In 1935, a young boy from Agra arrived on Woodstock’s campus. Already ambitious at the age of 14, he was most excited about his science courses.His new classmates affectionately called him “Huku”.
Here during the principalship of Rev. Allen E. Parker, Hukam Yadav witnessed a new example of leadership and glimpsed the changing world that lay ahead of him…
-The Whispering Pine, 1938
“His craze at present is trying to raise a moustache and a set of sideburns…
…the latter are almost visible.”
The attributes that Hukam Yadav was best known for at Woodstock
became the same qualities which were to
characterize him throughout his life…
At the age of 18, he took the Federal Service Examination and was one of 15 cadets admitted into the Indian Military Academy.
In 1941, at the age of 20, he was commissioned as Second Lieutenant in the Royal Regiment of the Indian Artillery.
While still in his early twenties, he was promoted to Captain and became the first Indian to be appointed Instructor-in-Gunnery.
During WWII, Brigadier Yadav was posted to the Burmese front, and was soon after selected to be Liaison Officer for Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten. In the same year, Brigadier Yadav was named Aide De Camp for General Sir Montagu Stopford.
In 1947, Lord Mountbatten was appointed Viceroy of India – he would be the last – and Brig. Yadav was selected as his ADC.As India neared its Independence, Brig. Yadav found himself amidst a crucial time in history.
“It was a wonderful experience to hear Gandhiji dilate on his favorite themes in simple but stirring words. His affection and compassion were always overwhelming.”-British Lions and the Indian Tigers
Brigadier Kim Yadav
On August 15th, at the Independence Day Celebrations at India Gate, the huge crowd prevented Lord Mountbatten from reaching the flagpole, so Brig. Yadav made his way through and unfurled the flag.
That same year, another historic
moment occurred in Brig. Yadav’s own life
– he married Miss Ann Connorton, his life partner.
Over the course of their 52-year marriage, the two had a son, a daughter, and three grandchildren.“My wife was a rare gem, not only a woman full of grace, but also a person of compassion and concern for others.”-British Lions and the
Indian Tigers Brigadier Kim
Yadav
First Commandant of the Jungle Warfare School
Defense Services Staff College Instructor
Infantry School
Instructor
Throughout his career, Brig. Yadav worked for security, stability and the integrity of his nation throughout India and greater Asia.
Following his retirement, he put
his efforts into family, farming, and furthering the rights
of veterans.
“I realize now that without the education at Woodstock School I would never have held the most prestigious and enjoyable appointments later in life.”
“I would say that my ability to communicate effectively with my fellow human beings from anywhere in the world was Woodstock School’s greatest gift to me.”
“…it was at Woodstock that I acquired the essential skills for communicating with others in a convincingand genial manner…”
-British Lions and the Indian Tigers Brigadier Kim Yadav
In his High School years at Woodstock, Brig. Yadav was known for admiring the motto:
“Hitch your wagon to a star.
Aim high; hope for great things.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson