100/Default.aspx?PageContentID=259

Tubal Uriah “Buzz” Butler was born in 1897 in Grenada where he received his primary education. During the
First World War, he served in the British West Indian Regiment, under Captain Arthur Cipriani. Like most of
his fellow soldiers, he idolized Cipriani. He returned to Grenada after the war, but moved to Trinidad in 1921,
attracted by the flourishing oil industry with its plentiful jobs and relatively high wages. In 1929, he was injured
in an industrial accident that left him permanently lame.

Butler himself, a member of the working class, embraced the labour movement and its cause wholeheartedly,
joining Cipriani’s Trinidad Labour Party but leaving it in 1936 because he found it too moderate. In 1935, he
led a 60 mile hunger march from the oil belt to Port-of-Spain, to highlight the workers’ demands; this was
considered a direct challenge to Cipriani who advocated more constitutional methods of protest.

In 1936, Butler formed his own party, the British Empire Workers and Citizen Home Rule Party (BEWCHRP)
and in 1937 organized a sitdown strike that was to prove a catalyst for the development of the labour movement
in years to come. The demonstration was a peaceful one until the police tried to arrest Butler, sparking off a riot
in which fourteen (14) people were killed and fifty-nine (59) injured. He was tried, convicted of sedition and
sentenced to two (2) years in prison.

After engineering another strike in 1941, Butler was again imprisoned from 1941-1945, since the government
regarded his disruption of oil production as a threat to the British War effort. In 1946, he called a general strike,
and his supporters stormed the Red House. He was eventually expelled from the Oilfield Workers Trade Union
(OWTU), a trade union organized in his absence by his second in command, Adrian Cola Rienzi.

Butler served on the Legislative Council from 1950-1961; he ran unsuccessfully for the Federal Elections in
1958 and again for the General Election in 1961. In 1970, the nation honoured Butler with the Trinity Cross. He
died in 1977.

Tubal Uriah 'Buzz' Butler, also called 'Supreme Chief Servant,' was a Grenadian whose active trade union work in
Trinidad earned his assessment as a 'national hero' by the People's Revolutionary Government (PRG). Upon the stature of
Butler, the ideal of Revolutionary Grenada's trade union movement was to be built.

Born in St. George's, Grenada, Bluggo Cottage, on 21 January 1897, Butler was raised during a time when the sugar
industry was failing. His family moved when Butler was a small child to St. George's where his father set up in his trade at
a blacksmith shop. Because his father was the sexton of St. George's Anglican Chapel, free tuition was given to Butler to
attend St. George's Anglican School, an educational institution in Grenada with high reputation.

After Butler had finished primary grades at age 13, the family had no funds for further schooling. Butler ran up against the
unspoken rules of the Grenadian social structure in St. George's. He could find no work or means for further education.
The First World War was looming on the horizon. At 17 years old, Butler told military officials he was 20 years old. He
became a volunteer in the First Contingent of the British West India Regiment. Butler served in the British Army from
1914-1918, stationed in Egypt.

In March 1935, Butler led a 'hunger march' from the Apex oifields to Port of Spain for higher wages and improved
working conditions. He launched his party 27 July 1936, called the British Empire Workers' [BEW] and Citizen's Home
Rule Party [CHRP]. On 19 June 1937 the oil workers went on strike action at Fyzabad. Butler disappeared, thus the song
"Where Was Butler?" by Calypsonian Atilla The Hun told everyone about this 'mystery'. In a couple of days, the action
expanded into an all-island workers strike. Butler was finally arrested on September 27, 1937, tried for sedition and
sentenced for two years. He was released in May 1939 and again detained on 28 November 1939 for a 5-year term in
prison as a security risk. Released in 1945, Butler led strikes in 1946 and ran for political office in 1950. According to
writer Raffique Shah, "For Butler, race did not exist in his mind." In Shah's view: "What Butler did in 1948—give up his
stomping ground in St. Patrick to his friend [Timothy] Roodal, and choosing instead to do battle against the powerful
[Albert] Port of Spain—spoke volumes about the Chief Servant's view of the 'race' question." Butler lost the election to
Gomes.

Butler died in Trinidad on Carnival Sunday 20th February, 1977. In 1981, "Liberation," the organ of the NJAC (National
Joint Action Committee) printed the last words of Butler from his death bed: "As long as there is a single worker whose
shack is broken down and is told you have no place in the area the fight must go on."
Worksheet – Read the following information and choose 5 (five) interesting facts to share with the class. Also, include
the way in which the person contributed to the nation.

HASELY CRAWFORD

http://www.sportarchivestt.com/athletes/hasely-joaquim-crawford/

Hasely Joaquim Crawford was born on August 16th 1950 in San Fernando, Trinidad. He was the seventh of the
eleven children of Lionel and Phyllis Crawford. The future champion spent his humble childhood playing
marbles and racing wooden ‘jockeys’ in drains. The boy Crawford was known to be ‘wicked’ and he has
confessed to habitually pilfering condensed milk from his mother’s pantry whenever he could get away with it.
In 1957 he was enrolled in the San Fernando SDA (Seventh Day Adventist) School where he took part in his
first races and though he consistently won, was never selected for inter-school competitions, possibly as a result
of him being a Roman Catholic.

Two years later he entered the San Fernando Boys Government School where he was able to hone his athletic
skills by utilising the extra time he gained in the morning when his father dropped him off an hour early for
classes. He and other boys would race along a strip of the school yard and Crawford, outstanding even then, was
noticed by the teacher in charge of the school games. The man selected Crawford to participate in the 60 and
100 yards events in which the young boy had to wear yellow shorts with a gold tie around his waist
consequently earning him the childhood nickname, “Curry Pants”.

Crawford was encouraged by a school monitor, Horace Williams to join what was then a popular athletic club
in San Fernando, the Brooklyn Athletics Club. When young Crawford joined he was put to race against women
and frequently finished behind them. This was discouraging to Crawford and he quit the club and gave up
training for a time. For a while he concentrated on other sporting interests like horse racing, cricket and football.
At the age of twelve, he re-joined the club and began the training that would influence the rest of his life as a
professional athlete. It was under the esteemed coach Zeno Constance that Crawford learned the value of
maintaining one’s mental and physical health. He also learned how to endure pain as a training regimen,
something that would aid him later on in his career when he would become plagued by a troublesome leg.

In 1963, free universal secondary school education was not yet available, so Crawford, age 13 years, sat the
entrance exam for the Anjuman Sunnat-ul-Jamaat Association (ASJA) School. He passed, enrolling in
the institution right after his 14th birthday. However, tragedy soon struck when his father, Lionel Crawford,
died from heart complications and the single parent family could no longer afford the private school fees.
Crawford was un-deterred from pursuing an education and four months later he succeeded in the entrance
exams to the San Fernando Technical Institute where he spent three years studying machine shop crafts. He
passed Parts 1 and 2 of the Benchfitter’s exam, placing fourth in the national exam. Crawfordthen started
participating in races against other youths, developing himself further as a sprinter.

He successfully navigated his way through regional competitions, qualifying for the Olympics four times from
1972 to 1980. His elevation to the throne of sprinters in 1976, was astounding, with only his handlers and
himself believing that winning the Olympic gold medal was achievable.

The achievement on July 24, 1976, came against all odds. His name was the least discussed in the build-up to
the finals, with race commentator OJ Simpson, the former American football star, dismissively asking: “Who
he?”

Crawford, however, running away with the gold medal to inspire an outburst of celebrations in Trinidad and
Tobago, a country which was winning its first Olympic gold meda

Those who were following Crawford’s build-up to the medal race would have seen success coming from a long
way off. Firstly, Crawford cruised to victory in his first round heat in 10.42 seconds. In the second round, he
again won in 10.29. His victims included Borzov. The semifinals also resulted in a Crawford win, this time in
10.22, and the field then included Quarrie.

As would be expected, the feat established Crawford as a national hero and icon and he was conferred the
highest honour bestowed to any citizen, the Trinity Cross, in 1978.

Crawford also had a jet, as well as the country’s national stadium named after him, while he was given a house
in the upscale Federation Park, Port of Spain area by the government.

For his long, distinguished representation and achievement, he was declared Trinidad & Tobago’s Athlete of the
Millennium 2000.

Crawford has two children, Harlan (named after a town in England) and Halle (named after Halle Berry)
Crawford.
Worksheet – Read the following information and choose 5 (five) interesting facts to share with the class. Also, include
the way in which the person contributed to the nation.

PROFESSOR COURTNAY BARTHOLOMEW

Professor Courtenay Bartholomew diagnosed the first case of AIDS in the English-speaking Caribbean. Founder and
director of the Medical Research Foundation of Trinidad and Tobago, he has had an illustrious career in medical
education and research, spanning over three decades. He was the first lecturer in Medicine and later the first West Indian
Professor of Medicine at the UWI Faculty of Medicine in Trinidad. He was also the region’s leading gastroenterologist
and was noted for his early research on the venom of scorpion stings and pancreatitis, a problem which was once rampant
in the tropics. In later years, he became famous for his pioneering research on HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean.

Born in Trinidad and Tobago in November 1931, Courtenay Felix Bartholomew grew up in Port of Spain. He attended
Nelson Street Boys’ R.C. School and then St Mary’s College in Port of Spain from 1942 to 1950. In 1948, he came third
in the island in the Senior Cambridge Examination (London), winning a Cambridge House Scholarship. Although he
wanted to become a doctor, he knew that his lack of proficiency in physics would prevent him from gaining a science
scholarship and instead chose to study Latin, Spanish, Greek and English Literature for the Cambridge Higher School
Certificate Examination. Afterward, he left Trinidad to study medicine in Ireland, in 1954. He was admitted to University
College Dublin where he won the Medical Society Prize in Medicine and the O’Ferral Silver Medal in surgery at the final
examinations. In 1965, he was awarded the Doctorate of Medicine by University College Dublin, the first Caribbean
physician to obtain this degree from that institution.

Dr Bartholomew was a foundation member of the Irish Society of Gastroenterology in 1964. In 1966, he was appointed
Research Fellow in the Department of Gastroenterology of the Royal Victoria Hospital, Mc Gill University in Montreal,
Canada. There, he initiated research on disaccharidase deficiency in humans. The Medical Chief of Staff, Dr John Beck,
was so impressed with the researcher’s polished methods and impressive results that he offered Bartholomew the position
of Consultant Gastroenterologist of the Royal Victoria Hospital. However, on that same day, Dr Bartholomew received a
telegram from Sir Eric Cruickshank, the Scottish Foundation Professor of Medicine of the University of the West Indies in
Jamaica, begging him to return to his homeland of Trinidad and Tobago for the inauguration of the University of the West
Indies’ first Medical School there. He accepted that offer instead and returned to Trinidad and Tobago in September 1967
to serve the Caribbean.

In 1977, he was elevated to the post of Professor of Medicine of the University of the West Indies. Among his other
significant research studies in Trinidad and Tobago was research on the seroprevalence of hepatitis A and B antibodies
and the hepatitis B surface antigen in Trinidad and Tobago, results of this study were instrumental to the Pan American
Health Organization (PAHO) in advising the Government of Trinidad and Tobago about the need for a national hepatitis
B vaccination program. In 1982, Professor Bartholomew founded the Trinidad and Tobago Medical Research Foundation,
dedicated to research on viruses, retroviruses, cancer and AIDS. Since then, he has served faithfully as the Director of that
Foundation and he has a sixteen member full-time staff of doctors, nurses and laboratory technicians, financially
supported by the Government of Trinidad and Tobago.

In 1983, Professor Bartholomew discovered the first known cases of adult T-cell leukaemia in Trinidad and Tobago and
the southern Caribbean. Following this discovery, Professor Bartholomew and Dr Waveney Charles were invited to the
National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health in the United States by Dr Robert C. Gallo, who was credited
with the discovery of the human T-cell leukaemia virus in 1980. Dr Gallo tested blood samples from these patients and
confirmed that Trinidad and Tobago had an endemic of the HTLV-1 virus. Bartholomew became a collaborator in Dr
Gallo’s research team, studying the clinical and epidemiological aspects of retroviruses. This collaboration was followed
by many publications on the epidemiology of HTLV-1 in Trinidad and Tobago (based on stored sera from the 4 500
patients of the hepatitis A and B survey in 1982) and extensive family studies on those who were HTLV-1 antibody
positive.

Under Professor Bartholomew’s advisement, the Ministry of Health of Trinidad and Tobago began screening all blood
donors for HTLV-1 antibodies, eliminating a potential method of transmission of the virus in Trinidad and Tobago.

In 1983, Professor Bartholomew discovered and reported the first known case of HIV/AIDS in the Commonwealth
Caribbean. He observed patients infected with both HTLV-1 and HIV-1, discovering that HTLV-1 /HIV-1 co-infection
leads to faster progression to AIDS, a finding which was later confirmed by researchers elsewhere, particularly in Brazil.

In 2005, Professor Bartholomew documented a case of HIV-transmission through surrogate breastfeeding, alerting
clinicians in third-world countries (especially India and Africa) to this possible means of infection.
Worksheet – Read the following information and choose 5 (five) interesting facts to share with the class. Also, include
the way in which the person contributed to the nation.

DR. ERIC WILLIAMS

http://trinidadguardian.tripod.com/AboutEric.htm

Born on September 25, 1911, Eric Williams was the son of Elisa and Henry Williams, a minor Post Office official in
Trinidad. He was educated at Queen's Royal College and won the Island Scholarship to Oxford University. At Oxford, he
placed first in the First Class of the History Honours School and received his Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1938. His
doctoral thesis, The Economic Aspect of the West Indian Slave Trade and Slavery, was considered an important
contribution to research on the subject and was published in 1944 in Williams' Capitalism and Slavery. Much of Williams'
educational pursuits at Queen's Royal College and Oxford University is documented in his book, Inward Hunger: The
Education of a Prime Minister.

In 1939, Williams migrated to the United States to teach at Howard University. He became an assistant professor of social
and political sciences and organised several courses, especially a humanities course for which he developed a three-
volume work called Documents Illustrating the Development of Civilisation (1947). While at Howard, Williams began to
work as a consultant to the Anglo-American Caribbean Commission, a body set up after the war to study the future of the
region. In 1948, he left Howard to head the Research Branch of the Caribbean Commission. Later, in 1955, he resigned
from the Commission in protest against its crypto-colonialist policies.

Williams returned to Trinidad and Tobago and became more involved in politics. His first major political speech was
titled "My Relations with the Caribbean Commission" (1955). A year later, Williams formed the People's National
Movement (PNM), a political party of which he became the leader. In September of 1956, the PNM won the national
elections and he became the chief minister of the country from 1956 to 1959, premier from 1959 to 1962, and prime
minister from 1962 to 1981.

During his term as prime minister, Williams led Trinidad and Tobago into the Federation of the West Indies and to
independence within the Commonwealth in 1962. Williams died in office on March 29, 1981. Often called the "Father of
the Nation," Williams remains one of the most significant leaders in the history of modern Trinidad and Tobago.

http://www.trinicenter.com/Peopleofthecentury/EricWilliams2.htm

When Dr Eric Williams left Oxford he went to Howard University, in Washington DC, where he assumed the post of
Associate Professor in Social and Political Science. (He was promoted to Assistant Professor in 1944 and obtained a full
professorship in 1947). He knew that the battle for political change had to begin soon, and indeed, there was no time like
the present. Shortly after his move to Howard University the Second World War broke out and the so-called “fight for
freedom” had to be on two fronts, not only on the battlefields of Europe, but in the colonies too. Although the focus of the
battle for change had to be in his own Trinidad and Tobago, he was seeing a broader arena—the entire West Indies.

He was thinking of a way to drive the colonial power from the British West Indies, and to foster and encourage the idea
that the tiny, unstable islands could join together in some sort of political union. In other words he was already thinking of
a federation of the West Indies. It followed that what was forming in his mind was the necessity of building a road to
Independence, firstly for his territory, Trinidad and Tobago, and in the meantime see if the groundwork could be prepared
for the Independence and then federation of the entire West Indies.

The first open move by Dr Eric Williams to have a close look at the political situation inside Trinidad and Tobago and at
the same time to “sound out” the people of this country, came in April, 1944. He was still Associate Professor of Social
Science at Howard University, and he came here to deliver a series of lectures entitled: “The West Indian Situation in the
Perspective of World Affairs.”
The lectures were a great success and it appeared that Dr Williams was greatly encouraged by the warmth people showed
towards him. He was also delighted to find so many people receptive to his political ideas.

He returned to Washington DC with his enthusiasm greatly heightened. So much so that he soon returned, this time as
deputy chairman of the Caribbean Commission—a commission made up of representatives of the United States, Holland,
Britain and France, and which had as its declared goal the development of the British Caribbean.

In 1953 and 1955 he delivered two major series of lectures at the Trinidad Public Library on the theme: “The Social and
Political History of the West Indies,” and, related to this or not, it was in this period that his relations with the Caribbean
Commission reached crisis point. When his contract expired on June 21, 1955, the Commission did not renew his
contract.
Worksheet – Read the following information and choose 5 (five) interesting facts to share with the class. Also, include
the way in which the person contributed to the nation.

WINSTON ‘SPREE’ SIMON

http://mypanyard.co.uk/Pioneers-Spree-Simon.html

Winston “Spree” Simon was famed for inventing the steelpan. He was born in 1927, Rose Hill, East Dry River,
Trinidad.

He moved to Clinton Street (now Foster Street) John John to live with his brother Joseph. John John was a
factory area that produced many items from tins and drums. This was the perfect place for Winston and his
friends to experiment with any discarded items.

There are many accounts as to how and when Winston came across the biscuit tin that was 'tuned' to produce a
note. However, it was used as an alternative to the Tamboo Bamboo which was outlawed at that time.

There was also a ban on carnival and this gave him more opportunity to develop his four-note tin. On 5 March
1946 Carnival Tuesday, he unveiled his 14 note pan and was accredited with being the first person to play a
recognisable tune on pan.

This accolade was given to him by the people of the John John area and was not publicly claimed by Winston
himself. At a time when many people in Trinidad were seeking an alternative to Tamboo Bamboo it was
possible that someone somewhere else may have stumbled on the same idea. As communication was not as
accessible as it is today, it is impossible to prove the myth surrounding the actual birth of pan. Many historians
conclude that Winston would have been too young to be around at the time pan emerged.

Due to Winston’s notoriety, he was selected to tour Britain as a member of Trinidad All Steel Percussion
Orchestra (TASPO) in 1951.Winston led three steelbands in Trinidad, Tropical Harmony, Fascinators and
Destination Tokyo (now known as Carib Tokyo).

In 1970 he suffered a stroke and this reduced his involvement in pan to a minimum. On 18 April 1976 he passed
away.

Living in John John, Spree was virtually ringed by factories producing biscuits and other products that used drums.
Discards from those industries gave him his first "kettle-drum" and it was an accident with this prototype that prodded
him to create the 14-note pan.

Since African drumming did not find favour with the authorities, he decided to investigate the possibility of making music
from the tins. His kettle-drum was a rudimentary one-note instrument, used largely for percussive highlighting in what
was essentially an elaborate rhythm section, euphemistically called a band.

As the story goes, one night when the band was taking a jam through the district, he loaned his instrument to a fellow
member. Upon retrieving the pan, Spree discovered it had been brutalised, much of its original convex playing surface had
been beaten inward.

It was in trying to repatriate the original shape to the pan (by beating it from inside with a big stone), he discovered
different sounds coming from the various areas of the playing surface. By alternately using a piece of wood, he was able
to vary tone. Spree produced a four-note pan from this experiment.

The ban on Carnival occasioned by World War II (1939-1945) gave Spree ample opportunity to develop his work. By
1943, he improved his pan's capacity to nine clear notes on the convex surface and three years later astonished listeners
with the 14-note version. Spree was therefore an automatic selection for the ground-breaking Trinidad All Stars
Percussion Orchestra (TASPO), which took a full band on a tour of London and Paris in 1951, introducing the instrument
to Europe.

Most of his life served as an inspiration to several aspiring tuners and he imparted his knowledge freely to many of them.

In 1970, Spree's health began a rapid deterioration. A stroke reduced his involvement in pan to a minimum and he
eventually succumbed on April 18, 1976. His presence on the pan scene is immortalised in several calypsos, most notably
Kitchener's "Winston 'Spree' Simon" and Merchant's "Pan in Danger".

Winston "Spree" Simon brought pan to its first watershed and thus carved his name forever in steel, going to his grave
without formal national award recognition.
Worksheet – Read the following information and choose 5 (five) interesting facts to share with the class. Also, include
the way in which the person contributed to the nation.

ARCHBISHOP ANTHONY PANTIN

http://www.lwctt.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=185:archbishop-pantin&catid=2&Itemid=101

Anthony Gordon Pantin was born in Port of Spain in August 27, 1929, the second son of Julian Andrew Pantin, a business
executive and his wife Agnes, nee Mazeley.

He received his primary education at Sacred Heart School and Belmont Intermediate School (now the Belmont Boys’
Secondary RC School). From the latter he won a Government Scholarship, (called a Government Exhibition in those
days) to St Mary’s College. Also among the group of Exhibition winners from that school was Ellis Clarke who would
become first President of independent Trinidad and Tobago.

He also took part in sports, playing cricket and football and was a member of the Sixth Trinidad Sea Scouts, under the
direction of the saintly Fr Cristobal Valdez. At St Mary’s, Anthony Pantin was in the top academic stream and although
considered a strong contender for the open island scholarship, the young Pantin decided to enter the priesthood at age 17
and was anxious to begin his priestly studies.

His elder brother, Fr Gerald “Gerry” Pantin once observed that “Tony” wanted to be a priest from the time he was seven
years old. He had been an acolyte at St Patrick’s Church from an early age.

He spent a short time teaching at St Mary’s College before embarking for Canada.

Archbishop Pantin entered the novitiate of the Holy Ghost Congregation in Canada in 1946 and attended the University of
Montreal, graduating with his BA degree. He returned to Trinidad in 1949 for a three-year teaching stint at St Mary’s
College.

In 1952 he left for Dublin, Ireland, where he pursued studies in Theology. He was ordained priest on the 3rd July, 1955
and was sent to Guadeloupe as a missionary priest until 1959. He returned to Trinidad to teach at Fatima College in Port
of Spain until 1964.

In 1965 he returned to St Mary’s College where he was elected to the post of Religious Superior, where he served until
1967. In November of that year, he was requested to accept responsibilities as head of the Archdiocese of Port of Spain,
a post which was left vacant by the resignation of the legendary Count Finbar Ryan. Father Anthony Pantin’s Episcopal
consecration took place on March 19, 1968.

As Archbishop he took the motto, “All things to all men” which would today be translated, “All things to all people”.
During his 32 years as Archbishop, he made strenuous efforts to fulfill the expectations of that motto.

Bishop Galt, who was a close friend from school days remembers him as having the ability to meet people of all classes
on equal terms. He was also able to censure anyone if he thought that that person had done something wrong, but his
admonitions were always made in a charitable manner.

In 1965, he returned to St Mary’s College where he served for two years in the post of Religious Superior. In November
1967, he was invited to head the Archdiocese of Port of Spain. On March 19, 1968, Father Anthony Pantin was ordained
Bishop Archbishop of Port of Spain. Over his 32 years of service as Archbishop, he was guided by his personal motto of
being “all things to all men”.In whatever capacity he was needed, he came prepared to serve. For pregnant, unmarried
teenagers, he founded the Mary Care Centre to give them a home and, in the troubled times of the 1970 Black Power
crisis and the 1990 attempted coup, he acted as mediator between disputing parties. He took a lead in forming the Inter-
Religious Organisation and actively promoted religious tolerance.

On March 11, 2000, Archbishop Anthony Gordon Pantin died in his sleep of acute heart failure. He is buried in the
Cathedral crypt. Later that year, he was given the nation’s highest honour, the Trinity Cross.
In your own words write 5 interesting facts you have learnt:

1)________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________

2)________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________

3)________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________

4)________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________

5)________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________