1984 Diamond Pioneers

One bright day in September 1979, about 80 innocent teenage girls assembled on the

compound of Akwatia, at a school called St.Rose’s, to start a journey in which our little

minds were to be shaped. It was not onlya journey to pursue academic excellence,

but one that was to bring us together assisters from different mothers. The seed

of great bond of friendship was sowed onthat day and was to germinate and flourish admirably.

On entry through the St. Rose’s gate, youare hit with the natural beauty of the place which makes you question if you are still in Ghana. The well-maintained green lawns and plants against the white pebbled

streets just compelled you to walk in with joy. The design of the place was clearly not

like the usual public Secondary Schools. If you were fortunate to spot any of our headmistresses in their nun habits you realized this was definitely not one of thecookie-cut ministry of education secondary schools.

The form one ritual of getting a colourful bedspread was the cherry on the icing, making our dormitories look beautiful. As you acclimatized to the school, the almost military school discipline grew on you with the advance in years and forms. Throughout the years, even the best of us got into trouble for one thing or the other. We formed friendship bonds through the experiences in our classrooms and dormitories which have lasted 40 years after school. Reflecting on our time in St. Rose’s fills us with nostalgia and fond memories. 

As we celebrate our journey and anniversary, we look back on some of the simplest things we found and created joy in. Whether it was the loud “Aya” from Zita letting us know she was around and had caught someone misbehaving, or Sister Solamen appearing silently like a ghost with no warning. Ms. Mensah was also their support to instil law and order. We got used to the Friday farm activities which taught us all how to maintain a productive plantation and plantain farm which we had meals from sometimes. Partnering with unknown supporters in Germany, we would enjoy certain foods from Germany like the popular Grutzen breakfast. As we matured and grew older, we would understand some of the work ethic and religious principles instilled in us and why. Various happenings and anecdotes over the years kept us going. For example, one day, class was a bit noisy, and Sister Solamen came into 2A and got us standing in attention and at ease just like little soldiers. To our shock and surprise, Aida burst out laughing, annoying Sr. Solamen further and created more trouble for the class. Or the incident where a snake lizard decided to join the class and our teacher Andre Marie climbed the teachers table and Sister Solamen walked in to see what the commotion was in class. Whether in class A or B, we loved to win competitions in all areas be it sports or entertainment. It was with this spirit we got into the great “carrying of platform” debacle, where a platform we were carrying almost fell indeliberately on a young teacher who was trying to assist us. The teachers thought we did it otherwise, since they assumed we were disgruntled that we were not the Form supposed to carry the platform. The teachers, in solidarity with their colleague, gave us stern punishments – verbal or writing lines, especially the dreaded long Psalm 119. We remember Sister Vincentia’s outburst on us “You should have tried it on me, I would have slapped you, look at their faces!!”  

On another occasion, there was The Kenkey Party, as narrated by Juliet Sasu. “We were in Form 3.  One morning as some of us usually did, we made our way to the fence behind the Home Science block through the farm to buy Kenkey from Mr. Doe Zag’s wife. Unknown to us, Sr. Zita was in one of the rooms observing us and writing names. Later, she came to the classroom to call out names of those she saw and asked them to stand. She was sure she had seen one last person who had failed to stand up but couldn’t make out the person. So, she threatened those standing, but no one was willing to betray their sister. The sister (yours truly) thought she was going to walk free.... until Lawrencia Owusu Ansah for whatever reason gave into the pressure and said “Juliet Sasu”. Sr. Zita couldn’t believe it and asked me to stand. I couldn’t deny it. Needless to say, we were punished to weed behind one of the classroom blocks. I never “forgave” Lawrencia or forgot the incident.” This was Sr. Zita for you.

Other moments worth mentioning, as recalled by Catherine Selormey: “My first encounter with Patricia and Aida was on the first day in school after our parents had left. My too known self was thinking I was so tough, saw Patricia asking Aida questions and I quickly went to stop her because I thought she was bullying her. I asked Patricia sternly in twi: ‘Why are you worrying the child?’, and she replied ‘I just wanted us to be friends.’ And the rest is history. There was also a Tuesday in Andre Marie’s class, when he asked Olivia to construct a sentence in French. At that time, Sr Solamen had taken her weekly trip to Accra, Olivia stood up and said “Sola mei ete Ga”, which meant Sola had gone to Accra, ...in GA language instead of French!”

Another incident: The Magic of Prof Diego’s Palava Sauce. Some of us who were not Home Science students liked to visit the block on days when our colleagues cooked or sewed to watch Ms. Mensah evaluate them and to possibly see if we could get a taste of the food. On this day, a dish on display was Palava Sauce in a white Pyrex bowl. When Ms. Mensah got to the table, she shook the bowl, there was no movement – the stew was as hard as you can imagine. She tried turning the bowl in so many ways to see whether the sauce will move but to no avail. Apparently, our sister culprit wanted to avoid watery stew not to incur Ms. Mensah’s wrath, but unfortunately, the assessment had taken longer, resulting in the stew being stiff. The drama then began. Ms Mensah started “Shieee ei ei ei, s3 eny3 Professor Diego nkoaa na etumi y3 magic oo! Hw3 s3 Asomis3 nso ay3 magic.. Hw3 stew nu..pia me a )se menk), woso me a, )se me nwoso” What happened afterward is better imagined than said.

The nice pebble street also became a source of punishment for some of our naughty dormitories. It was reassuring to sometimes hear Sr Zita tell Ms Mensah to take over and watch over us while we slept. We were well cared for, no doubt about that. Our parents were assured of that, and that we were focused and studying. Our year group birthed the first sixth form class. For this class, we had some old student returnees and a few new students who adapted very well to the school culture. From Spirited pep rallies to late night prep sessions, our new distinctive blue skirts with white tops made us stand out as Sixth Formers. To be honest, sixth form also gave us subtle privilege with regards to less “helicopter-monitoring” from the nuns because you were more matured and experienced. However, I can’t help but ask if it’s still “Bredze Bun” on Mondays with nkontommire or the menu has changed over the years. It is funny how after all these years we get to laugh at some of the mishaps and incidents like when Sis Zita was looking for Pearl to punish her, but mistakenly thought Comfort Kontoh was her and so she pounced and yelled at poor Comfort only to shamefully realize her mistake. Of course, she doubled Pearl’s punishment because of that. These are some of the fond memories St. Roses imprinted on our hearts, and having to share a dorm with all nineteen (19) of us made us forge bonds and share experiences that shaped us into the individuals we are today.