Sara Mathew ma’am was born on 20th November 1930, in the Konni hills of Kerala. Her perseverance is applaudable. She dedicated the majority of her life to establish this reputed school of St. Mary’s. She was the one who inculcated exemplary moral values in the students who looked up to her. They had the utmost respect for her. When she set foot in the school, the bustle in the corridor would soon go on mute. Even the teachers would watch her in admiration and follow her approach towards students. She never criticized children in front of everyone, instead, she would speak to the child alone in a separate room. This distinguished her from others. From the very beginning, she did not only focus on academic activities but also promoted extracurricular activities such as sports and hands-on activities.
Sara Mathew ma’am was a perfectionist who would do her work flawlessly. Another laudable trait of our founder is her generosity towards the school staff. She never favored the academic staff over the non-academic staff in school. Teachers still remember the inspiring instance when Mathew ma’am performed a small act of empathy that touched everyone’s hearts deeply. It was winter when she noticed John sir shivering without wearing any outerwear. She handed a set of sweaters to him, instructing him to wear them every day. Her solicitude concerning the staff was not only limited to school administration but she even withstood their families in overcoming their difficulties.
Her ineffable fondness for flowers could be beautifully seen when she held the delightful flower show after becoming the president of The Young Women Christian Association. We wish if we could be a part of that show, and be surrounded by the pleasing aroma of the vivid variety of flowers.
We have also heard some of the fascinating anecdotes, like she would import flowers from foreign, for decorating the flower garden in our school, disregarding the amount of money it took. This once again proved her immense love for flowers.
Her personality was also reflected through her dressing. Keeping in mind her vision of making the pupils socially and cognitively active, she held the school with diligence. She fulfilled what she set out for and fearlessly managed to surmount any obstacle that came her way. Her empathy and resilience still resound throughout the school. Her inspiring ethos still encourages and guides us in times of despair and happiness.
It was the result of her extraordinary services to society that led to the naming of a lane after her.
