FORMER STUDENT GRATEFUL FOR MR. GRIFFIN

I am one of Loyola Griffin’s former students from Charlottetown Rural High School, and I am very glad to hear he and others are safe following the fire that broke out on Harley Street.

It was mentioned in the July 23, 2019 Guardian article that while he lost most of his possessions due to damage in the fire, it was the loss of letters from former students that was of particular loss. I was one of those former students who wrote to him regarding my experience in his classes and I am not surprised he is continuing to “sound the alarm” when things aren’t right.

“Mr. Griffin,” as I knew him, sounded the alarm for me when I was a student at CRHS. I wrote how grateful I was for his persistence and unfaltering insistence that I apply myself and make a genuine and concerted effort in order to improve my school performance (in his math class).

At the time, I was not grateful, but 27 years on now, I still tell people about the teacher who lit the fire under my backside and motivated me to prove myself. I would not have gotten to where I am today without that push.

If I had not improved my high school grades I would not have been able to get into university, which launched me on the trajectory that has led to a rewarding career that I absolutely love - one that contributes to the health and benefit of society. I was on that trajectory at just the right time to meet the most wonderful woman I have ever met. Because of the path I took, I have been able to realize my childhood dreams of being a husband, a father to two wonderful girls, and a gentleman scientist.

All of these outcomes can be traced back to a very uncomfortable encounter I had with him and a vice-principal at CRHS regarding my performance, and the changes I started to make from that point on. Oh, and I do A LOT of complex math on a daily basis now.

Thank you Mr Griffin. As ever, you are a scholar and a gentleman. Dr. Jake Pushie, Dept. of Surgery, University of Saskatchewan