↓ SECTION 04 —THE MAIL ROOM
OGG PRESIDENT A heavy smoke haze from Indonesian forest fires enveloped Kuala Lumpur during the OGG Asia reunion in October, restricting travel for our visitors from Indonesia and Thailand. The myriad skyscrapers looming through the gloom had a spectral quality when viewed from our lofty rooms at the Shangri-La Hotel. Warm, steamy weather and thunderstorms added to the atmosphere. Thank you to OGG Malaysian branch president U-En Ng (Cu’93) and vice-president Fong Thong (Ga’85) who organised a lively dinner at the Royal Lake Club pavilion, which was attended by 50 OGGs, GGS parents and friends from South-East Asia and Australia. Guest speaker, distinguished Malaysian banking executive Tan Sri Datuk Seri Razman Hashim (FB’58), delivered an entertaining account of his schooldays at GGS. Everyone stayed till late and enjoyed catching up over champagne and a smorgasbord dinner. On Sunday morning, the OGG Asian branch presidents’ meeting was held. The OGG Malaysia branch was inaugurated in September 1998 with 100 attending a dinner in Kuala Lumpur. Its first president, David Teh (Cu’67), shared the objectives of the branch: to unite Malaysian OGGs and parents in the pursuit of common interests and ideals, link with other OGGs in the region, maintain ties with the parent OGG Association in Australia, and aspire to create a GGS scholarship for a student from Malaysia. Although numbers were down in 2015, those objectives hold firm for OGG Asia and I was delighted to meet David, U-En, Fong, Tawfik Ismail (FB’71), Laurence Eu (Cu’76), Randall Lee (P’93), KT Lim, Malcom Priestley (P'62) and other past and present regional branch representatives. Always a highlight of the OGG calendar, this year's Tower Luncheon was no exception. Attended by 155 people, including nine Clyde Old Girls and 13 Hermitage Old Girls, there was a rousing reception and cakes for two people celebrating their birthdays on the day – Cam Aurel Smith (Ge’65) was attending his first Tower Luncheon, while Bill Charles (Ge’37) turned a magnificent 95. They gave readings in the Chapel Service, as did Caroline Buchan (Cl’60) and Suzanne Tonkin (He’64), while Bill's deep and resonant voice gave special meaning to the intercessions. Honouring the noble nonagenarians is a Tower Luncheon tradition, with a bottle of wine presented to Bill Armstrong (M’42) 91, Bill Charles 95, Boz Parsons (M’36) 97, and centenarian Margaret Ganly (Burn, He’31) who turned 100 in July. Also honoured at the lunch were new members of the Biddlecombe Society, with its chairman Neil Robertson (FB’73) awarding Society badges to those who were present on the day. Towards 1pm, Stephen Meek counted down the minutes to mark the exact 60th anniversary of OGG Fellow, Michael Collins-Persse, who first arrived at Corio at 1pm on 7 November 1955. It was a remarkable and moving moment for all, with congratulations and resounding applause for Michael. Guest speaker, Dr Richard 'Harry' Chauvel (M’64), gave an excellent talk about Indonesia. Richard is the grandson of General Sir Henry 'Harry' Chauvel GCMG KCB (1865-1945), son of the late Edward Chauvel (Cu’25) and a nephew of Australian author, Elyne Mitchell (Chauvel), who wrote the famous Silver Brumby books.
48
The OGG Association welcomed almost 220 new members on October 18 as the current Year 12s took their final leave of the School on Speech Day, before preparing for VCE or IB examinations. Firm handshakes, friendly smiles, confident demeanours and warm personalities characterised the cohort of fine young people entering the next phase of their lives. I joined guest speaker Sam Strong (P’94) in welcoming each student to the stage and wishing them well in their future endeavours. Sam encouraged the Year 12s to treat life like a wonderful buffet; if you don't know what you would like to do, try different things until you find something you like, and then live it with all your heart. Sam was a lawyer before he embarked upon his journey to achieving his dream of becoming Artistic Director of a major theatre group, the Queensland Theatre Company (QTC). He advised students to treat setbacks like stepping stones and not to be discouraged by occasional failure. We also congratulated the recipients of the Old Geelong Grammarians’ Prize for Highest Academic Achievement in 2014, Samuel Parsons (P’14) and Zoe Yang (Ga’14). Margie Gillett (Cordner, Cl’71) President, Old Geelong Grammarians
1
2
LIGHT BLUE - GEELONG GRAMMAR SCHOOL