“Many believe he was an officer who stumbled upon the halls of this school. On the contrary, he knew where he was going; he was on his way to a fresh adventure, to his first job, as an Assistant Master at Trinity”. When Major Gordon Burrows and Trinity crossed paths in 1946, Trinity was undergoing many major reformations and changes, such as the Church Missionary Society deciding to hand over control of the School to an independent Board of Governors in 1940, the appointment of Mr C.E. Simithraaratchy the first Ceylonese and Old Boy as Principal, and the construction of the new College Hall, (which was gifted by AHT de Soysa, an Old Boy) to replace the Old Hall which was demolished to make way for the new Hall. Early Life G.A.E Burrows was born on 20th February 1915 in Forest Hill, South London, where his father was curate at the local Presbyterian Church. He was the second of four children – 2 boys and 2 girls. When he was studying for the Ministry to be a Priest, War broke out and he joined the British Army as an Intelligence officer in the Royal Intelligence Corps. During the period of the Second World War, the South East Asia Command (SEAC) was created by the Allies in August 1943 and was based in Delhi. Major Gordon Burrows served in Lord Louis Mountbatten’s staff as an Intelligence officer after the SEAC headquarters moved in April 1944 to Peradeniya Gardens in Ceylon. He rose to the position of Chief Intelligence Officer to Lord Louis Mountbatten. The SEAC at the time was a crucial command post for the co-ordination of most defenses of allied forces. Also, the recapture of Burma by England was coordinated by the SEAC. During his time at SEAC, Major Gordon Burrows went to Church on Sundays at St Paul’s, Kandy. There he got to know members of the local community, some of whom became lifelong friends. This proved seminal, for it was one of them who suggested to him, after the war had ended, that he consider staying in Kandy, becoming a school-teacher. He was an Intelligence officer, a Teacher, a Housemaster and finally Co-Vice Principal at Trinity College. He had also risen through the ranks during the World War II to become a Major. After the war ended, Major Gordon Burrows stayed in Ceylon as it was then known. He fell in love with the beauty of the island amidst all chaos in the world. Playing the piano at the College hall Whilst he was an army officer, he once played the piano as part of a recital at the College Hall, for he was a concert-quality pianist. Here he met Mr. Simitharachchy with whom he was acquainted. After being invited to spend another year in Ceylon, in 1946 he agreed to stay working as a Latin teacher at College. He returned to England in 1947 to consider whether his decision was not spontaneous and what he really wanted to do with his life, whether to teach in Ceylon, or not. Yet, Trinity had got under his skin in that brief period of time and so, having given serious thought to being lured by the burning hot sun, the golden beaches, and the bright moon, in all of which he never lost his delight, Maj. Gordon Burrows returned to Trinity in 1949 as Co-Vice Principal, taking up residence within the school premises. A natural born teacher For fourteen more years he laboured here at College educating young Trinitians in Latin and English, and being the natural born teacher he was, Mr. Burrows (as addressed at the time) enjoyed teaching as did his students have the same enjoyment of learning. Mr. Burrows did not waste a moment of the boys’ constant pursuit of curiosity and was remarkable in inspiring others with his own enthusiasm. While his methods of teaching were unorthodox, to say the least, his results were always spectacular. At times when the boys did well in his lessons of Latin, they were taken by Mr. Burrows to the swimming pool in what was then called the King’s Pavilion, today the Kandy President’s House. It was the Kandy Residence of Ceylon’s Governor, Lord Soulbury. This was possible due to the special relationship that Mr. Gordon Burrows had with the British Administration. Mrs Pat Mr. Burrows had been here four years when he went off home on his first holiday. Although he returned single, a few were let into the secret that he was soon flying back to get married. Trinity waited in trepidation …. but none need have worried. When he went on furlough from College to return to the United Kingdom, the best thing that Mr. Burrows ever did for himself was to get married. They were married on 3rd September 1954 in Ballymoney, Northern Ireland at the Presbyterian Church there, and soon after arriving in England they sailed by ship for their honeymoon, a two-week voyage, from Southampton to Colombo. He returned with the demure”Mrs. Pat” (as she was known to the boys) as his bride, and he also received his appointment as the House Master of Alison House. Mr. Burrows along with Mrs. Pat were extremely good towards the boys and looked after the Alisonians very well. “Mrs. Pat” was a foster mother to all the Alisonians as remembered by those who had the privilege of growing up under the care of Mr. & Mrs. Burrows. For with the continuation of teaching at College, Mr Burrows was successful in raising a family of his own on this little island which he so adored. In fact, they gave a Ceylonese name to each of their children, their two sons being named Peter Ananda and Michael Rohan and the daughter being named Alison Sriyani. Many were the eventful days for Mr Burrows and his family . One such was recalled by an old boy of the time, Mr Sriyantha Simon Senaratna. “I recall an incident when I was a senior Alisonian and a Prefect of the House. Peter as a little child, got onto the ledge of the Alison building and started walking along the ledge to our and Mr. & Mrs. Burrows’ absolute horror. We were at the bottom holding sheets to catch him if he fell, but thank God he reached the railing and safety”. Major Burrows and the Choir If Mr. Burrows brought freshness to the classroom, to the Choir he brought dedication and a true sense of its real role in worship in the Chapel. Gone were the days when they were a group of shanghaied singers, partly due to a lengthy period of absence of leadership following Ms.Valesca Reimann’s departure from school in 1940. Maj Burrows instead made the boys into a disciplined group of singers who sang because they enjoyed it, were conscious of their responsibilities and were willing to practice the long and arduous hours that Mr. Burrows demanded so as to reach that pitch of perfection he insisted on. On 1st December, 1950, the BBC World Service broadcast Trinity’s Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols to the world on the “World Service” as part of its Christmas Programme. The Chapel would come alive on the day of the Carol Service, carefully and beautifully lit up and filled with students, parents, past pupils and staff. Under his care the Carol Service became the much loved occasion that it is today, but to him it was only one of many services throughout the year for which the Choir practiced hard and regularly. And so, a chorister of his, Maj. Richard Hermon said “For my part, my memories of the choir are plentiful and happy !! I joined the choir solely to cut Prep on Thursdays, as that was when choir practice was held. I remember the trips to S Thomas’ College, Mt Lavinia where we stayed when
