When Petrotrin closed its doors in 2018, it became clear that many Trinbagonians were unaware that the state-owned oil company also supported a historically important and still important oilfield community on Trinidad’s southwestern peninsula.
This community, due to the century-old oil industry, has a comprehensive infrastructure of roads, bridges, water and power plants, residential housing, schools, medical centers, hospitals, farms (beef, dairy and citrus), focused recreational clubs in the family with accompanying sports fields (football, hockey and cricket), cycling velodromes, basketball, tennis and squash courts, as well as swimming pools – and all this faced the solemn circumstances of closing.
In all fairness to Petrotrin, efforts had been made over the years to hand over many of the non-oil assets to the community, but an exercise of that magnitude takes time and time ran out.
Thus began the effort to save Camp Beach Community School, also known as Camp Beach Private School.
Originally built around 1940 for the children of foreign oil workers from England, Canada, Australia, etc… the primary school started accepting children of local senior management staff from 1962 when Trinidad and Tobago became independent. From 1998 the school was opened to the wider community.
With its motto, “Everything we do, we do it with all our might” – Camp Beach School has always been a testament to the standards of excellence that Trinidad and Tobago’s post-independence energy sector prided itself on.
The school secured prizes in the art and essay writing competition organized by Angostora Ltd in 1976 to celebrate 100 years of business in this country.
Then in 1978, a year after installing its science room, the school was named the overall winner of the national science competition organized by ASETT (Trinidad and Tobago Science Education Association).
The Camp Camp complex was one of approximately 15 self-sustaining residential quarters built with military precision in the middle of the tropical jungle by early oil pioneers who would have served in the British Army and Allied forces during World Wars I and II .
This explains why these compounds were called camps. Beach Camp is located on the south coast of Trinidad at the end of Beach Road, Palo Seco.
When we caught up with Michele Celestine, senior counsel and chair of the Camp Beach School Board since January 2019, her reasons for creating a committee made up of past students, parents, teachers and community members, to save the school, were rooted in preserving the positive aspects of the oilfield heritage.
Her sense of patriotism and love for the oilfield community was clear as she explained, “Something had to be done—this school nurtured generations of young people who went on to make positive contributions both locally and internationally. This space matters.”
She explained. “It is a dream for every environmentalist and the best place for a child to receive early education. Beach Camp has idyllic views and lush green lawns to play on. Flowering and fruit trees, fresh clean air, sounds of nature—ocean waves, birds singing, and tree leaves rustling in the wind are part of the daily environment. What child could ask for more?”
Michele’s mother, Kathleen Celestine, was the local school’s first principal with a teaching career there that spanned 40 years.
“I wouldn’t have been able to sleep at night if the school had just closed and future generations of children didn’t benefit from the legacy of Beach Camp School with its core oilfield community values. art library, science room and well-developed sports and music programs,” she said.
Carolyn Paul, accountant, FCCA, school treasurer, is also a past pupil and daughter of Clive Paul (dec) who was senior production supervisor at the time of his retirement.
Together, they formed an Alumni Association and drafted a business proposal to submit to Petrotrin’s transition board, which was approved and accepted. The proposal mentioned the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal No. 4—Quality education, as a principle on which the school was founded and on which it must continue.
Since then, the Beach Camp School Alumni Association has had no trouble attracting members as all past students have nothing but fond memories and are happy to give back to the community that nurtured them. Interestingly, past pupils of the school had already started researching her story since 2012 when Chips Reid, now based in Canada, visited to do some research on his mother’s memories.
Alumni members have made tremendous financial sacrifices to help defray the operating and maintenance costs of the school. Local contractors and suppliers have also helped. CEPEP cuts the grass. It is truly a community school. In 2019, the school hosted a visit from two of its many notable alumni – Ian Porter, retired vice president of the World Bank in Asia, and John Porter, retired professor of International Health at the School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in London.
Strong institutions
They were welcomed by Michele, Carolyn, past apprentice Nicholas Jackman, Group Chief Financial Officer, ANSA McAL Ltd, along with board members Rosabelle Nibbs (accounting technician) and trainer Dennis Cox.
Ian left them with these inspiring words: “Never hesitate to build and protect strong institutions. Every successful developed country needs them.”
John reminded them that for many generations of global citizens, Camp Camp will always be home, so it’s important to keep the home fires burning.
In honor of the contribution of these working men and women, which is a national story that must be told, the school’s offerings are expanding to include an Oilfield Community Museum.
The bookmarks will feature short inspiring biographies of petroleum pioneers such as Greville Jones, Ken Birchwood and David McKnight, the first indigenous petroleum engineer, geologist and administrative manager respectively.
These bookmarks are being printed to be distributed to school children and surrounding schools. This initiative, along with a range of children’s books, is planned for the future.
Michele Celestine is a Senior Counsel Attorney, Life Member of Citizens for Conservation, Founding Member of the San Fernando Heritage Trust, Chair of the Camp Beach School Association, Founding Member of the Camp Beach School Alumni Association and Resources Sustainable Camp Beach Utilization Company (BCSRUC).
