Debo Awosika-Olumo (Aka Bobo) -1970-74 set
President GHMIGROUP INC. Fellow of American College of Epidemiology and Professor of Public Health Administration University of Maryland Global Campus

There are many lessons of “be prepared” taught by Brother Thomas, during my memorable time at Saint Joseph’s College Ondo.
While in form 1, one of our new entrants, Mr. Henry Fasedemi (Jaguar), brought boxing gloves to the school. This experience made many of us venture into boxing as one of the recreation sports in the school. Brother Thomas got interested in this sport and bought more gloves, and also gave the rule that no one should hit anyone in the abdomen (tummy) during weight classified bouts. There was this particular day, I was wearing a top over my navy-blue shorts instead of the khaki shorts after classes. Brother Thomas gave a go-ahead to the person I was fighting with to hit me in the stomach. This individual hit me in the tummy as instructed by a wink from Brother Thomas. I was expecting brother Thomas to discipline the guy that flouted the rule, instead, he told me to go and change and wear the correct dress code for the period. Hence, the joke was on me. The next “be prepared” lesson was when some of the new entrants brought different musical instruments to the school. We started a ragtag musical group. Brother Thomas got interested and decided to make the group more formal with the acquisition of more sophisticated musical instruments. He decided to go to Ibadan with some students to buy the new musical instruments. Fortunately, some of us were just strolling around. Of the four-six of us strolling around, only two students were wearing the correct dress code. He stopped and told dress code folks to go and change to their colors and accompanied him to Ibadan. These two experiences taught me the lesson, to always be prepared and obey the constituted laws of any community of residency.

I am grateful to God that I have the opportunity to share these two experiences on how God used a man early in my life to teach me this important lesson of life.

Happy Birthday and Many Happy Returns of the Day in perfect health Brother Francis Thomas McCrea