A classmate destined for sainthood
By Norman Da Costa
I have known Luis Saldanha for many
years. Despite excelling academically as evidenced by his hold on first place
in any class, he was down to earth. He was no saint in class. He got up to
pranks, but not as badly or as often as some of us (no names mentioned).
Consequently, he missed out on periodic visits to the principal’s office
occupied over the years by Father Comerford, Father Mckay and Neves Pereira.
The rest of us did so regularly to be whacked where the sun never
shines.
Fr. Comerford was by far the worst
of the three as his whacks stung. Luis’s interactions with the head honchos
were limited to receiving some award or other – and there were numerous.
Apart from excelling in class, Luis
also happened to be a superb halfback for our school’s field hockey team that
in 1963 advanced to the final of the Nairobi schools’ competition only to lose
to Duke of Gloucester. He was a thinking man’s player looking to exploit the
opposition with defence-splitting passes and timely tackles.
After graduating from Dr. Ribeiro
Goan School in 1963 Luis was one of the few classmates who kept in touch regularly after returning from Rome. He would come down to the Daily Nation
offices at least once or twice a month along with Edward Moniz. My Daily Nation
workmate and classmate, the late Polly Fernandes, would join us for coffee and
samosas across the street at Keby’s, a well-known Nairobi eatery. The plates
were always wiped clean as Polly made sure there was nothing left behind. May
Polly rest in eternal peace.
Even though we parted ways in 1976
when Delfine and I, also a classmate of Luis’s, immigrated to Canada, Luis was
a phone length away. I know that he also rings several other classmates and
friends. We can always expect a call from him on our birthdays and on our
wedding anniversary.
In an excellent in-depth piece on
Luis by Daniela Oliviera of Contact Chaplaincy in London, she mentioned that he
wanted to become a priest at the age of 12 and that was something he never
revealed to us.
But our entire class, the school
and every Goan and Kenyan is proud of what Luis has accomplished as a person
who is legally blind. But this is typical of the Luis we know. Nothing will
stop him from achieving the goals he sets his sights on. He says his impaired
eyesight has not robbed him of his vision to serve and we believe him.
Fr. Luis became the first Catholic
priest to acquire a degree in scriptures from the Biblical Institute and the
Hebrew Institute of Jerusalem. He was a chaplain at Kenya University and later
appointed Secretary and Procurator of the Archdiocese of Nairobi. He has
a string of other achievements all this with a failing eyesight. But that’s
Luis. No hurdle is too high to climb.
Delfine and I had the pleasure of
meeting Luis at the iconic New Stanley Hotel when we travelled to Nairobi in
2018. We reminisced about our school days and enjoyed a few laughs.
As you all know Luis was ordained
by Maurice Cardinal Otunga on Nov. 17, 1973 and this year he completes his 50th year
as a priest. Congratulations to Luis who is still in high demand to say masses
across Nairobi, and he wows the congregations with his powerful oratory. Luis
hasn’t allowed his lack of vision to set him back. On the contrary, Luis strides
ahead with confidence and with what he has achieved many Kenyans feel that our
classmate is headed for sainthood.
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