Newsletter - August 2006

09/08/2006

Foundation members

Since the July newsletter, the following Old Boys have made pledges or donations and have been registered as Members of the Foundation –

David Campbell (1935-37) – Friend

Graeme Vickers (1947-51) – Friend

David Billing (1945-49) – Friend

Alistair McLachlan (1945-49) – Friend

Blake Eskdale (1948-49) – Old Boys’

Rodney Eastgate (1929-32) – Friend

Clive Grimsdale (1947-52) – Friend

Adam Coxon (1935-38) – Friend

Dr Phil Silva (1954-58) – Old Boys’

Annual meeting

The Foundation’s first Annual Meeting will be held on Wednesday, 30th August 2006 in the Taylor McLachlan Ltd boardroom, 44 York Place, Dunedin starting at noon.

While the current Trustees have all expressed an interest in continuing their involvement with the development of the Foundation, nominations for the Board are most welcome. Any Old Boy, former Rector or staff member can make a nomination but the nominee must be a Foundation member with the nomination seconded by another Foundation member. The list of current Foundation members can be viewed on the website – www.obhsfoundation.co.nz – or obtained by contacting the Foundation office.

Annual Dinner

The second Annual Foundation Dinner is planned for early-October.

Negotiations with a speaker are nearing completion and it is envisaged final preparations will be underway within a week. At that stage, the speaker will be announced and the date set.

School news

Results from the inter-schools contested so far in term 3:

Versus Timaru Boys' in Timaru:

Golf - Otago Boys' 5 and a half, Timaru Boys' 2 and a half

Hockey - Otago Boys' 10, Timaru Boys 2

Junior basketball - Timaru Boys' 27, Otago Boys' 26

Badminton - Otago Boys' 6, Timaru Boys' 0

Squash - Otago Boys' 4, Timaru Boys' 1

Theatre sports - Timaru Boys' 33, Otago Boys 30

Debating - Timaru Boys' 290, Otago Boys' 270

Trap shooting - Otago Boys' 23, Timaru Boys' 23

Football - Timaru Boys' 5, Otago Boys' 0

Cross country - Seniors: win to Otago Boys' 27-28; juniors: win to Timaru Boys 9-12 (overall win to Timaru Boys')

Rugby - First XV: Timaru Boys' 20, Otago Boys' 17; Under 15: Timaru Boys' 22, Otago Boys' 10

Versus Waitaki Boys in Oamaru:

Golf: Waitaki Boys' 4 and a half, Otago Boys' 3 and a half

Junior debating: Otago Boys' 351, Waitaki Boys' 349

Squash: Otago Boys' 5, Waitaki Boys' 0

Basketball: Senior - Waitaki Boys' 71, Otago Boys' 54

Junior - Otago Boys' 44, Waitaki Boys' 38

Badminton: Senior - Waitaki Boys' won 7-6 on a countback after the individual matches were locked at 3-all; junior - Otago Boys' 3, Waitaki Boys' 1

Football: Senior - Otago Boys' 3, Waitaki Boys' 0; Year 9/10 - Otago Boys' 3, Waitaki Boys' 0

Hockey: Otago Boys' 12, Waitaki Boys' 0

Trap shooting: Otago Boys' 286, Waitaki Boys' 261

Chess: Otago Boys' 40, Waitaki Boys' 7

Rugby: First XV - Otago Boys' 27, Waitaki Boys' 15; Second XV - Otago Boys' 28, Waitaki Boys' 14

Versus Christchurch Boys’ in Christchurch –

Badminton - Otago Boys' 4, Christchurch Boys' 2

Basketball - Otago Boys' 78, Christchurch Boys' 72

Cross country - senior: win to Christchurch Boys'; junior: win to Christchurch Boys'

Chess - Christchurch Boys' 6 and a half, Otago Boys 3 and a half

Debating - Christchurch Boys' 254, Otago Boys' 246

Football - Christchurch Boys' 6, Otago Boys' 2

Golf - Christchurch Boys' 4, Otago Boys' 2

Rugby - First XV: Christchurch Boys' 44, Otago Boys' 0; 2nd XV: Christchurch Boys' 36, Otago Boys' 31

Squash - Christchurch Boys' 4, Otago Boys' 1

Threatre sports - win to Otago Boys'

Trap shooting - Otago Boys' 224, Christchurch Boys' 203

The school's music department has plenty on in Term 3.

While in the process of re-building its own band and not competing as a result, Otago Boys' this week plays host to the South Island Concert Bands' annual festival. Competing schools from Manurewa, Invercargill, Christchurch, Dunedin and Canberra have converged on the school's auditorium for the day-long event.

And the combined Otago Boys/Otago Girls' choir has been invited to represent Otago at the annual national Secondary Schools' finale in Auckland at the end the month. New Zealand is divided into seven regions for the contest with the choir now facing a massive logistical and fundraising task in accepting the invitation.

Part of the choir’s final preparations for the Auckland challenge will comprise an appearance at the RSA Choir's annual August concert.

Congratulations

Percy Wellington (1925-28) was one of four Dunedin Rotarians recently honoured for their long and loyal service.

With 40 years service to the Dunedin Club, Percy was joined by Don Bird (40 years), Noel Jackson (40 years) and Dick King (44 years) in being presented with a Paul Harris Fellow sapphire, the award named after the 1905 founder of the Rotary movement.

All four have been directors or senior club members, they've shared 20 appointments, convened seven committee and between them have been involved in the work of 83 separate committees.

Percy is one of the school's oldest living Old Boys and is also the oldest living graduate from the University of Otago's Business School.

Liam Edwards, a year 10 (4th form) pupil at Otago Boys', will be the envy of rugby fans right across the province, following his success in the Otago Daily Times 125th season 'pick the team' competition.

After successfully selecting 14 of the 15 players settled on by a consensus of 20 judges, Liam has won two Carisbrook ground memberships for life.

If he lives to 75 and keeps attending games until then, he'll see somewhere around 800 first-class matches at no charge with the value over that time in the vicinity of $25,000.

It's likely he'll be taking his father Bruce to games, certainly for the first few years, with Liam admitting his Dad had given him plenty of advice about the various players available for selection. The only position Liam missed was fullback where he named Laurie Mains ahead of the judges' call of Greg Cooper.

The Otago team of all-time named, to celebrate the union's 125th season was:

Greg Cooper, Jeff Wilson, Ron Elvidge, Lyn Jaffray, John Timu, Earle Kirton, Chris Laidlaw, Mike Brewer, Josh Kronfeld, Taine Randall, Charlie Willocks, Richard Knight, Carl Hayman, Anton Oliver and Kevin Skinner. The seven reserves were: David Latta, Keith Murdoch, Lester Harvey, Peter Johnstone, Jimmy Haig, Duncan Robertson and Tony Davies.

Website

The Foundation’s website continues to generate global attention!

Of the thousands of visitors in the last month, 43 percent live offshore - which is further graphic evidence of the fact that Otago Boys’ alumni can be found at almost every point of the compass.

Please take a look at the site at www.obhsfoundation.co.nz

Where are they now?

Geoffrey Davies (1961-63) left New Zealand for the United Kingdom with many happy memories of Otago Boys’, representing Otago in age group rugby at halfback and playing cricket with Glenn Turner particularly enjoyable.

Aftertraining in Britain as a naval navigation officer, Geoff entered industry in 1973 and has made an enormous impact, receiving an OBE from the Queen in 2004 for services to British agriculture.

Geoff’s curriculum vitae makes for impressive reading - a BSc(Hons) and MSc from Manchester University and a Post Graduate Diploma from Keele University; Vice President of a American NYSE listed company (worth $NZ750 million) andManaging Director of a group of 10 agricultural and commercial mowing equipment manufacturing companiesspread through Britain, France, the Netherlands and Russia; and the recipient of a swag of machinery and Business of the Year awards.

Geoff’s energy is also spent as a Director of the British Chamber of Commerce; Director and Council member of the Agricultural Engineers Association; and Chairman of the Farm Equipment Council. He also serves as amember of the Regional Strategy Group for Trade andInvestment for the West Midlands region of England; is a guestlecturer at the Harper Adams Agricultural University College; is Chairman of the Higher Heath Football Club, which he founded for eight to 15 year olds; and is involved with a good number of charities.

He hopes to be in New Zealand early next year and plans a visit to Dunedin.

Bill Manhire (1960-63) has recently won a Montana Award for his book Lifted.

Believing it’s the best book he’s written, Bill is delighted to think the award judges are of the same opinion.

A professor of writing at Victoria University in Wellington, Bill has enjoyed a prolific career during which he has received four New Zealand Book Awards. He has written several volumes of fiction, edited several bestselling anthologies of New Zealand poetry and short stories, and had a collection of his essays and interviews published.

Last year, he was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit and he was named as one of the five Arts’ Foundation of New Zealand Laureates. It is reported he wrote his first poem at the age of seven.

David Hamilton (1976-80) is back in New Zealand after spending 12 years lecturing at the University of Western Australia in Perth.

Graduating from Otago University with a BSc and PhD, both in zoology, David is now a Professor in Biological Studies at the University of Waikato in Hamilton where he is also chairman of the university’s lake restoration programme. He was in Wanaka late last week for a series of seminars on challenges for lake management and to offer advice on the type of monitoring required to ensure the retention of the best water quality possible in the great lakes of the south.

David is a former first-class rugby player, representing Otago in 25 games between 1983 and ’87, and a more than useful track athlete as well. He played for Western Australia from 1993 to ’96, having the distinction of scoring the first try against the post-apartheid Springboks as they started their 1993 tour in Perth, Western Australia eventually losing 56-13.

Married to Debbie (nee Edwards, ex Bayfield High School in Dunedin) and with three children aged 13, 11 and nine, David confines his fitness work to less vigorous pursuits these days – when time permits. David’s father Iain (1952) and brother Greg (1979-83) are also Old Boys.

Vince Ashworth (1948-50) has just returned from an emotional trip to France.

His brother, Flying Officer Corran Perry Ashworth, was shot down and killed in August 1944, his Mustang plunging into the River Seine near the town of Oissel. Last month, a plaque commemorating Corran’s death was unveiled at a ceremony attended by representatives of the Ashworth family, New Zealand French embassy staff, the French and German consuls-general, local government officials and representatives of the French armed forces and gendarmerie, French Veterans Association and Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Representatives of the RAF and RNZAF also traveled from London for the ceremony.

Vince was a 12-year old schoolboy when his war hero brother was killed.

“We never knew exactly what happened, but it was a very sad time. I remember very vividly how families were advised of casualties. We got a knock on the front door at 5 o’clock one night. It was the postmaster and he handed mum a telegram and said he was sorry. Casualty lists were published every day in the Otago Daily Times, too. That’s how it was done in those days.”

Flying Officer Ashworth is among the 20,450 Allied airmen who died in unknown circumstances during World War 2 with all names listed on the Runnymede Memorial, at Englefield Green in England.

“That was the end of it for 60 years, as far as my family was concerned,” Vince said.

“Then, eight months ago, I received an email from an amateur French military historian, who was doing research on World War 2 in Normandy. He had met a local man who, as a child during the war, had seen my brother’s plane going into the river.”

Four of Vince’s brothers also fought in World War 2, including highly-decorated Wing Commander Artie Ashworth, who was awarded the DSO, DFC and bar, and AFC and bar. With the average life of RAF bomber crews being 10 operations, Artie’s survival of 110 missions was seen as something of a miracle.

Vince now lives in Morrinsville.

Wilfred Simenauer (1943, 1945-46), now lives in retirement in Wellington.

Having fled from Nazi Germany to New Zealand, school days weren’t always the happiest for Wilf and his brother Frank (1941-42) with many boys of the era more than a little insensitive. However, he says his own classmates eventually came to understand the difference between a Nazi and a refugee.

Wilf made the First XV and was also a very fine musician, which led to his father withdrawing him from the team to ‘protect his hands’. And it was music which became Wilf’s greatest love.

Having traveled to Britain, Wilf joined the London Philharmonic Orchestra where he was sub-Principal cellist from 1950 to 1953. He played as Principal cellist for Sadler’s Wells Opera & Ballet Orchestra from 1953 to ’55, while also deputising for the BBC’s Symphony Orchestra, the BBC’s Concert Orchestra and with the London Symphony Orchestra.

Wilf then went on to play for the Philharmonic Orchestra (1955-57); the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (1957-60); the St. Martin-in-the-Fields Ensemble, where he was a Founder member and co-Principal cellist in 1959; and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra (Principal cellist) from 1960 to ’64. Upon returning to New Zealand, he was the Principal cellist for the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra from 1965 to ’70; and the co-Principal cellist (1971-93). He also played as Principal cellist for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in 1970.

He has also been a regular soloist with the BBC, ABC and Radio NZ, and the New Zealand Chamber Music Federation, along with playing concertos in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. Wilf was the solo cellist on the NZSO’s tour of Australia in 1974 with Kiri te Kanawa and Michael Houston.

The name Magnus Sinclair has been synonymous with Otago Boys' for much of the last 50 years.

Magnus attended the school from 1955 to '59 and returned as a part-time teacher in 1963. After three years in the part-time role, he took up a full-time position and was a permanent member of staff until he retired in 2000.

His passion now is sculpting, with a series of steel and glass works spread around the country a source of great pride for him. Magnus says his interest was sparked 25 years ago as he was building a steel yacht while he admits his days as a biology teacher have helped when creating sculptures of animals and birds.

A terrific example of his work - a kiwi, which took 10 weeks to complete - is on display at the Careys Bay Hotel.

Magnus graduated from Otago University with a BSc and now has a Diploma in Wildlife Management. He taught at a time when an awareness of DNA, ecology and conservation was beginning to emerge.

Do you know where these people are?

We’ve lost contact recently with –

Nigel Buisson (1989-93), last known to be working in database administration in the United Kingdom
Paul Gerard Sutherland (1989-91), who describes himself as an adventurer
Neil Robert Salter (1981-83), last known to be managing Paeroa Tyres

And please continue to come forward with names and contact details for Old Boys, no matter their age or where they’re living, along with information about those who have passed on.

Recent deaths

David Watson Anderson (1934-38), died in Dunedin on 7th July 2006, aged 84. David worked for the Dunedin City Council in a series of administrative and clerical roles over a 43-year career and, apart from his service during World War II, lived his entire lifetime within a mile radius in North East Valley and Opoho. David was a long-standing and loyal member of the Old Boys’ Society.

Laurie (Peter Lawrence) Bell (1933-36), died in Alexandra on 8th July 2006, aged 87.

Peter Wilson Boag (1943-47) ONZM, died in Wellington on 18th July 2006, aged 76. Peter trained as a school teacher having always been active in student life. He was a President of the Auckland University Students’ Association, was co-editor of the association’s weekly magazine Craccum in 1953, acted as the New Zealand representative to International Students’ conferences in Ceylon in 1956 and to Nigeria a year later, and was made a Life Member of the New Zealand University Students’ Association. After retiring as a teacher Peter took up various roles in public service, working with the State Services Commission and Internal Affairs, where he was responsible for that department’s community development. He served on various Advisory Committees, was interested in the arts (being a founding subscriber to the St James Theatre and Opera House in Wellington, and editing the Wellington Civic Trust’s newsletter) and was made an Officer of the New Zealand order of Merit in 2001 for public and community services. Peter was a long-time member of the Old Boys’ Society.

Winston Jeffrey (Win) Miller (1955-57), died in Dunedin on 18th July 2006, aged 64. Win was a third generation owner of the firm now known as Miller Studios. Established by his grandfather Oswell, whose own father Henry was renowned for his award-winning hansom cabs in Melbourne and Dunedin, O.G Miller began life as a high quality sign writing firm. When Win’s father Roy and his uncle Ralph (1931-32) joined the firm, the name changed to O.G. Miller &Sons with Roy building a reputation as a fine craftsman with stained glass. Win joined the firm in 1958 with his flair seeing a change in direction towards shop design, construction and fittings with innovation the keyword, Miller Studios’ portfolio of awards testament to Win’s drive and vision. Win was a long-standing member of the Old Boys’ Society.

Dr Dawson Albert Cotton (1937-42), died in Christchurch on 20th July 2006, aged 82. Dawson was one of six brothers who attended Otago Boys’ – Herbert (1935-38), Keith (1941-43), Cliff (1942-45) and Trevor (1947-51) have all died while John (1945-50) lives in retirement in Ranfurly.

Gordon Wilson Dalziel (1943-45), died at Fulton Home & Hospital in Dunedin on 21st July 2006, aged 76.

Bill (William David) McGhee (1934-35), died at Ross Home in Dunedin on 25th July 2006, aged 85.

Rymall Stuart Roxburgh (1928-32), died in Timaru Hospital on 2nd August 2006, aged 90. Rymall was well educated Presbytarian Minister, graduating with a Master of Commerce from Otago in 1941, taking Honours in Economics and Economic History, and then, a decade later, completing a BA and BD in Melbourne. He served in mission work overseas including a long spell in India.

August luncheon

The luncheon scheduled for August 31st and to feature Contiki founder John Anderson has been cancelled, due to lack of bookings.

Only 65 tickets had been sold by Monday morning and the decision was taken at that point to cancel the function.

Steve Davie

Chief Executive