00:00 "Death is not an extinguishing light, it is only putting out the lamp because the dawn
00:12 has come."
00:13 A quotation from a Bengali poet that Dr. Anna Mahes would recite at family gatherings.
00:19 In retrospect, her family believes she was preparing them for her transition from this
00:23 life, which happened on Friday, May 24.
00:26 Dr. Mahes was born on July 19, 1932 to parents Kenneth and Anna Mahes.
00:33 In delivering the eulogy, her brother Kenneth Mahes Jr. called to memory how his sister
00:38 was a tomboy when she was young and would climb trees, fix bicycle tires and of course
00:42 ride bikes to the shop and bakery.
00:45 Dr. Mahes' parents were both educators and she followed in their footsteps in terms of
00:50 her passion for not only gaining knowledge but imparting her knowledge to others.
00:55 "My mother in 1919 became the first Indian descent woman to qualify as a teacher in Trinidad.
01:05 Like her mother, Anna set her own milestones.
01:13 She began teaching at SAGS at 18 years old, the same age that her mother became a teacher.
01:24 When Anna became principal in 1961, she was the youngest principal in the country."
01:33 A year later, she moved to set up a steel band at a school and a carnival celebration.
01:38 It was a controversial move given the highly religious atmosphere of the country at the
01:42 time, but Jocelyn Francois, who was one of the head girls at SAGS, is grateful for it.
01:48 "Carnival, calypso and pan were an integral part of our cultural diet as Dr. Mahes gave
01:56 some of us village girls the chance to experience these activities in a safe space at SAGS."
02:05 Dr. Mahes was never married and she had no biological children.
02:10 "However, Anna Mahes' influence extended to the thousands of women and teenagers who passed
02:19 through St. Augustine Girls during her 32 years as principal.
02:26 This is a legacy she leaves behind."
02:30 Her brother said even after retirement, his sister, who loved beach houses, cookouts and
02:35 crosswood puzzles, continued to serve the country in different aspects by way of her
02:39 membership in the Red Cross, the Caribbean Examination Council, the Teaching Service
02:44 Commission and the Board of Scotiabank, among others.
02:47 She also served as a temporary government senator at one point.
02:52 In tribute, Justice Alice York Suhan said Dr. Mahes was more than her stealing contributions.
02:58 "She was a person of humanity.
03:03 To the SAGS community, she was a mother figure, nurturing, guiding, loving, caring, inspiring.
03:15 She looked after us and she looked out for us."
03:21 Dr. Mahes is also being remembered as having a magnetic personality which drew those around
03:27 her close together.
03:29 Among prominent figures in attendance at the funeral service were President Christine
03:33 Kangaloo, former First Lady Zuleiha Hassan Ali, former Port of Spain Mayor Joel Martinez
03:39 and former Minister Vasant Barath.
03:42 Alicia Boucher, TV6 News.
03:45 [BLANK_AUDIO]
