For one entire decade, a mere fraction of her whole life of eighty-eight years, of being a superbly outstanding individual, Nena Holmes walked the corridors of William Knibb Memorial High School - a Jamaica Baptist Union institution located in Martha Brae, outside of Falmouth, Trelawny, in Jamaica. For all these many years, while Nena Holmes journeyed among the living, she demonstrated what it was to be brilliant but not a bore; beautiful but not brash, and bold without being brazen.
Regarded as one of the finest teachers of Mathematics, when Nena Holmes joined the academic staff of William Knibb Memorial High in 1978, she had already gained significant experience as a classroom teacher at the then Goshen All Age School, St. Mary. Additionally, she had been a part of the team that helped the then Tacky Secondary School, also in St. Mary, in its formative administrative development.
The records will indicate that she was 50 years old then and had already lived half of her life. But age was just a number and for this mathematician, it is how you worked the numbers that would determine the outcome of the problem before you.
If the number 50 was to be seen as a critical juncture, even a half-way mark, Nena Holmes was determined that the best of her life was yet to come. And those who knew her at William Knibb are inclined to assert that she gave beyond her best to the academic and social life of the institution.
She joined the team as teacher of Mathematics and by the following year was appointed a Senior Teacher and Head of the Mathematics Department. Within three years she was acting as Vice Principal prior to her appointment in 1987, a year before her retirement from the formal education system in Jamaica.
Her students recalled that she was a good teacher, indeed, an excellent teacher who had the knack of simplifying the most difficult of concepts and who did not tolerate mediocre work. Constantly encouraging them to do their best, Mrs Holmes often quipped, “I am not even one hundredth of a cousin to you, so if you don’t do your homework, it’s your own funeral.” Peals of laughter would greet the phrase and many would complete it even as Nena Holmes, the consummate professional, the meticulous, organized teacher would yet go the extra mile, seeking to ensure that concepts were firmly grasped and could be applied when necessary.
She gave many extra classes each week and eventually coordinated the school’s Evening Institute which gave many working adults an opportunity to study and make good on lost opportunities to study for and enter standardized examinations by regional and international examining bodies. Many students having come in contact with Mrs. Holmes in this context successfully gained passes in Mathematics.
She was passionate about teaching but equally if not more passionate about people. This was evidenced in the care expressed for her colleagues, mentoring the younger ones and supporting the older ones in times of need; it was demonstrated in her words of encouragement to students often focused on anything but learning but in a big way it was lived out in her care for the less fortunate in the society.
As a pivotal force in the school’s Community Outreach Project she guided the school’s fund-raising efforts from which proceeds went to needy institutions including the hospital and the infirmary for the aged, both in Falmouth, Trelawny. Additionally, she was the chief organizer and coordinator of the school’s major fund-raising effort – its Annual Fair.
Former principal of the school, Mr. G.E.A. Falloon, in expressing sympathy at her passing recalled: “Mrs. Nena Holmes had a passion for Mathematics. She made a significant contribution to the development of the Mathematics curriculum and helped scores of students to grasp and master a subject which, for many, was always a challenge.
Mrs. Holmes also played a significant role in the administration of the school in her capacity as Senior Teacher and Form Teacher. Her effectiveness as a Form Teacher was never in doubt, but I recall that in 1980 it was dramatically displayed when the Grade11 Science students, under her skillful guidance and mothering influence, overcame their rivals and were adjudged the inaugural winners of the Community Project Cup.
A loyal staff member, an excellent team player, a mature and caring leader, Mrs. Holmes' sterling contribution to the development of the William Knibb Memorial High School will long stand in her memory.”
It is fair to assume that the always fashionable and impeccably dressed, Nena Holmes, with her signature grey patch of hair, would have fully embraced this quotation from A.P. J. Abdul Kalam, “Teaching is a very noble profession that shapes the character, calibre, and future of an individual. If the people remember me as a good teacher, that will be the biggest honour for me.”
And all of us together of the William Knibb Memorial High School community do recall and loudly declare, “Nena Holmes was a good teacher!” Her soul is at rest but we shall treasure and honour the memories of her time with us.
William Knibb Memorial High School
April 2017
