OW 60's reunion Oct 2008

Over 100 Old Witleians, mainly from the 1960s, enjoyed a full day with tours of the school, viewing the ViVartis Exhibition, an inspiring service in Chapel, chat, coffee, tea, home- made biscuits and cakes, and a delicious 3 course lunch for those who had ordered it.

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Fred Deane, Chairman of the Association, welcomed those present and spoke of a year of changes and looking forward, as the Development Office has been absorbed by the new Community Relations Office; and he thanked the staff, Gwyn Phillips, Susie Spragg and Judith Mott, for the organisation of the day. The website is now running well, thanks to John Stead. Particular thanks are also due to Richard Bird, who is now Deputy Headmaster of St. Marys School in Cambridge, for all the work he did to get the OWA running well with the benefits of technology, and increasing the amount of Bursary funding.

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For the future Fred hopes to increase the number of sporting fixtures, with social events to follow in the evening, and this needs active help from Old Witleians of all ages. Class notes are always welcome for the website as are articles for the School magazine (these should be channelled through Gwyn Phillips and the CRO). He asked those present to persuade more of their friends to get involved. The Old Witleians Cricket match against the school will take place on Saturday July 4^th 2009, and will be followed by a Ball, organised by KESPA (the Parents Association).

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He also wants to have more area meetings and the first of these will be in Edinburgh on Saturday November 7^th 2009. Fred went on to thank the Headmaster for his support, and those who had helped to make the day such a success, the Chaplains who had taken part in the service, the Catering Staff and the committee.

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The Committee for 2008-9.

The election of the committee was proposed by Fred Deane and seconded by John Perry.

   Chair - David (Fred) Deane

   Scholarship Secretary- Pamela Lorraine

   Chris Cooper

   Ann Fitchett

   Kerr Fulton-Peebles

   Chris Lack

   Bertie Mawer

   Margaret Melrose

   Sara Riley

   John Stead

   Jan Weston

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The Headmaster was pleased to add his welcome, and is delighted that the Association has now become a fundamental part of the school community. He has enjoyed the reunions he attended in the USA in the Autumn 2007, one in New York and the other in San Francisco, where there was a wonderful atmosphere, just as there is amongst the pupils. Information on the website and in the magazine gives a flavour of KES 2007-8. The independent sector is challenged, and the next 4-5 years of economic downturn will affect this further, but the school has had 450 years of challenges. The current number of pupils is 440, much as it was in the 1960s. Both the numbers of boarders and the numbers of girls have increased, thanks in part to the generosity of Old Witleians and this helps the school to keep up its tradition, atmosphere and sense of community. The Sixth Form Debate showed the participants to be eloquent and confident. Sometimes the young are criticised for being too passive, but this is not so at KES, where the problem of lack of street lighting is being pursued with the council and green issues are hotly debated. The value of education can be seen beyond exam results as music, drama and sport are all flourishing. The 1^st X1 have just got through to the next round of the Independent Schools Cup. Work is planned for the campus and the governors have enlisted the help of a firm to develop an exciting master plan for the future, which will be a challenge to funds. He thanked the OWs for their support in attending the reunion, financially, in offering work experience and maintaining their interest in the school.

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AOB

John Perry raised the state of the memorial in Witley churchyard, which is showing its age and is in some disrepair. He proposed that there should be a memorial in the school chapel, with all the names of those who have died while at school.

Update (from Fred) - 11 November: I am pleased to report that, as a result of an item brought up under AoB at the AGM, Gwyn Phillips and pupils shall now be responsible for the upkeep of the Memorial at Witley Church (for those pupils who died whilst at KES). A Book of Remembrance, to be displayed at KES, is also being discussed.

John Stead reported interest in a summer, rather than autumn, date for the annual reunion, but Fred pointed out that it had to fit in with the school, and the summer term is now very pressurised.

OWs were encouraged to join the House of Lords Dinner on November 25^th. (Update, 20th October - since the reunion, this event has regrettably had to be cancelled.)

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Listed below are those OWs whom we believe attended:

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