9 Apr 1999

Congratulations..You have found our site in spite of the error made in the Registration Card. Must have been thinking too much about "myself" instead of the correct word "mysite"

Over the last week your committee has posted 1300 Registration forms, hopefully to the correct addresses. The mailing list was made up from the past pupils that attended the 50th reunion and also from names gathered from various people. We checked the latest Electoral Rolls to see if our information was correct so are hopeful that we will achieve a good first strike. But, already I have received some returns; people have moved, passed away, or I have made an error when typing the address.

We hope that you will Register early and supply us with other names so that we can contact as many past pupils as possible.

Your registering will give us a guide as to the numbers planning to come. We realise that it is about a year away, but by letting people know early, they can plan ahead for the great event.

I will try to keep you posted of developments on this site. I have already had a phone call from England from Innes King (1946-50) and he plans to be here. Hope the locals don't leave it to the last minute to Register!!

Please Bookmark the site...

21 April 1999

First Registrations received today from Garry Clark (1962) and his wife Gloria coming from Auckland and from near Levin will be coming Gae Stewart 1951-1953 (nee Nisbet). What a thrill to open the mail box and find both of these returns.

15 May 1999

Since the initial mailing of the Registration Forms, I have received a large number of enquiries by letter, phone and email and as a consequence, a further 99 forms have been posted and on Monday, I have a further 16 to send off. Of the original posting of 1300 forms, we have received by return mail 52 because of wrong addresses..not too bad really as even though we tried to check all the original ones from the latest electoral rolls, this proved to be an extremely difficult and time intensive task and obviously not all areas were covered.

I really appreciate all the suggested names for forms to be sent to. We are relying on word of mouth, newspapers, magazines, radio and the internet to advertise the big weekend. Westpac Trust Bank even had an item in their "in house" publication and as a result, I have received enquiries and requests for forms. ( I have no idea how the bank got to know about it other than we are using their local branch as our bank.

Enquiries have come from all areas and age groups including my old neighbour from Durham Street, Hugh Black who now lives in Northland and from Pat Swoffer who is living on Guernsey in the Channel Islands at the present time and hopes to be able to attend.

Our last team meeting was held in the Staff room which in my day was the library; remember the upstairs room that looked down Bath Street! On hearing me say how things had changed, the present Principal, Denis Pyatt, invited me to call in during the day and he would take me on a conducted tour. This happened last Wednesday. The original building remains much the same but the rooms in many cases have changed their function. Our old Prefect's room has gone but the woodwork and metalwork rooms remain in the same place. And where is the flat where the privileged few were taken for lunch by the pupils from the Home Science class?

There are now so many other buildings around the grounds. The work being done in the art area was just amazing. Up-to-date technology is everywhere and was of particular interest to me.

No doubt you will be amazed at what you see when you attend the reunion but the old rooms still hold all their memories and the front fence still remains!

Had a phone call from Ailsa Browning (staff 1940-53). She told me that she will be there. Make sure you are too.

6 June 1999

Daily more enquiries and registrations.

Linda Fletcher, who is looking after publicity, has contacted newspapers around the country and published details of the Reunion and I have had quite a few inquiries as a result. 70 people have now registered and I have to process 3 more from today. Since May 1st, I have had a further 206 requests for registration information.

Please don't take it personally if you have not received a Registration Form, just make sure I get your name and address and I will get the form sent to you.

I have received a request from a few people who are connected to the Internet suggesting that I list on these pages the names and years of attendance at Horowhenua College, of people who have registered. Two also suggested that we publish the email addresses as well so that they could make contact before the Reunion.

In each case I have replied that the matter will be discussed at our next team meeting. It should be noted that we have on the registration a statement as follows: "our use and disclosure of your personal information is governed by the Privacy Act ."

I can see that it would be of interest to all as to who is coming (seeing someone's name might be just the spur needed to get you to register) but would we be breaking the act?

I can't see that anyone looking at this page could learn much from a person's name (maiden name) and years of attendance. Still....

I would be interested in knowing what you think about the matter. Please email me your thoughts.

Perhaps of interest to some past pupils of Levin School. The school moved to a site in Tiro Tiro Road in 1996 but the old buildings remained in Oxford Street. They were built in 1903. The main building was burnt down in 1997 and the remaining two blocks have been a bit of an eyesore; windows boarded up and graffiti covering the walls.

The Infant block was removed first and on Thurs 27 May the remaining building was moved to Otaki to be used, still for education purposes, as part of the Otaki Te Wananga o Raukawa.

Still on the old site are the oak trees. The Horowhenua District Council is trying to save them but is having some problems with this.

Looking forward to receiving your Registration and comments.

A request from Max Smeed, long serving staff member who is on the organising committee and is responsible for collecting photos etc from the past. If any readers have any photos (especially of the early years) or tales to tell ('But not about staff,') says Max, could they please contact him at 95a Weraroa Road, Levin

July 3 1999

Another month gone.

To date we have exactly 100 enrolments which is about par at this time with the last Jubilee. Still I feel that it is a little disappointing as I have sent out nearly 1785 registration cards. We were hoping that at least paying the $30 registration fee would give us a good indication of peoples wish for a reunion. All past pupils that I have spoken to have shown a desire to be there but have just not got around to registering. If you fit that category, how about finding your form and registering...now. Of those who have registered, 1 is coming from England, 1 from the USA and another from Australia.

If you know of people whom we have not contacted, send me an email of their names and address and I will get in touch with them.

I am pleased that we seem to have overcome the Privacy Act with the use of a visitors book on page 2. It allows you to make the decision as to whether you want your email address there so that others can contact you.

I have changed the content of Page 3 to allow me to publish some photos from the college. I was pleased to receive an email from Gail Mortleman nee Prentice in which she mentioned how she set the Junior Girls High Jump record in 1955 and won the Intermediate event in 1956 & 57. Gail mentioned that her daughter was the national title holder of these events in Australia.

I was given a copy of the 1941 Tararua and it is interesting to compare the activities that were available to the pupils then compared with today. Using the 1941 and 1998 Tararuas as my source of information I found the following:

1941: Drama Club A Mock Court held one lunch time was noted as a highlight

Basketball (teams A to F made up of 9 players)

Football (Rugby) 1st XV, 2nd XV, and Junior under 7 stone.

Girls Marching Team,

Athletics and Swimming Sports and also Life Saving,

Tennis and Cricket were available for summer sports.

Cadet Notes (this was during the 2nd World War)

Also mentioned was a trip taken by about 10 boys and 10 girls (there seems to be some uncertainty as to how many were in the party. Must have been difficult for the teacher, Miss Maysmor to keep a check on the pupils

1998: Sports available included

Athletics including a Triathlon, Basketball (Indoor), Lawn Bowls, Canoe Polo, Cricket, Equestrian events, Mountain Biking, Cycling, Hockey, Netball, Rowing, Rifle shooting, Girls and Boys Rugby and Soccer, swimming.

As well, two parties had climbed Mt Taranaki and a party of 13 pupils and 3 staff visited Bali.

Times have changed and far more things are available but our thanks must go to those staff members who were there to assist and encourage our involvement in the various activities.

August 1999

Harry phoned me from Auckland yesterday. After a bit of quick calculation, we realised that it's about 50 years since we last saw each other. we were in the same class and played in the 1st Eleven cricket team. He had seen an advertisement in an Auckland paper about the Reunion and wanted a Registration form sent to him. I'm looking forward to meeting him again and test out our memories of times spent at Horowhenua College. last week it was a call from Queensland. "Is that you ...."(she used my nickname of those days - and I'm not going to tell you what it was. she had heard about the Easter reunion and also wanted details. It only took about a quarter of an hour to cover some memories of those days.

And that is what the reunion is all about. Meeting up again and trading stories. For some, mates of the past have passed on but memories of them will still be fresh in our minds.

I have been wondering what I would write about this month and have come across some items that I hope will be of interest to you all:

 

 

 

Professional - 160 Commercial - 83 Trades - 69 Domestic Science 30

 

I read with interest the present day's Principal's monthly report that is published in the local Weekly Newspaper and thought that as many of you who now live away from Levin, you might be interested in what he had to say about the college in July 1999.

From the Principal ~

Greetings, Tena koutou katoa

It's enrolment time again. Shortly, all Form 2's will be enrolling at secondary schools for the new millennium.

I am very proud to be Principal of this College. Next year, at Easter, we will be celebrating our 60th Jubilee and it is very humbling to think of the tens of thousands of students, staff and parents who have created the strong reputation of the school.

When all is said and done, the greatest advertisement for our College is the students themselves. They participate positive/v in a huge range of activities both inside and outside the classroom. A glance at the Student Activities section of our monthly Newsletter will show what a vibrant group they are.

The most important work of the school goes on in the classrooms. An analysis of our School Certificate results last year shows that 61% of the 895 subject entries gained more than 50%. I am delighted that our results are so positive because, above all, students need qualifications to take them on to the next stage in the life long process of learning.

We are fortunate in being able to offer a "balanced" education to our students. We pride ourselves on having a good balance in the school; a balance between academic and co-curricular activities, a balance of socio economic groupings, a balance of ethnic groups, and a balance of able and less able students. The balance is positive and students enjoy coming to school.

I would be delighted to talk further with prospective parents and caregivers about the College.

Denis Pyatt (Principal)

September 1999

.Spring..Time to get your Registration Form sent. Only about 8 months to go. To some it may seem a long time away but we need an indication of the interest in the Reunion in a positive way. To date 197 have registered comprising past pupils and spouses.

A breakdown of the registrations so far as follows, the numbers being based on the year started:

1940-49

(59)

1950-59

(49)

1960-69

(34)

1970+

(11)

Spouses

(44)

To date I have sent out (not counting those returned as address unknown) 1,940 Registration Forms and it is interesting to note the areas where our past pupils have moved to.

Levin

628

Wellington

185

Auckland

202

South Island

113

East (Nth Island)

409

North , Hamilton ..

133

Overseas

130

The committee meets every month and things are falling into place. For your interest, the present committee is:

Murray Anderson representing the College Board, Arini Bowler, Linda Fletcher, Murray Lucas (Deputy Principal), Noeline Lyons (Secretary), Jean Parkin, Noel Procter, Denis Pyatt (Principal), Max Smeed, Alan Smith (Committee Chairperson), Christine Warren, Ian Wenham (Registrar), Shirley Williams (Chairperson of HCOPA) Others will be joining the committee nearer the reunion and as their time permits.

Ken Dalzell was also a member but has had to withdraw because of ill health.

It is great to see that people are using the Guest Book. As a result I have been in touch with a fellow pupil of my time (I started in 1946 in case you wondered) and have since by using the Internet, traced Duncan, the Bell ringer, and our champion runner of that time, Adrian Lee, who now lives in Napier. We have been able to reminisce and wonder about what has happened to various names that we remember. Quite a nostalgic time and strangely enough it seems not that long ago, not over 50 years. In this job I am coming across names from the past all the time and it brings back a flood of memories of those formative years. I looked at a copy of the 1964 Tararua and in particular, the Principals report from Arthur Haley, known to us all as Charley. I can still see him sitting on a chair at the corner of the stage during assembly or school singing time with his eagle eye watching to see if we were all doing the correct thing. Pat Roach would slip from his seat to the floor and reappear on another distant form to test Charley.

Anyway, I read the report which was done prior to the 25th Reunion and I feel he makes some very good observations about what a reunion is all about. I hope it gives you the impetus to Register if you haven't already done so.

If you have any anecdotes that you think others would be interested in, let me have them so that I can add them to these pages.

I heard from someone in Christchurch that they had checked our a motel for Easter and found that it had already been fully booked out. He had success at another motel but the indications are that it would pay to get your bookings made early.

I had intended to change some of the photos but unfortunately the picture tool necessary to do this at xtra is not working, consequently they are the same as last month.

extract from the Principals Report

Tararua Dec 1964

As the oldest inhabitant at the College I am allowed to look back to the early days well before you were born. Every year before I write the Principal's Page I have to get out the Tararuas to see what I have written previously and this usually develops into a reading session so that it usually takes about a week to write the page.

When old pupils get together at the Jubilee there will be many tales to be told, enlarged upon, and embellished so that it will be difficult to discern where facts end and fantasy begins. And does it matter? Some of the tales will be told again and again. Of such Is the raw material of tradition and legend. It is only human nature that the tales we tell will put us in a good light and will show us to advantage. I am sure it has never occurred to you that the teachers too, have their tales to tell to their advantage. So you tell of your exploits and your sharp retorts, and we talk of our shrewd remarks and clever repartee.

Somewhere, between all the fact and fiction, the boasting and the exaggeration there is the halfway mark of truth. There were the good footballers, tennis players, basketballers, scholars, future rocket engineer, the composer, the soldiers, the sailors, the airmen, the Maori All Blacks, the atomic physicist. There is always a tendency to make a character out of a teacher: He may have been a good teacher, a rowdy teacher, or gullible easily diverted, a good craftsman, or a master of repartee. We have had them all. All these will get together.

I want DB. to tell once more the story of getting caught at the races one Wednesday; and the fact that he tipped authority a winner, did not save him from the virtuous wrath to come. I suppose we are still outwitted in the running of the cross-country, but you can just imagine what it was like before we plugged most of the holes. At the Jubilee I will find plenty who can talk with me about our first Principal, Mr W Thomas, the greatest man we ever met. There are bound to be members of the Society of Rugged Individualists present. The term tickled the fancies of a geography class I had, and I got sick of hearing about it. There was the fun attached to turning the back paddock into a sports ground, the vegetable garden into the quadrangle lawns. How would you like to mete out justice with clear conscience on the dozens of offences connected with bus transport.

Can you imagine just the main block with the hall as an afterthought sitting in a twenty-two acre paddock? Everything else came afterwards and with a war on, much of it had to be done by us. We planted the trees round the College on Saturday, and on another, dug our slit trenches, just in case. In the right company I could tell the gem of all yarns about these trenches to the embarrassment of a prefect and to the advantage of teachers.

You will realise that twenty-five years is a long time and there is much to be talked about, and lived once more, before it is filed away until the next occasion to be brought our once more. - In the same form?

October 1999

October and Daylight Saving has arrived. Time for another update.Plans for the Jubilee are well in hand.

The Friday night function and the Dinner on Saturday night will be held at the A&P Showgrounds at the end of Victoria Street, (not far from the College). Attached to the building will be at least 1 marquee to cater for the expected large crowd. At a recent meeting, Noel Procter, who is in charge of setting up the venue, displayed a large diagram showing the seating layout, the parking areas etc. This was an excellent piece of work as it let all the committee see exactly how those attending will be catered for.

During this month, signs advertising the Jubilee will be put up so that people driving through Levin on their way North or South, will be made aware of the event.

Numbers registering are slowly mounting; it looks as thought the big rush will come nearer the event so please get your Registrations in as soon as possible.

Last month I asked for items of interest that I could put in this report. Only one was received, from Sandy Arcus, a pupil in 1940's and he entitled it "CHEMISTRY! YEAH, CHEMISTRY!"

There was a knock on the classroom door - it was our (Class of 1943) first 5th-Form English lesson for the year.

Miss Pettit (Hazel to us - the teacher): "Come in!"

It was E W 'Gus' Evans, the new science master. They were an ill-assorted pair, Hazel

and Gus, and it showed. She, trim, formal, cool; he a little corpulent (we reckoned he wore a corsette), florid, ill-at-ease, 'gussy'

Gus: "I just wanted to let the class know that if anyone would like to

do chemistry this year" - chemistry hadn't previously been taught at College - "I

would organise a special class and get you up to School Cert standard in time for the

exam at the end of the year"

Hazel's demeanour suggested that chemistry - 'stinks' - certainly wasn't her cup of

tea, but something about the offer caught my own imagination. Was it the enterprise of the guy in going out of his way to take us on; or was it the prospect of becoming a member of a select group, however insignificant, instead of being invisible in a herd of 40; or even was it a perverse reaction to Hazel's tacit disapproval of him and his subject?

Whatever. I plumped for it; and the rest is history

I hope you get the chance to meet Sandy and check out what he did with his knowledge of Chemistry.

(I have again heard from Sandy and in his note he wrote the following; "He started me off on a lifetime of interest in the chemistry /biochemistry area, for which I will always be extremely grateful.")

As I was also a pupil in the 40's, you will tend to find references mainly about that time so I would dearly love to hear from later generations. Surely something must have happened that still sticks in your memory.

Here is my memory of my welcome on my first day at Horowhenua College.

The first day, leaving home late because I knew that all the new pupils were going to be blackened. My cousin Bruce McCarty was starting as well but he was a 5th Former having come to Levin to live from Carterton. Together we entered the grounds and sure enough were pounced on and black shoe polish was applied to our faces. Bruce was most indignant. He wasn't a 3rd Former! But it made no difference, he was done as well. Into the first assembly we went; easy to see the new pupils and not only because of the new clothing. If my memory serves me correctly, this was the last time this introduction to college life was carried out; I certainly don't remember getting my own back.

Bernie Casey tells me that he has written to most of his fellow 3rd form class of 1943 and and it seems that the majority are keen to attend the Jubilee. I know of another pupil from a few years later who is doing a similar thing. What a good idea. Why not give it a try as well.

In page three this month I have presented a few photos that show changes that have occurred in Levin over the last few years. I hope you find them interesting. I am putting photos that I used in previous months into a Photo Album on the net so that you can have another (or first) look at them. (My thanks to Graeme Jorgensen from North School; we had an interesting morning touring around town seeking out shots to take with the school's digital camera)

I used one of the search engines and found that the college now has its own page. Take a look atHorowhenua College Web Page

See you next month...but don't forget to REGISTER NOW.