Events, 2016

November 22nd, 2016, was the day, when Thanksgiving Lunch was served at Prep School Mess to recognize the tireless hard work and efforts of the support staff throughout the year. The Principal, Brig (Retd) Mujahid Alam, thanked the support staff for their contributions to facilitate the students and staff.

The prefects of Prep School served Thanksgiving to the support staff to pay homage to their yearlong services. Delectable aroma, good conversation and the comfortable atmosphere in the Prep School Dining Hall made the Thanksgiving Lunch one of the most favourite meals of the year.

The Senior School hosted a sumptuous Thanksgiving Lunch to recognize the tireless and most valuable services of the support-staff in the Senior School Mess on November 09, 2016. This golden tradition of Lawrence College was set by our worthy Principal two years back. The event was organized by the Intermediate Class under the guidance of the Vice Principal/Headmaster and the Housemasters. This time the lunch was held in the Senior School lawns.

Present on the occasion, were the Senior School janitors, peons, gardeners, mess & dorm-bearers, sanitary staff, runners, drivers, security guards, and other on-call attendants. The worthy Principal brought rosy smiles to the worked-out faces of his guests by personally ensuring their comfort and happiness throughout the lunch. He had already directed the conveners to make apt arrangements for the attendees. The Gallians of Inter-17, including all the prefects, took pride in serving the support-staff with smiles and caring attitude; translating their worthy Principal’s sublime philosophy of humanism and goodwill into a sound reality.

It was a unique enactment of the maxim ‘Love Begets Love’- which resultantly, begets respect that further cements bond between the served and the service-givers; bringing homely harmony to the institutional environment. For the support-staff, it was a very happy occasion; full of cheers, respect, and care that usually remains an unfulfilled dream of the under-privileged staff in any part of the world. They were served with fine quality cuisines, drinks and desserts. The Principal thanked the junior staff for their devoted services and expressed his hope that they would continue with the same spirit next year. The support staff also thanked the Principal for encouraging them in such a nice way and recognizing their services.

Earlier on, in the morning assembly, HoD Islamic Studies Hafiz Zafar Hayat highlighted the purpose and importance of holding an event like the ‘thanks-giving lunch’ in the light of Quran and Sunnah. He advised the boys to understand the spirit behind this tradition and to carry this spirit with them throughout their lives by treating their subordinates in a dignified manner.

Through this historic ceremony, the Principal also endeavoured to inculcate into the students, the worth of noble human and Islamic values that go hand in hand. Brushing aside sternly conventional administrative work-ways, the worthy Principal has always advocated and practiced a more embracing and natural administrative panache and aura, where education must not only remain a prerogative of the privileged class, but it must expand its wings also to accommodate, train and refine other people, working side by side with students and teachers at an educational institution. This is the true essence of education that the student community at Lawrence College will stash away as an asset to live a decent life.

All Pakistan Inter-Collegiate Bilingual Declamation Contest was organized at Lawrence College on 22nd of October, 2016. A good number of students participated from prestigious institutions of Pakistan including Aitchison College Lahore, PAF College Sargodha, PAF College Lowert Topa, Army Burn Hall College Abbottabad, Abbottabad Public School Abbottabad, Military College Sui, Military College Murree, Cadet College Plandri, Cadet College Choa Saiden Shah, Govt. College for Women Murree and Presentation Convent Murree. The purpose of this competition was to provide the students of participating schools and colleges a forum to express their ideas and gain confidence. It also provided the students and teachers of these institutions an opportunity to come closer, understand each other and learn from each others’ experiences. Principal Lawrence College Brig (Retd) Mujahid Alam was the Chief Guest on the occasion.

The participants made forceful and motivating speeches. LC students also participated in the competition, though they were not contesting for any prize.

The results of the competition are as follows:

Individual Position English:

Individual Position Urdu:

Team Position:

In his address, on the occasion, Principal Lawrence College highly appreciated the performance of all the participants. He specially congratulated the position holders for showing outstanding performance. He felicitated Army Burn Hall College team for being declared the overall winners. He further said that it was a great opportunity not only for the Lawrence College students, but for all the participating teams to learn from each other. He also commended the efforts of the organizers for arranging a well organized function.

In the end, the guests were served with lunch, especially arranged in their honour.

Since 2014, old Gallians’ gathering is facilitated by the Principal LC once a year. It not only gives the old students of this great institution a chance to recall their memories of the stay here, but it also gives the College administration a chance to have the views of the old students who always show great concern and interest in the College affairs.

Alumni Reunion was held at LCGG on Sunday, 16^th of October, 2016. Along with a large number of old students, the reunion was attended by some old Gallian-makers also. A meeting was held in Lawrence Hall where the Principal briefed the alumni about the progress and development at the College. After the Principal’s speech, the house was open for the old Gallians for their suggestions and views.

After that, the oldest Gallian present in the meeting, Mr. Anis Khan Satti addressed the gathering. He thanked the Principal for facilitating OGAP Reunions and providing all the old Gallians a platform for their gathering. He also commended the efforts of the Principal for his unending efforts in bringing wholesome developments at the College.

The meeting was followed by a basketball match between Gallians and old Gallians. After the match, the old Gallians were served with a sumptuous lunch.

156^th Founder’s Day of Lawrence College was held on 29^th of September, 2016 in the Jamali Stadium where Gallians from the three schools put up a splendid show and received great appreciation from all and sundry present over there. The Chief Guest on the occasion was the Chief Minister of Punjab Mian Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif who was cordially invited by the Principal LCGG Brig (R) Mujahid Alam. Parents of the students, former principals, former faculty members, old Gallians and many distinguished guests, including military and civil officials, also graced the ceremony with their presence.

Earlier, on his arrival, the Chief Guest was received by the Principal, Brig. (Retd) Mujahid Alam in his office. The Chief Guest witnessed the performances of the young Gallians with interest and expressed his pleasure. This was followed by the prize distribution. The Chief Guest, accompanied by the Principal, gave away the prizes to the young achievers. Asadullah Qayyum was declared ‘Best Gallian of the Year’ for 2016. Admiral Shamoon Alam Khan Shield for the Best House in Sports was won by Wightwick House. Knowledge Cup and Quaid-e-Azam Shield for the year 2016 were won by Wright House. Sir Henry Lawrence Runners up Trophy for the year 2016 was secured by Peake House.

The Principal, in his address on the occasion, presented the annual report of the College. He expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the chief minister Punjab for gracing the occasion and sparing a couple of hours out of his immense busy schedule.

In his speech, the Chief Guest, commended the efforts of the Principal and Staff for raising the standard of academics, instilling the core moral values and bringing in significant improvement in the overall standards of the College by raising the bench marks in academics and discipline. He specially appreciated the high achievers in academics who have showed excellent results in SSC Board Examinations through their hard work and genuine efforts.

The Punjab Government has always patronized LCGG through annual and special grants, but this time the benevolence increased manifold when the Chief Minister acknowledged the standard of curricular and co-curricular activities. The Chief Minister enhanced the annual grant of 10 million to 100 million and also emphasized upon increasing teachers’ salaries as an incentive to put in additional efforts for uplifting the competitive standards of the institute.

All the guests were served with refreshments at the end of the function.

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The Annual Performing Arts Show was held on 26^th, 27^th and 28^th of September, 2016. The first show on 26^th of September was attended by families of the admin staff, and the second show was attended by the faculty of three schools and their families. The guests were served with refreshments during both the shows.

The final show was held on 28^th of September. It was attended by distinguished guests including parents of the participants. The Chief Guest was an illustrious old Gallian Lieutenant General Sadiq Ali (Corps Commander Lahore) who graced the ceremony with his pleasant presence. The show displayed the talent of Gallians who gave remarkable amateur performances. The segments on the show included: singing, dancing and sitcoms in Urdu and English.

Addressing the audience, on the occasion, Lieutenant General Sadiq Ali said that all the plays were so touching that he could not resist, and didn’t want to resist. He advised Gallians to learn from the environment and participate in everything they come across. He said that it is the best place where they get finest mentoring from their faculty. Discussing the qualities of Gallians, he said that all the Gallians have one quality in common that they don’t accept defeat and never fail. He said that after passing out of this institution, they were going to take leadership role for which they must be fully prepared. He also reiterated that the hopes of this nation are with the future generation and these Gallians are the future generation. It is this generation that will remove the hurdles from the way to progress and one such hurdle is the stone of illiteracy and we need to remove this stone in order to progress and prosper.

Talking about his own memories of the College, he said that whatever he is today is all because of Lawrence College. He said that the College has rich traditions and culture and that Gallians should let others copy them and should not copy others. He said that he carried this strength with him throughout his life and differed with people where he thought they were wrong and stood up to the ground.

The Principal expressed his sincerest thanks to Lieutenant General Sadiq Ali for gracing the ceremony as the Chief Guest. He also thanked him for his generous donation of five million rupees for the College. He greatly appreciated the magnanimous and kind gesture from him towards his alma mater. He assured him that each and every penny of that donation will be spent in the most transparent, most honest manner and in the best possible way for the students, staff and the College.

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Defence Day of Pakistan was celebrated at Lawrence with traditional fervor and enthusiasm. Students and faculty of the three schools assembled at the Yadgar-e-Shuhadain in the morning of 6^th of September. Principal LCGG was the chief guest of the ceremony. He, on his own behalf and on behalf of the faculty laid wreath at the Yadgar-e-Shuhada. Head boy of the College Ehsanullah laid wreath on behalf of the Gallians. Naara-e-Pakistan was raised as an expression of love for our sweet homeland.

After the wreath-laying, the function started with recitation from the Holy Quran. The honourable Principal, in his speech, highlighted the importance of the Day in the life of Pskistanis. He urged the gathering to observe one minute’s silence in the honour of Shuhada. He said that these shuhada sacrificed their lives for Pakistan without keeping any prejudice of caste, religion or sect. He also reminded students of the last line of the ‘Gallian Code of Honour’ that makes the Gallians pledge to sacrifice the last drop of their blood for protection and honour of their country.

The ceremony concluded with dua for the protection and prosperity of Pakistan by Hafiz Zafar Hayat.

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Independence Day is celebrated every year at Lawrence College with great verve and vigour. This year too, all the students were eager to participate in the Independence Day celebrations. They started decorating their dorms and houses passionately with flags, buntings and lights in the evening of 13th of August.

The chief guest of the Independence Day celebrations on 14th of August was a revered old Gallian Mr. Anis Khan Satti. Mr. Anis Khan Satti attended Lawrence College from 1948 to 1955, where he did his Senior Cambridge & Higher Senior Cambridge. He was appointed Headboy in 1953 and served as Headboy through 1954 and 1955. In 1955, after a nationwide competition, he was selected to represent Pakistan in the 1956 World Youth Forum in the US. Another prominent old Gallian Inayat Ullah Khan Niazi, Maj Gen (Retd), also accompanied the Chief Guest.

The celebrations started with combined assembly in the Senior School lawn. National flag was hoisted, naa’ra-e-Pakistan was raised and du’a was offered for the progress and prosperity of Pakistan.

After the flag hoisting in the lawn, the students and staff moved to the Lawrence Hall where the main function was held. The function started with recitation from the Holy Quran by Abdullah Tariq and its translation by Asadullah. After the recitation, The Junior School students gave a wonderful presentation on the national song “shukria Pakistan, Pakistan shukria”. Then Muhammad Saad Amjad from Junior School highlighted the significance of the Day. A presentation titled “Power of Freedom” was shown by the Senior School. Sikandar Khan Babar from Prep School expressed his views followed by a milli naghma by Prep School students. After that, Hamza Muhammad Rehan from Senior School talked about the importance of the Day and highlighted the sacrifices and struggle of our forefathers in creation of Pakistan. Then another documentary was shown by the Senior School.

Then the honourable Principal introduced the chief guest to the audience. He told that Mr Anis Khan Satti completed his studies at Colgate University, Hamilton, NY, where he was elected President of the Student Body. He was the first foreigner to hold this position in a major University in the US. After completing his education, he, along with partners, set up a financial publishing business on Wall Street, which consisted of magazines, newspapers, conferences and seminars on finance. Institutional Investor Co. continues today as a successful financial publishing enterprise. Its fast rise to success and fame made Time Magazine referring to the Company as the “Wonder Boys of the Wall Street”. In addition, he was also appointed as a Delegate to the UN in 1978 and served as residential Envoy in 1980. He is perhaps the only Pakistani who, after living in America for over 58 years, never became an American citizen but kept his Pakistani citizenship.

In his speech, the Chief Guest recalled the golden memories of his stay at GG. He told the students that he was fortunate enough to have the opportunity of studying at a wonderful place like Lawrence College. He added that the facilities and conducive environment provided at Lawrence College are matchless in Pakistan. He advised the young Gallians to fully avail this opportunity and make good use of their stay here. He further advised them to uphold the name of their college and that of their wonderful country, Pakistan. The Chief Guest also expressed his delight on knowing that a large number of students, including the head boy, from Baluchistan are studying at LC. He considered it a good omen for creation of harmony among the people from all the provinces of Pakistan.

The function concluded with national anthem.

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The Annual Sports Day was held on July 27, 2016. As usual, a great deal of planning, practicing and hard work went into organizing this eventful day. The event was attended by parents of the students and other guests from different walks of life. The honourable Governor of Punjab Malik Muhammad Rafique Rajwana graced the occasion as the Chief Guest.

Unfortunately, due to inclement weather, the Sports Day function could not be held in the open ground. The prize-giving ceremony was held in Lawrence Hall. The ceremony started with recitation from the Holy Quran by Abdullah Tipu and translation by Malik Muhammad Asadullah. The Prep and Junior School students presented an inspiring rendition of Kalam-e-Iqbal “Muslim hain hum, watan he sara jahan hamara”.

The Principal, in his speech on the occasion, welcomed the Chief Guest, all the parents and local guests. He highlighted the importance of games and sports in the overall physical development of young boys at the College, as well as inculcating a healthy competitive spirit among them. He also mentioned some of the important steps taken for improvement in the College standards. He also informed the audience of the excellent result shown by SSC students in the BISE Rawalpindi Examinations 2016.

After the speech by the Principal, the Chief Guest gave away prizes to the winners. Raza Shah Shaheed Trophy for Athletics was won by Wightwick House. Habib Achakzai was declared the best athlete.

The Chief Guest, in his address, shared some of the experiences of his life. He advised the Gallians to attach importance to humanity more than anything else. He stressed upon the need of grooming the students in the best possible way and said that it was more important than just seeking knowledge and information. He congratulated the Principal, staff and students for bringing significant improvement in the College standards and showing excellent results in the Board Examinations.

The ceremony culminated with National Anthem. All the guests were served with refreshments after the function.

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