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Compassionate, disciplinarian La Salle Brother who helped form young minds: A well deserved tribute
Published on: Sunday, January 14, 2024
By: Kan Yaw Chong
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House-warming mood setter – Bro Justin cuts ribbon to open auto gate, helped by Alumni President Datuk Ram Singh. (Pic by Mansor Abdullah)
A form of moral support, it can make the difference between win or lose in all spheres of life, says economic researcher Patricio Dalton who thinks moral support is a very powerful performance enhancer which should be widely practised.
Even a mere presence of people who matter can do it sometimes, let alone positive words dedicated to Bro Justin that night.
And so it happened – a public tribute and recognition to Bro Justin, who must have felt encouraged and understood for what he has dedicated his whole life to do.
Sense of gratitude to a rare breed
This Special Report is a record of that unique episode, honouring Bro Justin, who had shaped the destiny of thousands by giving his life to their education, at the house warming event, organised by his ex-students Association of La Salle & Sacred Heart of which he is patron, in the invited presence of the Board of Governors and ex-teachers.
A sense of gratitude prevailed.
But as an ex-colleague of Justin for eight years between 1978 and 1985 at La Salle Tanjung Aru, I found myself wondering how little I actually knew him – such as: why he chose to be a Brother who vowed poverty and celibacy, sacrificing a family of his own in order to raise a much larger family of students.
What he gave up for the benefits of others is phenomenal.
Bro Justin Mobilik
Search, and we would hardly find anyone with that goal for life.
So, the alumni has correctly honoured a rare breed who belong to an Order of de La Salle Brothers dedicated to educational activity, by choice, and must have benefited millions worldwide for their betterment.
Founder gave life to teaching poor kids
According to a La Sallian Worldwide website report, as of 2021, the Order had 3,000 Brothers running over 1,100 schools in 80 countries with more than one million students, 100,000 teachers and lay associates.
Historically, the La Salle Brothers numbered in the tens of thousands, going back 300 years since 1679 when French founder Jean Baptiste de La Salle was asked by a Convent Sister to help open free schools for poor boys.
De La Salle, son of a wealthy family, did just that, and ended up spending his whole life teaching poor illiterate kids picked up from the streets (according to late Bro Charles), and the Order spread rapidly.
Napoleon overturned a ‘fanatic’ move
But in 1790, a fanatic government from the French Revolution dissolved the Order.
However, in 1804, Napoleon Bonaparte, regarded as a military genius and one of the finest commanders in history, reversed it all, recalled the Order, recognised La Salle formally and prevented its demise.
Since then, the Order of La Salle flourished where it could operate to forge its mission and principles on faith, respect for all people, provision of quality education, concern for the poor and social justice, Sabah included.
An episodic testimony
One ex-student identified here only as “WN”, now a top earning company executive, remembered his eternal gratitude for the day when he didn’t even have one sen in pocket to pay accumulated school fees because his mother was destitute, and was asked to leave by an unsympathetic teacher.
But a compassionate Bro Charles pulled out money from his own pocket to pay it up for him.
There are probably countless unknown stories of compassion like that nobody knew of.
Stern disciplinarians they maybe with some personal flaws, this is the soft part of their inner spirit cherished by La Sallians.
A fitting tribute from President
Hence, the house warming night for Bro Justin on Jan 6, was also a jolly heart warming event for ex teachers like us to be invited among 80 people to give him the deserved honour, when alumni President, Datuk Ram Singh, paid him a fitting tribute.
A pat on the back for Bro Justin as Ram pays him tribute. Looking on are Ariffin Khan, Simon Lim and Annie Shen.
“We organised this house warming as a tribute to Bro Justin who had sacrificed and devoted his entire life focussed on teaching the students at La Salle school by staying as a single person whose conviction for his beliefs cannot be questioned,” Ram said.
Appealing alumni to work as one, Ram added: “We must think unity – united as one, minimising disagreement and disputes among us.”
A word on teachers
Noting the presence of ex-teachers such as Mrs Peggy Chan, Datin Hiew, Philip Tan, Dr Kathryn Rivai, Bro Yohan Henriks, Edward Kouju, Simon Lim, Bro Peter Ng and this writer, Ram also paid them tribute.
House-warming scene – saw a strong presence of ex-teachers from left: Peggy Chan, Datin Hiew, Dr Kathryn Rivai, Zainal, Philip Tan, Kan, Edward Kouju.
“I have always respected teachers as they taught me to what I am now in society,” said Ram, who is now a prominent barrister.
“They deserve the respect that’s why all the events of my Exco will invite the teachers (former and present), the board and PTAs.”
Foster unity power irrespective race, religion, teachers
“We will organise events on important festivals in near future and strengthen unity among the alumni as we ourselves recognise the different racial identities, religious beliefs and traditions of our alumni members, teachers and the Board,” he sounded.
“At the same time the Exco under my leadership, having the spirit and stand guided on ‘the power of 1,000 life membership’, by the end of our tenure will undoubtedly strengthen the alumni or La Sallians.”
Class donors
“We witnessed this evening the ribbon cutting ceremony and the main gate fitted with a remote control, this I thank Teo of class ’82, who without any hesitation, fitted an auto gate solely for the movement convenience of Bro Justin.
“Another effort by Mr Teo was to install the window grills and mosquito nets in Bro Justin’s room,” Ram noted.
“Class 91 had donated a refrigerator too, the tree pruning and a few trees felled and cleaning of the lawn where we gathered was contributed by class 79.”
Justin’s concern
On Justin’s expressed concern whether the Exco “has the fuel” to sustain events over the year, Ram said: “I told Bro Justin a very positive yes because my Exco is very committed to push for strong bonds and unity with the alumni and to help the school too, I have a hard working team full of dedication.”
Reasons for moving back to old La Salle House
It must be said that the house warming wasn’t marking Justin’s move into a new house but actually moving into the old La Salle house located right next to La Salle School, repaired, renovated and refurbished big time by the Board of Governors, led by able leader, Ho Kin Wong, with supplementary facilities like grilled windows and an auto gate chipped in by the Alumni.
A renovated and repaired La Salle House carried out by the Board of Governors with supplementary facilities provided by the Alumni, for Bro Justin to live in so that he will stay close to the school.
Bro Justin with his hand-picked assistant Simon Lim at Benildus Formation House or boarding house from where he is moving out to La Salle House.
The house warming night marked Justin’s planned move from the Benildus Formation Centre located 300 metres away – a boarding house set up by the late Datuk Bro Charles O’Leary in 1986 to accommodate Form 6 students from outstation.
By moving back to a renovated old La Salle House, Br Justin is effectively maintaining his presence at La Salle felt once again.
The following is an interview with Bro Justin.
DAILY EXPRESS: When did you actually become a brother?
Bro Justin: After finishing Form 3.
DE: Where did you go to school?
Bro Justin: My early educational journey is like this, born and bred in Penampang, I started Kindergarten at St Joseph run by the White Sisters, then continued at St Francis Convent Kindergarten, before enrolling into Sacred Heart Primary School Karamunsing.
DE: What about secondary schools?
Bro Justin: I moved on to the La Salle, Tanjung Aru, until Form 3. For Form 4, I went to St Xavier Institution, George Town, Penang, by which time I had already started my training as a Brother.”
DE: So you started training for the Brotherhood as young as Form 4?
Bro Justin: Yes, in Form 4 until I finished Form 5, I was what they call a Juniorate (high school course of study for Brotherhood).
DE: What happened after that?
Bro Justin: After finishing Form 5 there, I left, I left St Xavier and started my acute training for religious life as a Brother in St Joseph’s Noviciate, Pulau Tikus, also Penang. At St Joseph’s Noviciate, I became a Postulant, (a nine-month religious training in preparation to become a Brother) and after Postulancy, I became a Novitiate – all that is religious training, from Noviciate to Scolarsticate – a period of religious training to become a teacher or teaching Brother. I went through that whole process.
Meanwhile, I was doing Form 6 at the same time in Penang while doing my postulancy,” he recalled.
DE: After postulancy, what happened?
Bro Justin: When I finished my teacher’s training in 1969 at St Joseph Training College, and finished my religious training in 1970, I was asked to come back to Sabah and joined the Brothers here at La Salle, Tanjung Aru.
DE: So you actually joined La Salle Tanjung Aru as early as 1970?
Bro Justin: Yes, but short-lived. In 1971 I went to University of Malaya for further studies, especially history, spending four years in UM, then I came back to Sabah and was placed at St Mary’s Sandakan. Then in 1976, I was asked to take over from Fr Henselman, a Mill Hill priest who founded St Martin’s Tambunan, I took over from him for the Brothers for one-and-half years.”
DE: After St Martin’s, where did you go?
Bro Justin: Beginning of 1978, I came over to La Salle, Tanjung Aru, until I retired in 1999 formally at 55 years old, very young. So I actually spent 21 years in the service of La Salle, Tanjung Aru.
DE: The most curious question is why did you decide to become a Brother?
Bro Justin: Oh, as I have said, Sarawak-born Bro Michael Jacques was my inspiration. Here was a local Asian, a Eurasian to be exact, who dedicated his life to teach, I had no attraction to become a priest at all, only to be a teacher and help form children to become better citizens or whatever.
So the main inspiration was Bro Michael Jacques and, of course, Bro Charles and all the brothers in La Salle who were kind of helping and supporting to push me up.
DE: You said priesthood didn’t attract you but Brotherhood did, why?
Bro Justin: Fr Amandus, one of the priests was pushing me to become a priest but I said ‘no’ because had no attraction to become a priest, I didn’t want to be priest, I was more attracted to form young people.
The late Bro Michael Jacques was a Eurasian Brother who held a very high post, because we have been seeing Brothers who were Europeans, Irish most of the time, and then Mill Hill Fathers who were Dutch and then this was a fellow Asian who came along as a kind of assistant to the supreme Brother in Rome, that’s why he was a very high inspiration for me, he was very nice and very kind, a very powerful character who inspired me.
DE: What do think of the house warming night on January 6, when alumni paid you a special tribute for giving your whole life to teach them?
Bro Justin: Oh, I thought here is the result of the work of the Brothers over the decades, the way they worked together from Day One until now, they have been working together as one almost, despite all the differences – different religions, different ideologies, different races behind them but all came together and worked as one.
I thought it was wonderful, everything exemplifying a La Sallian spirit pushing them and binding them together.
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