For many Queen’s College alumni, the recent passing of Clem Yhap, known affectionately as “Balance”, in Halifax, Canada at the admirable age of 91, invoked moments of deep personal reflection and sadness. In my own case, it was rather coincidental that exactly two Saturdays ago, I was chatting at my home out here in Liberia with an electrical engineer by the name of Ian Yhap, whose father is Guyanese and was married to a Liberian woman. I asked him whether his father and he were related to Balance. He was unsure as he never visited Guyana and has lived most of his life in Liberia. But he said his father told him of an old man Yhap living somewhere in Canada who was closely related to them; if so, then Balance’s lineage runs not only to China but as far as Africa! Balance’s impact and spirit certainly extend to wherever in the world his students are now located, for he was undoubtedly one of the many personalities at Queen’s College who touched our early lives immeasurably and irreversibly. Throughout my years at QC (62-69) Balance never taught me Maths (he joined QC as a master in 1951 from St. Stanislaus College, which was his alma mater). I am sure I would have been better for it had he so done! But I do remember his taking one or two classes when a master was absent – and what a special treat that was for us all, for he was such a consummate, accomplished teacher and professional.
The origin of the nickname “Balance” is not universally agreed upon. One version suggests that it derived from Yhap’s emphasis in math class that the key to solving algebraic equations was that the left side of the equation has to balance the right side. Clarence Trotz, a QC alumnus, former staff member and Headmaster, offers another story: “One of his main pillars of successful teaching seemed to have been home-work and he would be seen entering the school building through the entrance in the eastern ‘basement’ laden with homework exercise books which could only be carried on his two open palms at the ends of his extended arms. This earned him the fond sobriquet “Balance”. This, it is generally believed, was the true derivation of this famous nickname which must have been one of the best-known Queen’s College nicknames of all time.”
But there was also another side to Balance, one I had the fortune of experiencing personally, when I was in the Sixth Form in the late 1960s. When the time came to pay for my Advanced Level exams my parents were unable to meet most of the fees. Balance took the matter to the St Vincent de Paul Society, a Catholic society that helped the less fortunate in Guyana. He convinced them to pay the shortfall in the fees. In addition, there were some funds remaining and he allowed me to use it to have a school blazer sewn. Prefects and leading sports personalities at that time traditionally wore school blazers on special occasions. That blazer, green with a lovely QC Crest on the left breast pocket, is one of my most prized personal possessions. So special is it for me, that over the past almost 40 years, I have taken it with me to every corner of the almost ten countries I have lived in since my QC days. When I heard of Balance’s passing, I went into my closet and took it out, had a good nostalgic look at it, and then said a quiet prayer for the peaceful repose of Balance’s soul. When Balance gave me the fees and the blazer I vividly remember what he said to me in his characteristic trademark stammer; “Laurence–you have–this with the–full blessings of the St Vincent de Paul Society–do your best at A levels–and all we ask -is that–when you –start to work–after A levels–make a small donation to the Society”. I did exactly that from my first pay check – in August 1969 – from the Royal Bank of Canada. He was most pleased. QC alumnus Trev Sue-A-Quan recalls being told by Lawrence Yhap, the brother of Clement and a District Commissioner in pre-independence Guyana, that their father was Anglican and their mother Catholic. The boys were baptised in the Anglican faith but were rebaptised as Catholic after their father’s death. As his interest in the offerings of the St. Vincent de Paul Society suggests, Balance kept a good balance between the faiths!
As set out in the QC Book of Records, Balance served at QC from 1951 to 1971. During that time he rose to the zenith of his career as the School’s 12th Headmaster between 1969-1971, succeeding Mr. Doodnauth Hetram who retired in 1969. By all accounts, Clem “Balance” Yhap’s tenure as Head Master was refreshing for its open, transparent relationships and democratic governance between students and staff, and for finding innovative ways to maintain staff and student morale and the high standards of Queen’s College, especially during the 1970s, when economic shortages began to make themselves felt in Guyana.
Our deepest condolences to his family. Farewell “Balance ” from all of us!
