ROY BEVIN Roy Bevin's demise has deprived the UK Branch ofthe KCOB of a very valued and very special member. He attended our various meetings,and made a shy,but posi tive contribution to our evenings.He slowly,but surely, made his mark,and his opinions became soughtand re spected. What is not generally known,is that Roy was one of a select number of boys who were sent out to South Af rica,evacuatedfrom war time England.He was an aver age typical boy at the school, not outstanding academi cally, and not particularly gifted on the sports field. In his unassuming way,he ended up running his own hard ware business, which he has passed on to his son. Through solid hard work he achieved a comfortable re tirement.Sadly his first wife died,so he was very lonely when he firstjoined our Old Boys Club. We were all very pleased for Roy that he found happi ness in his second marriage, but sorry that he left Eng land to return to Natal,where he became our man on the spot. Whenever he came back to the UK,he looked us up and keptin touch,proving to be a very loyal member of our branch. Once he was back in Natal,Roy busied himself helping people less privileged than himself. He redirected our charitable efforts to Embocraft, wbere he was very in volved helping train unskilled men into the craftofwood work, so that they could learn how to earn their own living.Through Roy's direction,we have been very heart ened by the positive results achieved with the modest amountofmoney our members,few in number,are able to raise annually. This remarkable man focused all our assistance where it did the most good. We have all lost a good friend,a worthy member ofour UK Branch,and Kearsney has lost a man of whom they can be proud.Such is the respect Roy inspired, that the UK Branch has decided to donate a cup,in his memory, to the school. This will be awarded for a craft subject, the exact details have yet to be decided. (Submitted by Alan Kinsey, helped by Kingsley Oliver) JOHNIRELAND Love,courage,determination, willpower and integrity. John and his sister Pat were born in Johannesburg where as Pat knows, they had a fun and mischievous child hood.Hethen attended Kearsney College in Natal which he loved and wl^ere he excelled in sport. He was in the first team for cricket, rugby,swimming and was also a prefect. At Kearsney he cemented life-long friendships and this is where he developed his love for Natal. He was always half a banana boy but still stuck up for the Transvaal at rugby matches. John was alwaysjazz mad-he even carried"78"single jazz records and record player to and fro from school on the train. All his friends knew his love forjazz. John married Brenda and they had 4 children, Tracey, Leigh, Robyn and Craig, and one grandson James. He always gave of himself to all of them. They loved, re spected and admired him in every way.His wife,family and home meant everything to him.He always wanted to shield and protect his family. He enjoyed having his family together and around him and through this has cre ated a very close-knit and supportive family. John took over the reins ofthe family businessfrom his late father and turned the business into one ofthe largest textile firms in the country.He was passionate about his work and had the ability to rise to any challenges. Through John's drive and hard work the company was known for its quality and high standard ofintegrity. As hard as John worked he played hard as well. He en joyed the good things in life and was often heard say ing:"This is bloody marvellous".He was able to travel a lot and loved it. He could be the life and soul of any gathering,enlivening it with his wit and energy. He es pecially enjoyed playing golf and drinking "with all his friends". As John's birthday is on the same day as Hit ler's hisfriends nicknamed him Hitler-John was a doer, things had to be done now and had to be done his way. He liked to be in control and was a fantastic organizer. What he did he always did well. John was fortunate to have a holiday home at Salt Rock and spent any possible spare time tbere. This was his ha ven.Heloved the sea,sun,beach,fresh fish and crayfish. Overthe years heestablished alarge circle offriendsthere. SaltRock wasa homefrom homefor him.Heloved noth ing more than going to Salt Rock and having all his fam ily around him.It was at Salt Rock that he really relaxed and enjoyed life the most.He played an active part in the local community and is well known there. When John's illness was first diagnosed 5 years ago,he was told the prognosis was not good,but tbrougb sheer determination and courage and his way of accepting things and getting on with them,he amazed people with his ability to deal witb his illness. He never once com plained.Towardsthe end his one regret wasthat he could not"play golf with his mates". For all who knew him,he leaves a memory ofintegrity, of determination and caring and offriendship. PETER GOLDIE(1950-1952) Passed away in tragic circumstances at home on 13 Oc tober 1994. Sadly missed by his wife Diane, daughters Michelle(16),Colette(14)and many friends. Peter lived in Durban North for most of his life and had a very wide circle of friends. He was involved in the clothing business for over 25 years running his own clothing agencies. A very keen golfer,few practised harder than he at this very difficult game. His organizational abilities were outstanding witb me ticulous attention to detail and Kearsney Old Boys will attest to these attributes as he organized the Old Boys' golf teams for 17 years(1970 to 1987). A willing par ticipant in many social golf trips to other provinces, he always included a few Old Boys in the groups. He was a prominent and very popular member of the Durban Country Club and apart from playing most of his golfthere also enjoyed his regular game ofsnooker. Since he first started at Kearsney in Junior House(now Haley)in 1950,Peter displayed a great loyalty and sin cerity towards his friends, a cheerful disposition and sunny smile were his trade marks. He will be sadly missed by all who knew him. Our deepest sympathies to his wife Diane and daugh ters Michelle and Colette. (Submitted by Harry Howlett) 136 Kearsney Chronicle 1994
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