Brother Denis
Brother Denis (Jean Denis Gervais)
7 March 1930 – 29 Sept 2015
Teacher at Montfort, 1967-2004
I will never forget St Gabriel’s Secondary, its staff and its pupils! You are all recorded in the deepest recesses of my heart. Just mention St Gabriel’s Secondary and I will be beaming the whole day. I think of the lovely staff I was with and of the smart, cheeky and witty students. This beautiful experience would not have happened without the blessings from Heaven.
St Gabriel’s wrapped my life like my skin wrapped my body. My years at St Gabriel’s were a picnic! My former students may not say the same thing as I was quite strict with them, but I LOVED THEM A LOT TOO.
My relationship with the staff from morning till afternoon was a sunny ‘Hi!’ followed by a big smile reflecting my great happiness to work with them. They were all so lovely, so caring, so generous to me. It’s no wonder that I was so fond of them!
St Gabriel’s boys have always been ‘walking surprises’! Most of the time, they were adorable but they could be cheeky or really naughty. However, when we were relying heavily on them, they never failed to do their best. When we had special appeals to make donations, they would put their left hands on their hearts and their right ones in their pockets to help.
Any tragic incident during my stay? I would say one, when the inspector tried to dump me from the school because of my poor English – with a French accent on top of that! But Principal Brother Noel asked me to teach Science and Math instead and that turned out to be a blessing to me as I had taught these subjects for 15 years in Canada before coming here.
You know what? Everything turns out to the advantage of those who love God! I want to leave you with this thought. May I suggest that you live by this message – you will be happy for the rest of your life.
With much love for you all,
Bro Jean Denis
2013