Brother Maurus Bordelon, S.C.
1969-70, first year of Brother Martin

 

The class is getting too LOUD.

 

Rambro at a Pep Rally 1998

"There are no free lunches." "Take your i's out." "Physics is phun."

• Those are three of the many sayings of Brother Maurus that his students remember 10, 20, 30, or even 40 years after he taught them.
• A request by the Alumni Director for memories of Brother Maurus brought enough responses to fill twelve pages single spaced.
• To say that he had a positive impact on his students is an understatement. Numerous graduates credit him with inspiring them to enter professions like engineering.

After graduating from St. Aloysius in 1955, Ernest Bordelon attended LSU for three years and USL (now ULL) for a year before deciding to join the Brothers of the Sacred Heart.

• By the end of the 1960s, Brother Maurus had earned the nickname "The Closer" among the brothers.
• The list of his first five teaching assignments shows why:
  1962-64 Cor Jesu High School, New Orleans
  1964-66 Ascension Catholic High School, Donaldsonville LA
  1966-67 Menard Memorial High School, Alexandria LA
  1967-68 St. Aloysius High School, Vicksburg
  1968-69 St. Aloysius High School, New Orleans
• What do all these schools have in common? Either they no longer existed by 1969-70 or the Brothers of the Sacred Heart no longer staffed them.

Brother Maurus was finally able to sink down roots at Brother Martin High School.

• A member of the founding faculty, he taught science, mathematics, and computer science until Katrina hit in 2005.
• The only exceptions to his continuous service on Elysian Fields were a semester at the Sangre de Cristo Center in New Mexico for a spiritual renewal program in 1974 and a year at St. Columba's College in St. Albans, England, in 1979-80 as part of an exchange program that brought Brother Charles Windmill to Brother Martin.

• He told one of his former students, Dr. George Hebert ('82), that, if he asked God for three wishes, they would be to become a Brother of the Sacred Heart, to teach Physics, and to teach at Brother Martin.
• He had more "ham" in him than he cared to admit. Teaching provided an outlet for his creativity.
• With no interest in sports and not one to read novels, he spent hours every day with few exceptions preparing his classes, always looking for better ways to explain concepts.
• A lifelong student, he earned Master's degrees in Theology from Notre Dame (bet you didn't know that) and Physics Teaching from Loyola. He also attended workshops and seminars on AP Physics and other topics that would enhance his teaching.
• He was the living embodiment of the saying, "You have to work hard to make it look easy."
• One day he returned home from school with a confrere. Taking out a stack of transparencies from his briefcase, he threw them in the trash. The lesson didn't work. I'll have to redo it.
• As Science Department Chairman, Maurus had an influence on many young teachers, including Mary Picou and David Rhodes, who continue his legacy on Elysian Fields Avenue. Special mention must be made of Maurus's high school classmate, Dr. Ray Fricken, who began assisting Maurus in 1993. Ray immediately earned the respect of the Brother Martin faculty because, if Maurus allowed someone to help him teach Physics, he must be good.
• Maurus learned Computer Programming so that he could teach that subject as well as Computer Literacy after it was mandated by the state in 1985.

Brother Maurus's excellence was recognized in two ways by Brother Martin.

• In 1996, he received the Brother More Schaeffer Award. That was fitting because More and Maurus had worked together in the science department for many years.
• When the Meyer Science and Mathematics Building was completed in 2007, the Physics Lab was named for Brother Maurus.

Brother Maurus receives the 1996 Brother More Schaefer Award from Brother Ivy LeBlanc, the school president

Brother Maurus didn't like to talk about himself.

• The brothers he lived with learned about his signature classroom demon­strations from the students or other faculty members.
• He helped many people without telling anyone. First and foremost, he was devoted to his widowed mother who lived with his sister.
• He helped an elderly family friend in her time of need. Retired and living alone, the lady had to have a hip operation. In the meantime, the plumbing in her home backed up so that the water had to be turned off. Since the hospital bills drained her savings, she could not afford to fix the plumbing, rendering her homeless. With permission, he invited her to live in the bro­thers' residence while he worked to solve her problem. Eventually, she was able to move back into her home. He continued to help her until her dying day.
• Another recipient of his attention was Brother Collin Dugas. Suffering from Parkinson's Disease, Collin needed a computer in order to continue his ministry from home. Maurus helped him set up a machine and spent many hours training Collin in its use.

• So many great memories of working with Maurus come to mind. For example, his Rambro lessons when working with projectile motion. He would put his "do-rag" on his head and turn around and an­nounce himself as Rambro. He would ask the stu­dents, "Do any of you happen to have a gun with you today? No? Well, it just so happens that I have one!!!" (producing a small spring-loaded gun that would shoot a small projectile).
  Gravitational acceleration lesson: Producing a ladder from which to drop items ... Asking students: "Does anyone feel like getting high today?"
  But perhaps my favorite Maurus memory is this. He appeared in the faculty room one morning with a post-it note clipped to his shirt pocket. The note simply had the following printed on it in red ink: NO. Whenever someone spoke to him throughout that day, he would look down at that note, smile, and walk away. He managed to make it through the entire day without uttering a single word. Amazing! David Rhodes, biology teacher at Brother Martin
• No student or faculty member present will ever forget Brother Maurus' multiple appearances at pep rallies in his Rambro gear. Another memory is the tears he shed when I brought him two of my son's extensive Physics notebooks complete with diagrams, tests, and quizzes. He had lost all his teaching materials in the flood waters of Katrina and was ecstatic to receive these notebooks and folders. Keiren Aucoin, Brother Martin Librarian
• His preparation helped me to excel in Engineering, get a scholarship and become a Naval Aviator. Commander Bruce Nolan ('90), head of the Brother Martin NJROTC program
• I had Brother Maurus at Cor Jesu in the 1962- 63 school year. He taught me religion and geom­etry, and that was his first year teaching. From my perspective of 33 years as a high school teacher, I can say with confidence that he was one of the best first-year teachers I've known. I think the things I remember best about him - in addition to his superb teaching skills - was his genuine kind­ness and sincerity. Ed Deluzain (CJ '65)
• Although I was beginning to do well in certain subjects like math and chemistry, that name "physics" conjured up a certain degree of fear. I needed this subject as I planned a college curri­culum heavy in the sciences. From the first day, Bro. Maurus had a command of the classes but at the same time seemed so gentle and kind. He made physics enjoyable and even fun. I remember him taking the entire physics class out one evening to use telescopes at the lakefront. Dr. Ernest Wil­bur ('71)
• The first project Brother Maurus gave us in Phy­sics was to create our own star chart. It was a slow and painful process to get all the stars and constel­lations in the right place. But to this day, when I look up at a dark night sky, the constellations that we so carefully plotted on that chart are crystal clear overhead. It is the comfort of our faith to know that Brother Maurus will now get to exam­ine those same stars from above while those of us watch them from here below. Rory Montero ('73)
• It was in his class where I discovered the love of physics and the fulfilling world of engineering. His confidence in me provided the opportunity to take the first AP physics exam for Brother Martin which set the tone for a rewarding college and pro­fessional experience. When I get together with classmates, we talk about the funny side of Bro­ther Maurus like his chicken dance or when we got "shocked" linking pinkies to make a closed electrical circuit. Charles Penot ('75)

• His tests were hard, challenging, and graded on merit. To get a good grade, you really had to de­serve it. Whenever I received an A on a test, he would hand the test paper to me with a big smile and say, "It feels GOOD to do good." Those words have remained with me ever since. Michael McCloskey ('77)
• Brother Maurus inspired me and countless others to look toward the heavens - spiritually and literally. I am partly referring to his legendary "star parties" conducted for his physics classes very late at night out on the I-10 interchange past the Michaud exit. Never before had I ever seen or appreciated the splendor of the stars in God's creation until Bro­ther opened my eyes to it. Mark Erath ('77)
• Brother Maurus was a wonderful teacher, always willing to offer additional help. When I had him for Algebra II, my class was right before his lunch per­iod. Every Wednesday, at the end of class, he would tell us, "Let's go, it's Nacho Day!!" Marcus Hock ('88)
• Who could forget the infamous strobe light dance? I will also never forget the look of pride and joy on his face when a group of Physics Honor students competed against other high school teams and col­lege engineering students at Tulane University in a robotic vehicle competition and won. I am sure he inspired lots of BM students like myself to pursue careers in engineering and science. Derek Tara­vella ('95)
• From using the smoke of a lit cigarette in a lesson about lasers to yelling his catchphrase "ZOT" to emphasize a profound point, Brother Maurus bril­liantly used his deadpan humor to educate us. He was a great teacher and a true jewel for Brother Martin. Brian Danos ('95)
• Brother Maurus is the reason I became a nuclear engineer. He was also a role model to me in the ways that I now give demonstrations to younger generations regarding science and engineering, trying to make them fun, interesting, engaging ... and perhaps even educational. Trey Johansen ('96)
• On the way to my Physics final, I passed Brother Maurus in the hallway. I shook his hand and joked, "I really wish I could download all your brain power before this test." He immediately started spasming and shaking his other arm in the air, as if I was actually siphoning his mind through our handshake. Other students stood stunned at their lockers while this was happening. He then let go, acting exhausted, and said "good luck." Then we walked into the classroom as if nothing had hap­pened. I ended up getting an A. Chris Nuebel ('99)
• One of the best classes I took in all my formative educational years was Physics AP my senior year at Brother Martin. He was the first person to teach me optics, which essentially provided the base of my career and passion. I'll always remember appre­ciating how much I learned from him when I abso­lutely annihilated my honors level Physics classes at UGA because he had already taught me every­thing I needed to know. He had such a passion for not only teaching but doing it well. Dr. Brendon Sumich ('01)
• Brother Maurus was one of my favorite teachers at Brother Martin. He was a quiet, gentle man. As a teacher, there was simply something about him that commanded our attention and respect. He rarely had to shout to bring the class to attention. Whenever we were getting a little too rowdy, he would stand in front of the class with his fingers in his ears saying, "You're too loud." He made learn­ing fun and made sure you understood what he was teaching. Stephen Bergeron ('05)

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