Herman Roop Dass passes on

Dass was husband to Marie (nee Sinanan), a father of five — Judy, Rosemarie, Sheldon, Darryl and Nadine as well as a grandfather of six.

His profession was in education as a schoolteacher and later a principal. During his teaching career he was attached to the staff of Exchange Presbyterian School, Phoenix Park Government School, California Government School, Guapo Government School, Cumuto Government School and Cunupia Government School.

But Dass’ name was better known as a correspondent for Trinidad Guardian, Sunday Guardian, Evening News and Newsday. So much so, he was known to hundreds of friends and colleagues as something of an institution, covering events in central Trinidad.

He established useful contacts with firms, organisations, the police and Chambers of Commerce, non-governmental bodies and charity clubs, regional corporations and boroughs and district Carnival committees all over the sugar belt.

Among those who helped Dass to become an extremely enthusiatic newspaper man were JS Barker, John Bierman, Robert Target, John Alleyne, Lenn Chongsing, Carl Jacobs, Bill Hitchins, Arthur Ince and Newsday’s editor in chief, Therese Mills to name a few.

He was the recipient of several awards from Caroni 1975 Ltd, the Chaguanas Borough Corporation, Plipdeco, Couva Pt Lisas Chamber of Commerce, the Rotary Club of Chaguanas, the National Chutney Foundation of Trinidad and Tobago, Couva Carnival Committee, Association of Media Photographers of Trinidad and Tobago AMPOTT and Exchange Presbyterian School among others.

In addition to education and journalism, his other great interest was in the sport of table tennis. Dass served as a member of the management committee of the Trinidad and Tobago Table Tennis Association for 37 years.

He served as assistant secretary, treasurer, secretary, president and public relations officer during his long tenure with the association. He also held the position of treasurer of the Caribbean Table Tennis Federation for eight years and secretary for nine years and was the Caribbean representative of the Commonwealth Table Tennis Federation between 1981 to 1983.

He managed national table tennis teams in Guyana, Jamaica, Cuba, Venezuela and at the World Championships held in Novi Sad Yugoslavia, Pyongyang, in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as well as the Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships in Edinburgh, Scotland.

For his 37 years involvement in table tennis, he received a Humming Bird Silver Medal in 1982 for “long and meritorious service.”