It was a special year. And they were in a special school: The Presbyterian Boys Senior High School, a bastion of academic distinction unmatched anywhere across the nation.

The year 2000. The turn of a new century. The Millennium batch.

PRESEC-Legon has always been a citadel of academic brilliance unparalleled anywhere. And a bastion of Ghana's "who is who" in the country's sprightly teenage brainiacs. This is where the young men hungry for intellectual excellence, unafraid of competition and unrelentingly self-assured converged to nurture what God had imbued them with. But Presec was not only a place for academic inquiry.

It was a hotbed for an all-rounded education steeped in the proverbial Presbyterian training. Here, Matthew 6:33, Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and all other things shall be added, came to life. It was God first, and all other things followed.

And so even as the world was caught in the euphoria, and perhaps anxiety of not just a new millennium but the uncertainties of the new technology, the gentlemen at PRESEC were settled, safe and secure in the Lord. Remember the Internet bug, the Y2K bug or the Millennium bug?

At PRESEC-Legon, the soon-to-be Odade3 were moulded in every significant aspect needed for their personal growth, spiritual growth, academic excellence and social development. This included everything that was needed to make them well-groomed men socially and academically.

The men and women responsible for that did it assiduously and conscientiously. There was Mr JJ Asare, the calm, measured and absolutely imperturbable Headmaster whose steel but gentle demeanour provided warmth and assurance for the students, parents, staff and all.

There were the likes of the no-nonsense, efficient and uncompromising Mr Asamoah, Mr Kotei and other teachers who made sure that the dream of Engmann and the Basel mission to produce world-class gentlemen and fully baked students steeped in intellectual superiority was kept alive. There was the late Mrs CS Akyeampong, whose motherly and gentle demeanour created a homely and safe space for the impressionable young men, serving as an enabler for turning the roughest material into pure gold. She made sure PRESEC's conquest was as much in the arts as in the sciences. Many other teachers and staff also played significant roles in nurturing these students.

In fact, all the teachers at the school, from science to business to the arts to agriculture to technology to sports, to music and other sectors, made sure that the boys under their care had all they needed to excel academically.

Millennium boys are now Odade3 men. They have taken their places in the Church, their communities, their country and the world. They have produced public and private servants leading the charge in multifarious sectors and diverse disciplines you can imagine. In fact, they churned out a Minister of Health who was hailed for his medical and practical acumen during the global COVID-19 pandemic. Under Ghana's presidency, they have also produced a national Director of Communication and several other distinguished patriots who continue to serve this nation at the highest levels, including recent appointments under the current President John Mahama regime (DVLA Board Chair, Spencer Quaye, Alain Gbeasor,, is also a member of the Governing Board National Information Technology Agency (NITA), etc.).

They have shown up in the financial sector as well, serving as CEOs, Executive Partners for reputable national and global impactorganisationss such as Deloitte and Bayport (current Bayport CEO). The next time you’re at one of Ghana's foremost cutting-edge gateway hospitality exhibits to the world, Bridgeview Resort, remember the Y2K bug has made yet another impact, just to mention a few.

Esquire Selassie Woanyah is MD of one of Ghana's most successful and enduring financial institutions, Diamond Capital. He was also recently appointed by President Mahama as Board Chairman for the Ghana Meteorological Agency. Just to mention a few, the roll of impact includes: Gideon Ayi-Owoo, Tax and Regulatory Partner at Deloitte Ghana, Chairman Gbeasor, Board Member, BoG hospital and Technical Advisor to DVLA Board, Foster Mensah, MDD, Metrohm Central Africa, Abdul-Razak Yakubu, Executive Secretary, Coldfield Ghana Foundation, Fred Agyei-Gyan, Director, Compliance, FZB, Samuel Nimako Boateng, Deputy Chief Executive, Bui Power Authority, among many other change makers.

From hospitals to courtrooms, from technology hubs to business sectors, from the artistic productions to the scientific breakthroughs, from academia to industry, you will find the boys who reported as fresh, nervous, dreamy-eyed Form 1 boys now making an impact and shining the light that was sparked in them at Presby Boys in diverse ways.

The foundations laid by Clerk, Klufio, Engmann and many others have come full circle and continue to serve as the productive grounds, incubation centre and crucible of transformation for Ghana's young boys who are blessed to have found themselves in the country's iconic second-cycle institution. All under the banner of the Most High and the mighty wings of the Odade3 tree. May Presbyterian Boys Secondary School continue to see light in His light. In lumine tuo videbimus lumen.