SHAH ALAM, Dec 2: He left his footprints at Mount Everest, Nepal, as the first Malaysian to scale the Himalayan summit in 1997, and on Thursday, Nov 30, this year, Datuk Magendran M.Munisamy left another indelible mark in the lives of the teachers and pupils of SMK Taman Sri Muda here where he had served the last three years.
The school had gathered to bid him farewell in a special ceremony held ahead of his official retirement as their principal on December 5.
While many may know Magendran as the mountaineer who made history for Malaysia on May 23, 1997, along with N. Mohanadas Nagappan as the first two Malaysians to reach the world’s tallest mountain (with Magendran 15 minutes ahead to step first on Everest’s summit), not many know the teacher that Magendran has been in the last 34 years.
He started teaching in 1989 with postings including in Pahang and Klang. He had also served as an education officer, a sports manager with the National Sports Council, a school’s senior assistant before taking up his final post as principal of the secondary school.
Asked on what would he would be scaling post retirement, Magendran said he was looking forward to a long break before deciding on what he would venture into next.
“Now that I will be more free, I will be doing all the things that I wanted to do and never had the time to do, such as travelling. I will also continue trekking with which I have been keeping in touch with all the while except during the period of Covid-19 and Movement Control Order.”
He also said the last three years was especially challenging as he was the head of a school where the students’ learning had been affected by Covid-19 and the devastating floods in 2021.
“The school lost everything. A good part of the school was under nine feet of water with its computer labs, bookstore, and other areas destroyed. The entire ground floor had to be rewired and repainted. The government did its part but private companies and individuals also contributed towards repairing and restoring the school. It was a busy period,” he said, adding that he wanted to ensure that the school was back on its footing.
As for his love of trekking, he said the Everest feat had somewhat encouraged many Malaysians to pursue mountain trekking and it has become a lifestyle now as well with many people taking it up. He said before Covid-19, he had made a point to climb the Malaysia’s tallest mountain, Mt Kinabalu every year with a group. It is a unique, sub-alpine mountain, he said, adding that each mountain had its own beauty and offered different experiences.
However, mountain trekking is not just about climbing and reaching the peak and enjoying the top-of-the-world feeling, he said, adding that it was more than that.
“One of the things I used to do when taking students or others on a mountain trekking exercise was imparting the importance of conserving and preserving our environment. The other important lesson is about team work. It is about helping one another to reach the destination. And I liked imparting the importance of team spirit during these trips.”
Meanwhile, among the teachers and students of SMK Taman Sri Muda who paid their tribute to Magendran on Thursday, Siti Raxina said Magendran was an excellent principal who was always ready to listen to the views of his teachers.
“He is gentle, yet firm and much loved by everyone in the school, from teachers to students and also the general workers.
“He always looks into matters very carefully before making any decisions and everyone deeply respects him. I have never heard him raise his voice to any of his staff. His retirement will impact us.
“Our school was badly affected by floods in late 2020, but with his leadership we managed to open our school with normalcy just like any other unaffected schools. He is also highly supportive of students’ development and always has trust in the teachers and appreciates their creativity in the development of students,” Siti said, adding that it had been a rewarding experience to be working under his administration.
–WE