Salesian College: A History that Speaks Today is a chronicle, a retrospection and a reflection on the eighty years of its existence. It is the saga of transforming a dilapidated brewery into an excellent institution of human, intellectual, religious, and Salesian, a formation that fashioned generations of Salesian educators for the country and the world. Its students and staff were drawn from Italy, Spain, France, Germany, Poland, England, Ireland, Australia, Burmabesides India. The proud alumni of this institution, true to its motto ‘FlammaArdens et Lucens’, now serve the world and spread the beams of compassion and competence as, pioneers, leaders, missionaries, academicians, administrators, professors, and professionals. In 1999 it opened its doors to students other than Salesians and in 2009 launched a new campus in Siliguri thus expanding and sharing its expertise with the wider world. The present volume contains the views, opinions, observations and experiences of a large number of people who have been part and parcel of this institution either as staff or students, making it truly ‘a history that speaks today’.
About the Editor
Trophy D’Souza, an Author & TEFL Consultant, and former faculty at Salesian College Sonada, currently lives in London. He has spent his lives dealing with people first as a teacher then as a youth worker and later as a manager and advisor. He has worked on education projects in India, Tanzania, Qatar, the UAE, and the USA. Based in the UK he spends his time teaching courses in English and writing life stories and contributes to sports, music and news blogs. He occasionally runs projects in ESL and in advanced English for teachers in India and for groups in the UAE. Some strands of his Quantified Assessments are currently used in two colleges in the UK and two in India for student recruitment.
Salesian Publications –
John Bosco, popularly known as DON BOSCO, a Catholic Priest, Confessor, ‘the Father and Teacher of Youth’ is the founder of Salesians of Don Bosco, a religious Congregation. Like in other parts of the world, the Salesians have a history of their own in North India too. The book “SALESIAN COLLEGE, A History That Speaks Today” chronicles the establishment and expansion in North India, especially Sonada & Siliguri. This book is co-authored and edited by Trophy D ‘Souza and published by Salesian College Publication Sonada & Siliguri. This book not only focuses on their establishment but also trail us to the formation of the Salesian community, to their culture, purpose, services, etc. It contains 429 pages divided into two parts and 26 chapters.
This book is fully dedicated “To the Alumni of Salesian College Sonada & Siliguri. The book’s complete focus lays on the pioneers and trailblazers in making Salesians what they are today in North India and in the world. The book also speaks about the Salesian culture; Salesian objectives; their works, important days, their celebrations, importance of music and dramas, programmes and facilities, etc. The book has recorded the history of Salesian community of Sonada and Siliguri since 1938 to 2015, though some references are there to more recent events upto 2019. The Salesian journey for North India started when the first 11 pioneers from Germany, Italy and Spain landed in India in order to spread and give service to the world with the motto of ‘FLAMMA ARDENS et LUCENS’ (A FLAME THAT BURNS AND SHINES) keeping in their mind and proclaim to the world in the form of universal values in helping, sharing to transmit the authentic, definite and inclusive message of love and development in the spirit of Christian brotherhood.
Salesian communities mainly work for the young and aims in making them the light bearer for the world. While reading this book we come across many such alumni who became the light bearers to the world with their wisdom, service and talents. It is very difficult to include all because the list continues but the major ones are Joseph Verzotto, Orestes Marengo, Peter Piemonte, Francis Alenchery, George Thadathil (Principal SCS & SCSC) and so on. The best part of the book is that it not only tells us about the pioneers as a history book, just important events and facts about them but instead starts their journey from their birth place and leads us to their working place or resting place. Their life journey is molded in story form not only gives us information about their life but also inspires us to act as to do little and great things for the world.
I, Kornelius Hembram, being a Salesian student know their culture and them a bit. I have my five long years of experience as a young Salesian which to me personally has been something of a golden time. Reading this book gave me immense pleasure. This book mentions the wide range of things which are part of the institutional curriculum, and I have had the privilege to experience them all. The book is written in plain style with simple language with inspiring words. I would recommend this book to all the Salesians at least once to read. You would be feeling very fortunate enough to be part of their culture and another strong recommendation is for all who are aspiring to become Salesians and certainly for others as well. So ultimately, it could be said that, ‘just as Aristotle’s poetics helps us know the nuances of mimesis and drama/dramaturgy, even so, this book summarizes all that SALESIANS stand for.’
By Kornelius Hembram