G.H. (Graham) Wedderburn (4346), I'atlior of five daughters, writes "All my adult life my hobby has been singing, thanks to the training you gave me in the Choir. Unison singing has no interest for me, but harmony fascinates. I've belonged to many ehoirs and eoueertparties and at present (July) am playing a lead role as Ananias, in a spiritual musical entitled "Spirit", first produced in London. It has tnade a tremendous impact, and has been on the go since February." D.R. (Doug) Weir (25-27), a twin, in age, ot Gerry Griffin, mentioned earlier (their fathers were Methodist ministers together ip P.M.Burg about 1925, and Doug and Gerry joined the Standard Bank together), has long since retired from Bank Managership, but keeps fit and well in King William's Town on bowls and Freemasonry. He is relatively near the Wild Coast, which offers scope for holidaying. Now he is seeking an entrance form for his grandson to come to Kearsney. Doug's younger brother, Lance, was killed in the War, but his mother is still going strong, nearing 100. We offer our most sincere sympathies to H.N.(Newton) Walker (3845) and Diane, in the loss of their second son Michael, who passed away quietly in his sleep late in June. He had suffered from muscular dystrophy - a wasting away of the use of his limbs - for twenty years. The disease is incurable, and parents and sons knew that the end was inevitable, yet they showed wonderful Christian courage. Michael was brought to most Kearsney functions, though unable to move, yet remained consistently cheerful, and insisted on taking his Matric, which he passed, to his very great credit. One can but dimly imagine the reaction, after 20 years of continuous nursing. D.C.M. (Deryck) Wheelwright (4448) has completed the Comrades Marathon 17 times! "But"he says,"1 am more proud of my son's Under 13 1500 metre record than of my Comrades medals!" Rev. B.J. (Brian) Woods (4043) continues his active work with St John's Presbyterian Church,Bloemfontein. His old affection for music remains and he relates that he has been involved in at least a dozen performances of the Messiah and one of the Elijah. His school-learnt abihty to read at sight has always proved a great asset. R.W. (Roger) Whiteley (4144), M.E.C. for Education, Natal, is prepared to be outspoken in his efforts to right the wrongs of the educational system. Especially does he feel that English-speaking South Africans are being dominated, even in Natal, by the Afrikaners. "There is interference" he says "in education, in sport, the cinema, and the books we read. There are more control boards, more red tape per square metre than in any other country in the free world". The Civil Service is almost entirely Afrikaner, with pension schemes lavish beyond the wildest dreams of those who joined the Civil Service 30 years ago. "By asking for the rights of th English-speaking South African 1 am not being antiAfrikaner", he says. "All 1 ask for is a square deal". A first-ever revisit by B.A.(Arthur) Wood (31-32) had me scratching as to his identity! While taking a quick look around the present school, he regaled with many happy memories of his own years, and enquired after his contemporaries. He opened up Keen's Electrical in Pretoria and had 20 years there before recently retiring. Arthur is a live worker in the Baptist Church and for the Gideons. His brother A.N. (Alex) (31-32) works for Respo-technic in Durban,enamelling baths and suchlike, and walked up my steps a couple of years ago humming that well-known classic of 40 years ago "Toddlin'down the Road to Barcelona",composed by yours truly. J.H.(John) Worth(31-32)was pensioned off at 58 after a life's work with the S.A. Mutual, mainly in Bloemfon tein. He is now filling in his time with a firm of Insurance Brokers. Some while ago he and his wife paid their first visit to the UK and he wrote at great length on the exhilarating experiences there. They started from his father's homeland in Cornwall, even finding a John Worth on a tombstone, and ended up, via Wales, the Lakes and Lancashire, at the Edinburgh Tattoo, He "fell", like many others, for the beauty of the country side and for the churches, but was disappointed in the Cornish Pasties and Clotted Cream, which did not mix with bitters. Rev. E.A.P.(Peter) Watson (55-60) has completed four years at Northmead Baptist Church, Benoni. There arc difficult problems in this area of the country and his ministry has not been without disappointments, with numbers dropping. He has a great love for his church and feels that spiritual problems would be .solved "if only people would love one another more". Rev. P.R. (Peter) Young (4247). chaplain and rugger coach at Kingswood, accompanied the Kingswood side which toured Natal (and lost narrowly to Kearsney). He writes most nostalgically of happy days with the Kearsney choir and the part he played in carols and concerts. He .says he has never heard "Gloria in Excelsis" sung as it was at Kearsney. Since his school days he has sung all over S. Africa, including a choral tour of S.W.A. back in 1954, where they sang at every railway station and nearly destroyed the train-driver's concentration. His pile of school anthems and part-songs is ever at hand. Zululand, by virtue of the School's original position, is very much the home of Kearsney's most loyal supporters. As one travels north one sees Kearsney names everywhere, and one is certain of a warm welcome in every home. There is potential for a very strong Branch there, in spite of the large distances that would have to be covered to attend a Dinner. Who is the enthusiast who will step into the shoes of the late Desmond Raw? R.W.(Ron) Zeller (4346) is doing fine work from the pulpit of his Christadelphian Church, and is greatly helped by his son David (68-72) at the organ. He gave up active rugger some time ago, but still organises the Old Crocks Matches! It is pertinent to remark here that when Kearnsey was a very small school, with 100 boys or less, it supplied four consecutive Natal wing three quarters - Arthur Stockil, Eric Groom, Norman Theunissen and Ron Zeller. The very much larger school has supplied none. And yet Kearsney has always possessed good wings; in recent years one thinks of the Hopkins Brothers, Halliday, Rich, Briscoe, Hohls. Perhaps today other occupations crowd the rugger out. On the other hand, the number of good centres produced by Kearsney could be numbered on the fingers of two hands. A wing three quarter is only as good as his centre permits him to be, and this weakness has starved Kearsney of many victories. When Eric Groom scored eight tries in one match, one knew that it was George Bazley who carved the openings. When Mr Medworth was asked to compose the best Kearsney XV of his days, he refused to be "drawn",but he had to admit that he would have had to go back to John Barratt (25-32), captain, and George Bazley (3240) as his centres, and for his wings he selected Eric Groom and Norman Theunissen. (Barratt died in 1960 and Bazley was killed in the War). 1 have been posed a similar question about a cricket XI, but 1 similarly refuse to be "drawn".One makes too many enemies! 1 would certainly have built the team round Graham Boyd(3740,also killed in the War)who, as a bowler, would 1 think have made Springbok colours, Bazley, possibly, as captain, on his personality and skill. Of all the other cricketers who have passed through the school 1 think 1 would only safely select Peter Davidson (4142) who was here for only two years, as an all-rounder, and, in spite of prolific runmakers in more recent years, 1 still regard Godfrey Jacobs (30-37) as the soundest batsman, who, but for the War, might have gone right to the top. In concluding these Old Boys notes, 1 look back over 50 years, and have great difficulty in realising that 1 am the same person as arrived at the small Kearsney in 1927 83
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