Saligao has lost yet another of it's valuable nonegenarians Vincy Cordeiro.. My heartfelt condolences to the family. I enjoyed many chats with Vincy and I couldnt help but respect and admire the self-made man he was. We should be proud of this Saligaonkar who rose to become Acting Manager (a post never previously given to any Indian) in the British Petroleum Co.
There are many senior citizens of Saligao who have made a mark in their respective careers wherever they worked . Their own personal attributes are admirable but the education they received in their village of Saligao is the firm foundation on which their achievements rest. Vincy's sharp mind and keen memory as he recalled his schooldays, gave me an insight into the education system of those days ie.about 80 years ago. It was compulsory for every child to do their primary education in Portuguese, so he started his schooling in a private house in Arrarim[now owned by Savio and Audrey Araunjo].Then he attended Escola Primaria de Saligao or Aula as it is known. After passing the Primaria Grau and Secunda Grau from this school he joined Mater Dei School where lessons were taught in the English medium. Since Konkani was his mother tongue it wasn’t easy to study in the foreign language but .V.V.Cordeiro was determined to master the language. He began to borrow books on English literature which belonged to the educated sons of his neighbour Jacob Pinto. He avidly read these books and improved his skills in the language so much that his English teacher FatherBellarmina expressed his surprise at the letters and compositions he wrote. Since V.V Cordeiro was a good student he was promoted from the 6th to the 8th standard which was the Matriculation class at that time. He was keen to continue his studies in St.Xavier’s College Bombay and borrowed 50rs for the term fee and passed his first term exams in St.Xavier’s College with a first class. Financial restraints prevented him from studying further. Vincy returned to Saligao and in 1939 started working as a teacher in Mae De Deus private school where Miss Marilia Abreu was the headmistress. He earned a monthly salary of Rs.25 and gave private tuitions to supplement his income. The students paid him Rs.5 each per month. In 1940 Vincy went to Dares Salam. There he got his big break to prove his superior intelligence when he answered a competitive exam in the Colonial Audit Department. He stood first beating 14 other candidates who were graduates including 2 South Indians who were double graduates and Vincy got the job in the Civil Service In 1942 Vincy went to Aberdan in Iran,where he worked for about 9 years.He also worked in Borneo and Bombay . Later he worked in Aden as accountant for British Petroleum and was appreciated for his meticulous qualities . He was given a promotion as Assistant Manager in their Bombay office and retired as Acting Manager. He spent his retirement years in Saligao and was one of the pillars of the Saligao Institute.There was a hint of kindness in his smile and I have heard that he was ready to help any Saligaonkar in need. I think Vincy would like me to share with you all what he shared with me. Yvonne On Mon, Aug 20, 2012 at 8:09 AM, Frederick Noronha < [email protected]> wrote: > ** > Frederick Noronha posted in > Saligao-Net<http://www.facebook.com/n/?groups%2Fsaligaonet%2Fpermalink%2F10151129913664105%2F&mid=69b6135G590cd410G3debb59G96&bcode=9ViOMJRn_1.1345414151.AaTYeYxG5Ls4YEiB&n_m=yvonne.goa%40gmail.com> > [image: Sorry, I somehow slipped up in scanning > and...]<http://www.facebook.com/n/?profile.php&id=502514643&mid=69b6135G590cd410G3debb59G96&bcode=9ViOMJRn_1.1345414151.AaTYeYxG5Ls4YEiB&n_m=yvonne.goa%40gmail.com> > Frederick > Noronha<http://www.facebook.com/n/?profile.php&id=502514643&mid=69b6135G590cd410G3debb59G96&bcode=9ViOMJRn_1.1345414151.AaTYeYxG5Ls4YEiB&n_m=yvonne.goa%40gmail.com> > 8:09am > Aug 20 > Sorry, I somehow slipped up in scanning and sharing the obituary of Vincy > Cordeiro (a regular for many, many years at the Saligao Institute) who > passed away last week... > ** > View Post on > Facebook<http://www.facebook.com/n/?groups%2Fsaligaonet%2Fpermalink%2F10151129913664105%2F&mid=69b6135G590cd410G3debb59G96&bcode=9ViOMJRn_1.1345414151.AaTYeYxG5Ls4YEiB&n_m=yvonne.goa%40gmail.com>· > Edit > Email > Settings<http://www.facebook.com/n/?groups%2Fsaligaonet%2F&view=notifications&mid=69b6135G590cd410G3debb59G96&bcode=9ViOMJRn_1.1345414151.AaTYeYxG5Ls4YEiB&n_m=yvonne.goa%40gmail.com>· > Reply to this email to add a comment. > -- *If not us, who? If not now, when? John F. Kennedy *** -- Saligao-Net is at http://groups.google.com/group/saligao-net To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe email [email protected]
