We Never Looked Back!
by Dr Mary-Linda Armacost In June, 2002 Peter was offered and accepted the position of Principal of Forman Christian College. After two subsequent visits in 2002, he felt strongly that we needed to move to Lahore in order to prove to the government that we were serious about having the college denationalized. The Governor at the time was facing political difficulty in denationalizing a number of colleges all at once. We moved lock, stock and barrel, as they say, on January 11, 2003 and we never looked back. We could not have received a warmer welcome from the business community, the university community, the alumni and the Christian community. We were invited into people’s home for dinner and made to feel instantly welcome. There were forces, however, that clearly did not want the college to be denationalized. They were fearful that jobs would be lost and that the tuition would be raised. The government promised that all the faculty that did not stay at Forman would have jobs elsewhere. There still was a good deal of unrest, however. Groups visited our home several times, making threats and breaking a few things. A coffin was made with Peter’s name on it and taken around the Parliament Building. There was graffiti saying “Go back, Peter, Go Back!” However, it soon became clear that we could not be “frightened” and that we had no intention of leaving. The Government denationalized Forman Christian College on March 19, 2003 – a glorious day in the life of the college and in our lives. The next months were filled with activity – selecting new faculty and deciding on the staffing. Faculty and staff – Muslims and Christians – men and women – all worked together for the good of the College. It was determined very early on that one of the keys to success would be to become a university and to grant our own degrees. With the help of President Musharraf, this was granted in 2004! Looking back on that first year, my memories are of overwhelming gratitude to all within the college, the alumni, the Christians and the broader community who were so welcoming, so encouraging and so grateful to Peter for all he was doing. I was also incredibly proud of my husband – of the way he systematically worked with all constituencies of the college to achieve success and to do so under, at times, great pressure. Our ten years were a true gift to us – one we will never forget and never cease to be grateful for. This gratitude is for the Muslim and Christian communities – faculty, staff, alumni,...
FCC Celebrates 150th Birthday
Forman Christian College celebrated its 150th Birthday in an informal ceremony on 3 March 2014. The ceremony started off with a performance by the Azad Kashmir regiment brass band, followed by performances by Ali Mazhar and his band mates and The Three Musketeers. The FCC birthday cake was cut by FCC Rector, Dr James Tebbe, his wife, Mrs Beth Tebbe, former FCC Rector, Dr Peter Armacost and his wife, Dr Mary-Linda Armacost. Cupcakes were distributed among the guests which included students and staff and faculty members. A special performance by Goonga Sain and his band was a highlight of the evening. The Student Affairs department would like to give a huge and heartfelt thank you to the Communications and Advancement Offices for their invaluable help in the organizing and sponsorship of the 150th Birthday Party. We could not have done it without you! Also, special thanks to the History, Psychology and Rotaract societies for their part in putting this all together. ...
FCC 150th Anniversary Supplement in Dawn
On 3 March 2014, Forman Christian College (A Chartered University) recognized Founder’s Day in its sesquicentennial year by bringing out a 4-page 150th Anniversary nationwide supplement. It contains messages from the Rector Dr James Tebbe, FCC Patron and Governor Punjab Mr Mohammad Sarwar. former Rector Dr Peter Armacost, President Formanites Alumni Association Chaudhry Ahmad Saeed and distinguished Formanites Mr Yusuf Shirazi and Dr Joseph Wilson. It also contains a brief timeline of important events during the last 150 years and an article on the developments in FCC over the last decade. FCC is grateful Servis Industries Ltd, Atlas Honda, HBL, UBL and Engro Foods Ltd for helping sponsor the...
Remembering the 100th Anniversary
by Manzur Sangam Gill In 1964 I was an MSc student of Physics of FCC, lived in Ewing Hall, but with classes in the old campus of Punjab University, near Anarkali. Living in Ewing Hall was wonderful: the classes were within ten minutes walking distance; in the evening, watching the pretty girls dressed in beautiful evening clothes in Anarkali Bazar was only three minutes walking distance. The President of Pakistan, Field Marshal Muhammad Ayub Khan, was going to be the chief guest at the main event of the centennial celebrations, and I was not going to miss the event for anything. Several of us from Ewing Hall came in the college bus well in advance. Come rain or shine the college bus was always on time. These were simpler times – the President of the country was going to attend the function, the students and guests were roaming around the campus, no guns or rifles or obtrusive security people were visible, there were no searches made as we entered the campus. It was a pleasant sunny midmorning, the grassy grounds and the hedges were all meticulously presentable as usual. The event was held in the main ground. Arriving at the scene were the President – most handsome and presentable specimen of a Pathan; accompanied by serious faced, awe-inspiring Malik Amir Muhammad Khan, Nawab of Kalabagh and Governor of West Pakistan, in his usual turban with a stiff turla pointing towards the sky; and the relatively small-framed, gentle and dignified Principal Dr E J Sinclair. The audience faced towards what is now Sinclair Hall, unlike these days when the audience face away from Sinclair Hall during the annual alumni reunion main event. I was so impressed by his photogenic face that when I left Pakistan for higher studies, I took a photograph of President Ayub to show off our president to the people abroad. The Principal gave the welcome address in his usual clear voice and professor-like tone, followed by the speech by the Chief Guest. The whole event was flawless and I was proud to be a Formanite. All photos from The Folio, Centenary Issue, Forman Christian College, Lahore, November 1964....
President’s Speech at FCC Centenary
The following speech was given by President Ayub Khan on the occasion of the Centenary Ceremony at F C College on 28 November 1964. Mr Governor, Mr Principal, Ladies and Gentlemen: It gives me special pleasure to be associated with the centenary celebrations of the Forman Christian College, Lahore. In the case of the students and staff of this college, joy must be mixed with pride and satisfaction at the completion of a hundred years of very useful service to the cause of education. May I extend to you all my sincerest congratulations on this happy occasion. I am very much impressed by the fact that the Forman Christian College, through its hundred years of beneficent existence, has set a very worthy example of the good that can be accomplished by a noble band of dedicated men imbued with a highly developed sense of public service. It is gratifying to know that the high ideals of the Founder continue to animate his successors – past and present. It is no doubt due to those lofty ideals that your college has acquired a worthy reputation for itself. The achievements of this college, your constant endeavour to add to those achievements, and your high traditions will no doubt inspire the present and coming generations for still greater effort. The educational institutions of this sub-Continent should no longer be content with turning out literate persons fit only to seek jobs. With the coming of Independence, they must equip the young men and women of this rising nation to meet the challenge of the needs of socio-economic development. We have arrived late on the scene of international competition. We have, therefore, got much leeway to make up. It requires special effort on the part of the youth of the nation and its tutors. Hard work, devotion to studies and noble ideals must be inculcated and practised if we are to hold our own in this highly competitive world. The rising generation also needs faith and courage to enter the struggle of life for the sake of its own future and that of its country. Faith and courage require a moral and spiritual base in the human mind and character. Fortunately our own spiritual and cultural heritage, if properly inculcated into the new generations, can well equip them for the vicissitudes of life. Before I conclude, I would like to refer to the proposal to put up a Centenary Hall to commemorate this occasion. I think it is an excellent idea. I have the clearance from the Government to offer Rupees one lakh. But I think this is not enough; so I will persuade...
A Good Samaritan, Hatim Tai, and Formanite
By Manzur Sangam Gill One day in 1958, a young mother wanted to wear her favourite jora [set of clothes]. She searched for it everywhere in the house, but could not find it. When her young son returned from college she asked him about this favourite jora. He sheepishly told his mother that he had given it to the college mali [gardener]. The mali had pleaded for good clothes for his daughter’s wedding. The mother’s anger turned into mother’s love for her benevolent son. On another occasion, he came home from college without his trousers and jacket – it was winter and he was shivering. On the way home, the boy had felt sorry for an old man and had given his warm clothes to him. The mother has many similar stories about her son. As a second year FSc student, this young man got into an argument with another student and was ready to hit the other boy with a spanner. Dr Sheets, the Vice Principal, tried to intervene, but was told by the angry young man, “Get out of the way, Doctor”. You can well imagine what happened next: the young man was expelled from college. His father, bedridden because of backache, came to the college and pleaded with the Principal Dr Ewing, “Please give my son another chance otherwise he will become a vagabond.” The Principal reinstated the young man and kept an eye on him. That youngster of the 1950s is Dr Chaudhry Ahmed Saeed, President of the Formanites Alumni Association, and a benefactor of his alma mater – Forman Christian College. Many years later a fellow Formanite’s wife was terminally ill with cancer in California, bedridden but wanting to be in Pakistan, the land of her husband’s birth. I was that Formanite, and my wife Susheela could not travel by international airlines because of her condition. Thanks to Dr Chaudhry Sahib, she was flown by PIA to Lahore in comfort, and taken directly to Shalimar Hospital for medical care and to recover from jetlag. I have had the good fortune to have been associated with Dr Chaudhry Ahmed Saeed from 2004 to 2012, the years FCC was recovering from nearly 30 years of nationalization. He gave selflessly on countless occasions: counsel and contacts to the administration, financial help for needy students and building renovations, a leading player and donor in organizing yearly Alumni Reunions. He has been an extraordinary spokesperson for his alma mater. In biblical language he is a “good Samaritan“(someone who helps a stranger in dire need without knowing the person’s caste or creed and with no thought of reward) and a “Hatim...
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