Dear Editor,
My letter concerns a remarkable son of Guyana, Norman E. Cameron. He was an outstanding alumnus of Queen’s College, winning the Guyana Scholarship in 1921. He returned to Guyana after graduating from Cambridge, founded a school, and later returned to Queen’s College as a Senior Master and Deputy Principal for a period of almost three decades.
Over the years he wrote numerous essays, memoranda and articles on the cultural and political life in Guyana, assembled an anthology of Guyanese poetry, and wrote several dramatic works, “The Evolution of the Negro”, four mathematics text books, and a history of Queen’s College. Much of this work he subsidised freely from his own resources, because he understood its importance to the development of his beloved country.
He later became Professor Emeritus at the University of Guyana occupying the Chair of Mathematics, and was awarded the M.B.E., the A.A. and the Sir Alfred Victor Crane Gold Medal for his contribution to education in Guyana.
This year, the alumni of Queen’s College in Toronto extended and re-published his history of the school, to honour his memory and his contributions to both the school and the wider Guyanese society. It will be featured at the upcoming Q.C. reunion in Guyana later this month.
Many years ago Dr, Joycelynne Loncke recognized the importance of his work, and captured his life story in her “Norman E. Cameron, the Man and his Works”, published in 1981 by the Ministry of Education. She also honoured the new edition of the school history with a biographical sketch of the author. This month at the reunion, we will again pay tribute to his extraordinary contributions to Guyana, and we invite the entire country to celebrate with us.
Yours faithfully,
Patrick Chan
Queen’s College of
Guyana
Alumni Association
(Toronto)
patchanmail@sympati
co.ca