Basic HTML Version
6
Spring
2014
With great shock, Reverend MacLachlan
learned of the death of his friend, John S.
Kennedy in 1909. He and his wife, Emma,
had been staunch supporters of IC since the
couple sailed into Smyrna 17 years ago on
their way to Constantinople. They were sup-
posed to stay for only a few hours. But when
their departure was suddenly postponed for
a few days, the Kennedys found themselves
guests at the MacLachlans. Over the next few
days, the two families became great friends.
Since then, the Kennedys often came through
as loyal supporters of the school.
The Reverend was even more shocked
when a letter arrived from the US soon
after. A document accompanying the letter
tumbled out of the envelope. MacLachlan
slowly unfolded it and found himself staring
at John S. Kennedy’s last Will and Testament.
In it, Kennedy had bequeathed to the school
the hefty sum of $20,000.
The minister stared at the paper unbeliev-
ingly. “God never closes one door without
opening another,” he whispered to himself.
The fund for a new school had effectively
begun.
A year later, MacLachlan took a furlough
leave of absence and travelled to the US. All
appeals to the Boston Board to increase the
new fund had been refused. Accompanied by
his daughter, Rosalind, now 19, MacLachlan
accepted an invitation to stay at the Kennedy
family home in New York on the prestigious
57th street. One day, he received an invitation
from Helen Gould, the daughter of a wealthy
railroad tycoon to visit her for a few days in
her summer home of Lyndhurst in Tarrytown,
NY (Gould was also a member of the Russell
Sage Foundation which would later donate
funds to build today’s Sage Hall in the Ras
Beirut campus). On the day they were to
return home, Gould took MacLachlan and
his daughter for a long drive up the banks of
the Hudson. As she dropped them off at the
railway station, she handed the Protestant
minister an envelope. “This is just a small gift
for the College,” she said. “Someday I hope
to do something worthwhile for it.”
In it was a check for $5000. The minister
was in “seventh heaven” as he wrote in his
1937 diary
Potpourri of Sidelights and Shad-
ows from Turkey
, “in those days five thou-
sand dollars seemed very much worthwhile.”
Back at the Kennedy residence, he found
Emma Kennedy talking with an old school
friend in the morning room. “Tell me about
your visit with Miss Gould,” she said almost
excitedly. Obligingly, MacLachlan told her
about his days at Lyndhurst and ended with
his joy of discovering the generous check in
the envelope. Scarcely had he finished when
Kennedy promptly announced: “I am giving
Protestant Minister Reverend
Alexander MacLachlan knew
that he could no longer expand
the school on Meles Street in
the city of Smyrna. The demand
for an IC education increased
considerably after the 1908
Turkish Revolt which granted
the right of Muslims to attend
foreign schools. He began to
envision a school with a large
campus and many facilities.
But tuitions could barely cover
the operating expenses of the
school. Where could he possibly
get the funds to build an entirely
new campus?
John S.
Kennedy left
IC $20,000 in
his will.
The Adventures of
Alexander MacLachlan: