Collymore, Henry Wesley Moulton (1918 - 2002)
by
 
N Alan Green

Asset Name
E005865 - Collymore, Henry Wesley Moulton (1918 - 2002)

Title
Collymore, Henry Wesley Moulton (1918 - 2002)

Author
N Alan Green

Identifier
RCS: E005865

Publisher
London : Royal College of Surgeons of England

Publication Date
2014-08-22

Subject
Medical Obituaries

Description
Obituary for Collymore, Henry Wesley Moulton (1918 - 2002), Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England.

Language
English

Source
Plarr's Lives of the Fellows

Full Name
Collymore, Henry Wesley Moulton

Date of Birth
8 January 1918

Place of Birth
Trinidad

Date of Death
17 December 2002

Occupation
General surgeon

Titles/Qualifications
MB BS London 1951
 
MRCS and FRCS 1958

Details
Henry Collymore was born in Trinidad on 8 January 1918. His father, Moulton Bruce Collymore, was an inspector of schools. His mother was Violet Angelina Redhead, the daughter of a headmaster. Henry won an exhibition from his elementary school to St Mary's College, Port of Spain, Trinidad. He worked for a time as an analyst in the sugar technology department of the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture, Trinidad, and later as a medical technician in the Colonial Hospital, Port of Spain. During the war he was in the Royal Air Force as a navigator, with the rank of Flight Sergeant. After the war, he studied medicine at St Bartholomew's Hospital. He completed junior posts at St Andrew's Hospital, Bow, and returned to Trinidad to practise surgery. There he was the founder and chairman of the Trinidad and Tobago Society for the Rehabilitation of the Disabled, and of the Cheshire Foundation Homes for the Sick (Trinidad). He was a keen swimmer and bee-keeper. He married a Miss Langford in 1951. He died on 17 December 2002. See below for an amended version of the published obituary: Henry Collymore, known as 'Harry', was a surgeon at the San Fernando General Hospital, Trinidad. He was born in Princes Town, Trinidad, on 8 January 1918. His father, Moulton Bruce Collymore, was an inspector of schools, and his mother was Violet Angelina Collymore née Redhead, the daughter of a headmaster. In 1929 Harry won an exhibition from his elementary school to the prestigious St Mary's College in Port of Spain, Trinidad, where he completed his secondary education. After leaving school, he worked first as an analyst in the sugar technology department of the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture, Trinidad, and was later a medical technician in the Colonial Hospital, Port of Spain. This may have fuelled his desire to enter the medical profession. Volunteering for service early in the Second World War, he joined the Royal Air Force and became a navigator in bombers with the rank of flight sergeant. In one base in the Midlands he was a frequent visitor to Leicester and, through attending Methodist church services, made many friends with whom he kept in contact later in life. He also seemed to know the best places to attend 'tea dances' in the city. After the war, he studied medicine at St Bartholomew's Hospital as one of the 75 per cent of entrants coming back from the Forces or working in industry connected with the war effort. He lived at the YMCA, Tottenham Court Road, and this led him to attend Central Hall, Westminster, when the Reverend Dr Donald (later Lord) Soper was in his prime. He enjoyed the rousing hymns associated with Methodism, and had a fine baritone voice. At Central Hall he met, and in 1951 married, Dorothy Langford, the year he qualified. He held house appointments at St Andrew's Hospital, Bow, and other posts and was drawn to orthopaedics and plastic surgery. He studied hard for the FRCS, which he passed in 1958, before returning to Trinidad to practise surgery at the San Fernando General Hospital, where he eventually became the director. Always interested in the broader aspects of religion, he became involved in the Inter-Religious Organisation of Trinidad and Tobago (IRO), which he felt created a space for inter-faith dialogue, in the hope of healing divisions within society. He adopted the Bahá'í faith and became its representative on IRO. Instrumental in founding the first Cheshire Home for the Disabled in Trinidad, he was also the founder and chairman of the Trinidad and Tobago Society for the Rehabilitation of the Disabled. He later concentrated on alternative healing methods and promoted a holistic approach in health. He advocated yoga and meditation to assist his patients and practised it himself each morning until the end of his life. He was always a keen swimmer and in his early days had a cold bath each morning to start the day. One of his hobbies was beekeeping. In 1987 he received a prestigious Trinidad and Tobago national award, the Humming Bird medal (gold), for his contribution to community service and to medicine. Then, in 1999, he was presented with the highest award of Trinidad and Tobago, the Trinity Cross, for his contribution to alleviating suffering in society. He had served with complete devotion on the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Trinidad and Tobago from 1975 until frailty overtook him. He died on 17 December 2002, leaving his wife, Dorothy, a sister, Marjorie, and several nieces and nephews.

Sources
Official website of the Bahá'ís of Trinidad and Tobago - The History of the Bahá'í Faith in Trinidad and Tobago www.bahaitt.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=59:bahai-history&catid=34:about&Itemid=30" - accessed 6 August 2014
 
The Inter-Religious Organisation of Trinidad and Tobago Annual General Meeting 2103, p.22 Dr Harry Collymore (Deceased)

Rights
Copyright (c) The Royal College of Surgeons of England

Collection
Plarr's Lives of the Fellows

Format
Obituary

Format
Asset

Asset Path
Root/Lives of the Fellows/E005000-E005999/E005800-E005899

URL for File
378048

Media Type
Unknown