What is the name of your school?

School, I believe leaves a special memory in the minds of all of us that how old we ever become still we remember something about our schools.It may be our favorite teachers or the dreaded ones,unforgettable friends or unruly bullies, the old classroom or the new cricket cap,what not,everyone at least remembers something about his school that he could remember whenever he regresses to his childhood memory.The name of our school that our parents taught us to say before the guests,then it becomes part of our own identity.God knows how many times we tell to others that we belong to blah blah school,how many forms we have written its name in forms,resume and else.But often we thought about the name of the school which we take into our identity.Putting it simple the name of school has a persons name in it ,many schools are established inh memorial or honor of special persons,but often we never exert our effort to try to know who is/was this person whose name has become part of our identity.

Burgess English Higher Secondary School Bilaspur is the result of years of persistent efforts of the principal, staff and members of the school governing body and most importantly the Diocese of Jabalpur,Churches of North India (C.N.I.).

History:
Burgess English Medium School was established by the efforts of the managing committee the Rt. Rev. F. C. Jonathan, Mrs. K. F. Jonathan, Dr. Mrs. F. Choudhary and Bishop G. B. Singh in the year 1967.
Ms. Z. Rahim the Principal of Burgess Memorial Girls Hr. Sec. School and Ms. Bharos as the Manager started the school with just seven children, in a portico and then in the dinning hall. In a very short time KG I and KG II classes were started. Within a span of 3-4 years the Primary and Middle classes came into existence.
After the retirement of Ms. Bharos Mrs. S. Scott took over as Head Mistress.
Gradually the number of students increased and the school took the shape of a full fledged Hr. Sec. school with Science and Arts faculty.
Burgess Memorial English Medium has a close relation to the Burgess Memorial Girls Higher sec. School,which in fact can be said as its precursor and both schools share same campus.Burgess Memorial Hr. Sec school was f India has long been the destination for missionaries the Stone Camp Movement and their missionaries from the Unite States, Canada, Great Britain and Australians deserve a special mention in this regard.

Burgess Memorial Girls Higher Sec.School

MISSIONS OF THE C. W. B. M.
1. Girls' Orphanage, Deoghur, India. 2. Torrington Chapel, Jamaica. 3. Girls' Orphanage, Bayamon, Porto Rico. 4. Mission House, King's Gate, Jamaica. 5. Mission House, Bilaspur, India. 6. Oberlin Chapel Jamaica.

History:
The first stone Campbell Movement missionaries sent to India where four single women: Ada Boyd, Mary Kingbury, Mary Grabiel and Laura Kinsey. They were sent by the Christian Womens Board of Mission (CWBM), America in the year 1883. The first three of the above mentioned made Bilaspur their first station and started Girls Orphanage. Thus on 6th November 1885 Chanta Girls School was founded with sixteen students and one Rajput Teacher. This proved to be the precursor to the present day institution- Burgess Memorial Girl’s School.

Though the early work was slow it was deliberate and the fruit of their labours became evident with the growing successes. By the year 1898 there were nearly 300 students. During this time Miss Bertha Lohr (1892-93) gave her valuable resources to the school.

In 1920 a big amount was collected in the memory of Mrs. O A Burgess (CWBM President 1890 – 1902) and was given to the Chanta Girls School. Thus began a new era in the history of the school and subsequently the school came to be known as the Burgess Memorial Girl’s School, Bilaspur.

A plot was purchased and many buildings were made at the cost of nearly one Lac of Rupees. Miss Ada Boyd, the first missionary also donated a large amount. With such financial help the fully equipped school building was inaugurated in 1926, by his Excellency Sir M. Butler.

During this course, Miss Mattie W. Burgess (1893 – 1909) gave her services and leadership to the school. The school has a synthesis of missions and had a distinct privilege of activity of both America Mission and the Canadian Mission activity. An example of the valuable service rendered by the Canadians is Miss Emma Jane Ennis (1909 – 1914). She served as a missionary – teacher for more that three decades in the school and eventually reached the position of Director. She was awarded several medals by the British monarchy for her service in India. Her love, concern & compassion for the people of India can be seen clearly when she wrote “If the people of Canada and the U.S.A knew the Indian People as I know them, there is nothing they would not do for them, and it would not be a sacrifice.”

MISSIONARIES OF THE CHRISTIAN WOMEN'S BOARD OF MISSIONS.
1. Annie Lackey, Deoghur, India. 2. Miss Zonetta Vance, Bina, India. 3. Miss Adelaide Gail Frost, Mahoba, India. 4. Miss Mary Graybiel, Mahoba, India. 5. Mr. and Mrs. E. C. Davis, Ohio Mission, India. 6. Miss Mary Kingsbury, Bilaspur, India. 7. Cora Evans Alderman, Monterey, Mex. 8. A. G. Alderman, Monterey, Mex., deceased. 9. Ella M. Maddock, Deoghur, India. 10. Bessie Farrer Madsen, Pendre Road, India. 11. W. J. Menzies, Rath, India. 12. Miss Mattie Burgess, Deoghur, India. 13. Miss Florence Mills, Bilaspur, India. 14. Norah Collins, Bayamon, Porto Rico. 15. Hattie Menzies, Rath, India.

Later, Dr. Miss Vida C. Elliot (1941- 1951), a missionary of the United Christian Missionary Society, took over from Miss Ennis in 1941 an gave her valuable service to the school Mrs. Mary Pollard, another missionary of the UCMS, America, in her brief snits and Mrs. Miriam Terry (1958 – 59) also gave their prime efforts, and under them the school scaled further new heights.
Thus It was missionary efforts accompanied with empathy and affection that the city of Bilaspur which was one of remotest area in Central India was able to receive two great institutions of character and career building.It is thus pertinent to know about Mrs A.O. Burgess ,whose service and devotion to The Jesus and His people,impelled others to drive their efforts for the betterment of the people in her kind memory.

MRS. O. A. BURGESS.

MRS. O. A. BURGESS.

CHRISTIAN WOMAN'S BOARD OF MISSIONS.
1. Mrs. O. A. Burgess, President 1890 to 1902. 2. Nancy E. Atkinson, Pres. 3. Anna B. Grey, Rec. Sec. 4. Mary J. Judson, Treas. 5. Helen E. Moses, Cor. Sec. 6. Mattie E. Pounds, Superintendent Young People's Department. 7. Effie Cunningham, Vice-President.

Nannie Ledgerwood was born in Washburn, Ill., July the twelfth, 1836. As a child she was slight and delicate in body, retiring and modest in disposition, absolutely truthful in her nature and possessed of a resolute will.
The home into which Nannie Ledgerwood was born was thoroughly Christian. Her father and mother were whole-hearted in their devotion to Christ. The maternal grandfather, Henry Palmer, was one of the pioneer preachers of the Churches of Christ, and a man of great originality and forcefulness. His teaching brought Otis A. Burgess, Henry Minier and many others into the church. When sixteen years old she left her home in Washburn to attend Eureka College. Her health did not permit her to finish the course of study but the influence of her stay there was felt throughout her life. On October the seventeenth, 1854, when she was eighteen years old, she became the wife of Otis Asa Burgess. She never strove to be a second and a smaller copy of her illustrious husband, but with womanly devotion, in her own realm of thought and action, she ordered her life to fit into his; guarding his honor, strengthening his highest resolutions, tempering his impetuosity and supplying the touch of gentleness and grace needed in his bold, strong nature.
After her husband's death she returned to the old home at Forrest, Ill., where Mr. Burgess' body had been laid to rest, that she might there make a home for her father and mother. She remained until after her mother's death. At this time the National President and [444] Secretary of the Christian Woman's Board of Missions, Mrs. Maria Jameson and Mrs. Sarah Shortridge, wrote her urging her to come to Indianapolis in order that she might be of more service to the work of this organization. After careful deliberation, she decided to make a new home in Indianapolis, Ind., where she had formerly lived when her husband had been successively minister of the Central church, President of Northwestern Christian University and Butler College.
When the Christian Woman's Board of Missions was organized, in 1874, Mrs. Burgess was elected to serve as National Treasurer, which position she filled until 1878. While she was a resident, of Illinois she served as a state officer. In 1887 she was chosen vice-President and in 1890 she was made President of the organization. In this position she remained until God released her.
As an executive she was strong, wise, prudent and forceful. Her counsel was safe, her judgment almost unerring and her faith strong. She knew the work intimately, loved it tenderly yet wisely, and served it with an absolutely unselfish devotion. Her public ministrations were but an incident in her services to the organization. Twelve months in each year she thought of, planned for and faithfully served the work. She had breadth of vision, knowledge of men and women, and above all, faith in God. These she brought unreservedly to the service of the Christian Woman's Board of Missions and by these she blessed its enterprises. Every field in which the organization labored was thoroughly familiar to her. She knew the missionaries personally and prayed for them by name. She longed for the enlargement of the work and was never satisfied with any attainment made.
In January, 1897, her father died. She nursed him through a long sickness with a never-wearying devotion that, unconsciously to herself, consumed her strength. After the strain was lifted the reaction came. That dreaded disease, the grip, found in her a victim, and so exhausted her vitality that she never really recovered from this first attack. Each succeeding winter, despite the greatest care, this disease found and struck her, until, worn and exhausted, she was no longer able to rally her forces to withstand the inroads of pain and weakness.
She attended the National Convention, at Minneapolis, in October, 1901.
She was not strong enough to attend many of the meetings of the convention, but she met many whose presence had made glad for her the days of yore.
Returning to her home, the reaction did not come at once but a grave change for the worse came the middle of November. Until a few weeks before her home-going her splendid courage never faltered. She hoped and planned to be well.
At midnight, Monday, May the twelfth, 1902, the spirit of Mrs. O. A. Burgess freed itself from the pain-weakened body and went to be forever with the Lord

-HELEN E. MOSES

If we want a love message to be heard, it has got to be sent out. To keep a lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it.

-Mother Teresa

Refrences:
1.John T. Brown, ed.Churches of Christ (1904)
2.CHRISTIAN WOMAN'S BOARD OF MISSIONS BY NANCY E. ATKINSON.
3.Diocese of Jabalpur ,Churches of North India ( C.N.I.) website

All the world's a stage......

(continued.)Theater today has great artiste,writers,technicians and so on.But what it is lacking i mean what i feel theater is missing the relevance for a common person.Specialization of theater i feel has moved it away from the common folks and their lives.Unlike the actors earlier who were also living the life they are playing in the naacha ,actors today are college graduated,learned ,imitative and artificial.The script and the dialogue don't look as coming from the intense struggle inside the mind and hearts of the people but a well thought and structured storyline.Habib Tanvir Saab i feel was one the few actors who understood this thing .His actors were mostly uneducated and village folks like Govindram Nirmalkar,but capable to portray the feelings.Though he was well learned in hindustani as well as urdu still he liked to stage his dramas, based on rural Chhattisgarh themes, in chhattisagarhi language.To admire him ,once actor Nandita Das asked him could she join his theater group?He told her that first she need to learn to speak in chhattisgarhi.

Still organisations like IPTA and its Chhattisgarh chapter,Spic-Macay and others are doing their best to promote and keeping alive the theatre in chhattisgarh.

All the world's a stage................

The word drama comes from the Greek word to do or to act.Natya or rang , in hindi ,a microcosm of the real world created on a stage.Drama is on of our ancient art ,who doesn't knows Kalidas,the one waho has made his place among that galaxy of stars where each name represents a soul of an epoch.Drama is such a intricate and complex subject that whatever knowledge i possess it will be like a drop in ocean to comment on it.Instead i will dwell upon a little observation that i found to write something on drama though not a comment or a critique but still something important.
Like every other place in India ,in chhattisgarh Drama too has a long but living history.Famously known as NAACHA, Naacha in which predominantly act was played with dialogue in rhythmic form accompanied by tabla or dhol or harmonium.It was a part of rural social life rather than just being a thing of entertainment .But yes entertainment was important in Naacha as to attract a tired farmer or a labor out of his misery ,would not had been possible if the naach or drama could not entertain him that is uplift him out of his misery and take to a relatively happier world though for a few hours only.As my grandfather told me Naccha or Ramlila had been an important activity just more than entertaining.He told ,that Naacha was played by mostly laborers, servants , keepers and others who had so much anger against the conditions imposed on them by the contemporary feudal system.They needed a way to vent off their anger as well as show the talent they have which otherwise was not appreciated in the society.Even the Maalguzaars and Zamindars knew and understood the sarcastical dialogues in the drama.But they endured it consciously so as to thwart the greater evil, a revolt by the peasants.Theme often touched the exploitative system of Zamindari and caste but ostentatiously it looked something different.Darama was enlightened by the social issues like dowry ,approachability etc which were so critical issue that they can only be discussed in jovial environmnet of a naacha otherwise these issues had ability to strike a major riot or something like that.
Drama too was thus enriched by the feeling that the actors had in their hearts which often brought a realism in their act.My mother often tell that in Chandeni Gonda ,act showed the torments a mother-in-law undergoes in hands of her newly married daughter- in-law ,the audience would sometimes get so emotional and agitated that they would utter abuse against the actress playing the role of the daughter and often throw shoes on her across the stage.
The important thing was that people who in morning were peasants and laborers turned into a different being at evening in the Naacha.
The theater has progressed much since from then .Dedicated teams and people today glitter the field.The scope of stories has too enlarged and diversified.(continued...)