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Interview with Adriano Iorio – 1997
Adriano started his career at St David’s in grade 0 and remembers coming for aptitude tests
with Mrs Kirchner before he was accepted. He was taught by Mrs Scaafsma who was a strict
disciplinarian but a good teacher. Mr Royce was the head of the prep school and was
outstanding and a great History teacher. In standard 5 he remembered someone organised an
event with the Foster brothers talking about their experiences working with the bushmen – the
bushmen believed that all are created different but equal.
Adriano was a general all rounder, was in the prep school soccer team and later went on to play
rugby in the high school from standard 6 until standard 9 and was in the water polo team but
didn’t participate in any sport during his matric year.
In the high school Darryl Boswell never made an impression on Adriano, he was then followed
by Paul Davies but the school turned around with the appointment of Paul Edey as headmaster
of the high school. There were no longer any brothers teaching at the school but teachers such
as Gary Norton made a big impact on him, he was a good leader and deputy head.
Adriano was involved in school plays, debating and public speaking, he directed a play for
College house. He also used to participate in the SMILE programme and made a contribution,
albeit small to the co-workers.
He recalled nothing memorable about either his last day or his matric dance. Adriano enjoyed
the overall ethos and founding principles of Champagnat and the spirit in the classroom and on
the sports field.
Academically Adriano did well receiving the Dux each year and acquired 6 distinctions for
matric, he went on to study engineering at UCT. He was on the Dean’s list and was awarded his
degree, Cum Laude after 4 years. He then worked off his bursary at Mintek, in the mining
industry,he then joined a group of friends starting up a mobile software company. Unfortunately
that folded in 2009 and he is now working for Blue Label Telecomms as an IT/software
specialist, specialising in product development and is also trying to develop a parallel path in the
property and development industry.
Adriano found school quite easy but his impression of first year at university was far more
humbling, away from the insularity of a Marist education, meeting other boys from Hilton,
Kearsney, St Stithians etc. getting a sense of where the bar was actually at. He admired the
boys from the boarding schools as they were generally more independent and adjusted to
university more easily. With hindsight, the internet has changed the landscape and, in an era
without the internet the general exposure to the rest of the world was far less than it is today.
School was insular; however some of his best friendships were made on leadership camps and
with boys from other schools.
Adriano was involved with MOBS when Paul Edey was still around in 2000 until 2003. He is still
in touch with other old boys, Raef Farinha; Craig Chandler; Keith Clover (his mother Mary was
the Librarian); Daniel Wright who is with Google.
Sadly Adriano would probably not send any sons of his to St David’s as it would be too
expensive and he envisages relocating to Cape Town in the future.
JLE May 2012

Interview with Alex Quail 1962
Alex started at St David’s in 1958, came into the high school straight from the bush –
Carltonville. There were no English high schools in the area at the time and Bishop Wheelan
helped him get into St David’s.
Johannesburg ended at the entrance to the school . A Dairy Den was about 1 kilometre down a
dirt road and Sandton City did not exist, the area was just veldt and the occasional farmhouse.
Alex was a boarder and remembers everyone being very competitive in sport and with each
other. There was a boxing ring and the “Beak” Br Benedict would organise the boys to sort out
their grievances in the boxing ring. The school was tough and there were very real fights
between the boys especially the Lebanese and the Jews. There was iron discipline and boys
were caned for any reasonable misdemeanour, however it did them no harm. The discipline was
fair and not vindictive, some old boys found it unfair and were very bitter about it. It was rather
like being in the army and the boarders became a band of brothers and those that saw it
through became very good friends often for the rest of their lives. On one weekend per term, the
parents were allowed to visit their sons on Sunday and they went home during the school
holidays.
The boys were very cruel to Mr Bishop the only lay teacher, who was tormented by the boys.
There were 60 boys in a class which reduced to 17 by Matric. All the brothers taught,one
brother was Spanish, another Afrikaans, quite a good mixture. Brother Bonaventure, “Bonnie”
was a big tough guy who used to sit on his desk and fall asleep. He was very laid back teacher
and Alex can’t remember what he taught. Br Anthony taught Afrikaans and Maths but he was
always so busy so the clever boys in the class ended up teaching them. Br Edwin became too ill
to run the school in 1958 and Br Benedict “Beak” took over followed by Br Anthony.
In 1962 there were 17 matrics in the class and they beat Observatory in rugby. Those were
harsh days without the rules and regulations that protect the players now. There were 200 boys
in the high school competing against other schools with over 1000 pupils for example, KES,
Jeppe, CBC Boksburg, CBC Pretoria. One of the boys Chris Dempster, lost a kidney after he
was badly tackled and the teachers pumped his legs. Darko cracked his skull in one match. Alex
was too small to make the 1st rugby team but played in the 2nd. He played cricket and was
captain of the 1st hockey team. His father was captain of Transvaal in the late 30’s and got
together with the brothers to help develop hockey.
He could not swim but was dragged into the inter-high gala. The school pool is where the prep
playground is now. He was in Benedict house and was a prefect..
The cycling club was good for them and they were able to bring their bikes to school. The golf
club was formed and the first golf tournament held, Alex was involved and his brother Michael
was a good golf player. Unlike today he well remembers walking out to the cricket pitch without
a hat.
Alex feels strongly that the boys who became Springboks should be honoured with a school
honours board. The first Springbok was Ray Bischoff for swimming and Gavin Webster for
hockey. John Daley was a very good tennis player.
As far as academics went, St David’s was a seven subject school with three languages English,
Afrikaans, Latin, Geography, History, Science and Maths. He was an average pupil who wrote
the JMB matric. The clever boys did Add Maths.
There was an incident in the eary 60’s. NASA had just got going and the boys wanted to
develop a solid fuel rocket. Alex had a recipe and they used the Science lab on the second
floor, brewed some stuff up which then exploded! Br Anthony flew up the stairs to see what
damage had been done, but no-one was injured and Br Anthony was relieved. Eventually a
rocket was built by one of the geniuses of the school – Hawkins who is now Professor of
Applied Maths at Wits. Another pupil Bernard Haakman, seemed dopey, but became a vet.
David Sole, went on to study chemical engineering and worked for the government developing
rocket fuels or something similar.
He recalled an incident during study time in the standard 6 classroom that accommodated 60
boys. There was very little swearing in those days and debating was popular as the boys got to
get out of school occasionally. Doug Wickins stood up to make a speech and asked the
question “How can you call George that name, he is a boy”? (cunt). Br Dennis (Tickey) blushed
a deep purple, but Doug continued with his speech which was honest and full of integrity. He got
a round of applause and was not reprimanded by the brothers.
After matric he went to the Pretoria Technikon and did a National Diploma in Civil Engineering,
Land Surveying and remained mainly in Johannesburg.
He has no memories of his first day at the school but would have had to be there a few days
early as a boarder. On his last day he was so pleased to get out into the big wide world and was
very confident. He remembers walking into Barclays Bank, an uncle was a director, and asked
to open an account.
He says the boys were not prepared for the outside world due to the essentially classic
education they had received (No “life skills taught in those days”) but the fact was that they were
able to cope with whatever was thrown at them. Some did very well and most not too badly.
Once a year a Marist recruiter (crow catcher) used to come along and they all avoided him. He
was aware that Michael Heubeck, an American became a brother, he was with them until
standard 9.
Alex’s brother, Michael (deceased) was a really good cricketer and fast bowler. In those days
the cricketers wore boots. Michael played in a final and took 5 wickets against KES. A nonconformist,
he was presented with a cricket ball at assembly whereupon he promptly threw the
ball at Br Anthony. Needless to say, he was expelled but allowed to write his matric. He went on
to become a doctor.
Alex felt that the boarding was where the spirit of the school lay and that the character of the
school changed once the boarding facility was closed.
JE June 2011

Interview Alf Smith – 1962
082 441 7227 011 782 -7376 (Home) alfredsmith@iafrica.com
Boundary Rd was a dirt road next to the golf course and Sandton consisted of small holdings
with lots of fruit trees. The boundary of the school was the old farm. Br Pius who taught his
father at Koch St, resided in a cottage in the school grounds and maintained the beautiful
gardens where the administration block was built. The prep playing fields consisted of sand
fields, an oval with grass and a cinder track for athletics. There were three fields below the
existing swimming pool which comprised a small soccer pitch and rugby fields. The acquisition
of additional grounds for the school was a big moment.
Alf started in grade 2 in 1952 and lived in the Wynberg/Bramley area. His first day at school was
not an easy one as, in grade 1 he had initially gone to St Paul’s, the school attached to
Maryvale Parish. He was very unhappy at St Paul’s and was taken out after 6 months. He then
had private teaching from one of the sisters from Alexander Convent. His first teacher at St
David’s was Miss Brick, grade 1, who was a very kind person. He was in her class for two
weeks and then Br Anthony advised his parents that he should be moved into grade 2. Miss
Martin was his teacher, a very good teacher.
Alf was a day boy and at the time the ratio of day boys to boarders was about 50/50.Because of
the boarding, boys came from far afield. His recollections were phenomenal in that he received
a good education. His father was a Marist old boy who went to Koch St in the late 1920’s and
then onto Observatory until the beginning of WW2.
He had a strong relationship, bond with the brothers themselves. It was a very religious school
but accommodated non-Catholics, although it was predominantly Catholic. Then brothers were
very dedicated and an enormous emphasis was placed on the Catholic faith. The first period on
Mondays was Catholicism and bible study for the non-Catholics. So the boys got a very solid
foundation in the Catholic faith. Retreats were a serious issue lasting a week and during school
work there were dedicated slots in the furtherance of the Catholic faith and teaching. He
remembered the impact Vatican 2, October 1962 had on the boys and the changes in mass
from Latin to the vernacular which was very significant to the pupils at the time. He wanted his
son Paul (matric 1999) to share the same experience but it wasn’t the same, the school was
battling and no longer had the brothers. However he still had a good education, developed a
love for his father’s school and made good friends. He started in grade O with Mrs Kerschoff
and completed 13 years until his matric in 1999. It was a sacrifice to send ones children to
private schools in the beginning and especially now. Not everyone was affluent, but the brothers
accommodated this and must have helped a lot of families. Alf’s family has always had a strong
bond with the Marist movement.
Alf cannot over emphasize the role the brothers played, there were a few gaps as some of the
brothers weren’t up to standard. There were women teachers in the grades including one of the
best, Mrs Kempster, grade 4, then from std 6 onwards only the brothers taught. The brothers
were teachers but more than that, they gave so much extra. The principals were Br Edwin (a
McGurk), who became Br Provincial, Br Benedict followed by Br Anthony for his last five years,
he thought Br Anthony was a wonderful man.
It was truly one school in those days with only 400 pupils. All white children, as segregation was
a big issue. Observatory had a few Chinese children. The brothers wrestled with these problems
and more is expected of children these days.
There was an influx of boys in standard 6 with plus/minus 60 boys, some left in standardd 7 and
by standard 10, matric there were only 17 boys left.
Alf regarded himself as an average pupil, but said the brothers identified potential in a boy and
encouraged that. He was a quiet, reserved pupil but achieved so much as the brothers gave him
every opportunity to blossom.
Alf played 1st team rugby and was a member of the team that beat Obs 8-6 in 1962. The full
school attended that match at Observatory. There was a lot of emphasis on athletics. There
were four terms, during the first they swam, played cricket, second term they played rugby and
the third term was devoted to athletics and the school competed in a lot of inter-school meets.
Debating also played an important role at the school. This was run by Br Gerard the English
teacher. Alf was persuaded to prepare a speech on the family business and he remembers
Doug Wickins being an excellent speaker. This was an important aspect of extra mural
activities. There was theatre and plays with a period of music once a week with MrDrummond-
Bell. They produced many Gilbert and Sullivan operettas. Darko was a very hands on pupil.
Their social life was more focused on the school, with families and parents being more
spontaneous without any expectations of the brothers. The inter-highs were invariably followed
by braais.
The worst thing a boy could probably do was to get caught trying to smoke a cigarette!
Sadly, Alf together with Alec Quail and Brian Austin didn’t get a 3rd scroll and therefore their
colours blazer in their final year.
His last day was a sad day for him; the last term was a panicked, stressful term. He wrote Italian
as his mother was Italian and had to wait another 10 days after all the others had finished their
matric. He had enjoyed his time and on leaving was sad that his school days had ended.
Incidentally, Willy Castle was age under 10 when Alf matriculated.
He then went to Wits University and studied for a BA Economics. Afterwards he went overseas
to England and the south of France working in floriculture. His family business is marketed
under the name E.C. Smith and is located in Hartebeespoort on the Hennops river. They
propagate cuttings and supply the flower markets. They have also supplied flowers to St David’s
and the Catholic church in Rivonia for many years. Neither his son or daughter got involved in
the business,with his daughter at Citibank and Paul at Investec and another company and is
now involved in a cleaning business with his brother-in-law.
Alf’s parents were on the PTA whilst he and his brother were at St David’s, and his mother was
on the original ladies catering committee.
He felt that Br Timothy struggled to fill the gap after Br Anthony left and felt that Paul Edey was
the first principal, after Br Anthony who brought stability, vision and structure to the school.
He remembers a tragic incident when Paul Barrenbrug, who came from a Dutch family and was
in the same class as Alf, grade 2 1952. The boys always used to wait for parents by the junior
block, by the little wall and the fountain. There was an ice cream seller by the main gate and a
car ploughed into the ice cream bicycle and cart, Paul was thrown into the road and killed
outright. It was an enormous shock to the whole school and especially the boys in his class. It
left a mark on Alf and some of the other boys.
Alf still keeps in touch with Darko, Alex and Doug, but married much later than the others, so his
children didn’t really get to know theirs. He did quite a bit of work for the old boys in the early
years. They were driven by the bond they had for each other and the school.
Alf is very interested in the book and the 75th anniversary and would like to be kept informed. He
doesn’t attend evening events because of his location. He did attend the opening of the new
chapel. His brother pupil Robert Smith, from 1956 – 1966,involved with old boys, also had a
son at St David’s, a good sportsman – cricket and rugby – matriculated in 2005? and became a
civil engineer like his father.
JE July 2011

Interview with Alfred Lamberti – 1951
Alf first came to St David’s in 1941 at the age of 9. He had been boarding at St Joseph’s Convent in
Krugersdorp from the age of 4 and, unfortunately he didn’t receive much in the way of basic education at
Joseph’s, his parents spoke Italian and he therefore found school rather difficult.
Alf admits that he was quite a naughty boy and was always up to all sorts of tricks. Alf had to repeat
standard 8 as the brothers advised his parents that he would fail his Matric as his Afrikaans was not good
enough, so Alf was sent to an Afrikaans family on a farm in the Krugersdorp area for 6 months to learn the
language. As Alf’s father was Italian he was interned during the war in Koffiefontein and was unable to pay
Alf’s school fees. The brothers allowed him to stay at the school as his father promised he would repay
them once he was released and could find employment. He was a shoemaker but then became a tailor,
together with his brothers, initially as a cutter then designer and worked for Stanger and Co. making air
hostess uniforms for a big contract.
Alf remembers that St David’s when he first came to the school had just opened, wasn’t really finished and
there were holes in the walls. Brother Alban was in charge of his dormitory which had a flat roof outside.
The boys were not allowed radios so they rigged up a copper wire aerial connected to a crystal set with ear
phones.
There was a line of pine trees separating the school from its neighbours by the swimming pool. Some of the
boys decided to make a hidey hole where they could go and smoke in peace, they dug a hole under the
fence and scattered the sand on the roadway. Br Alban spotted it but gave them a day to fill in the hole
thinking they wouldn’t manage it in time. The boys set to and filled the hole with pine needles and topped it
off with sand, however, after the first big storm the needles collapsed and the hole opened up again but Br
Alban didn’t pursue the matter any further. Sometimes Br Alban would have to punish the boys but noting
the marks from recent canings would hit a pillow with his cane and tell the boys to act as if they had been
caned.
The brothers were extremely strict disciplinarians and on one occasion, Br Thomas who taught Maths
asked Alf to write something on the board, Alf made a mistake, Br Thomas aimed for Alf’s head, missed
and his fist hit the board but then he caught Alf from behind.
Volunteers were asked to plant kikuyu grass on the rugby field and cricket oval and they became known as
the “Labour Gang”. One advantage was that on a Sunday the gang was told to sit at the big table next to
the kitchen and they were fed bacon, eggs, toast and marmalade whilst the other boys got the usual fair of
unappetising mealie meal porridge. During the war years there was no bread available and the boys were
given a type of biscuit that was full of weevils with which the boys set up races.
As the school did not have a projector or screen, on some Saturdays the boarders would form a line and
head for the shopping centre which housed the Odeon bioscope via Dunkeld. Unbeknown to the brothers,
the boys would steal items of food from the shops on the way. Eventually the school did acquire a projector
and screen and the “Labour Gang” was allowed to choose the movies but they weren’t very popular as they
preferred action and cowboy movies whilst some of the other boys would have liked movies with girls in
them. The “Labour Gang” under the guise of repairing fences would go into neighbouring orchards and
collect fruit which they then shared with the other boys.
Sport included rugby, although they couldn’t play much until the grass had grown, football, cricket, tennis
and swimming. The brothers had designed a canvas contraption with ropes attached with which they walk
along by the side of the pool dragging a boy along – swimming lessons! Everybody had to participate in
sport, Alf was very competitive and enjoyed running. He also tried his hand at boxing and lost a fight
against Norman Morgan managing three rounds loosing on points.
Alf remembers Br Edwin who was the headmaster in 1950, there was something wrong with his neck and
he had to learn to drive a car using the mirrors as he couldn’t turn his head to see. The brothers he
remembers are Br Alban, Br Edwin, Bartholemew, Clement and Thomas. There were new brothers coming
all the time as they were swopped around between the various schools – Koch Street, Observatory and
Inanda. Inanda and Obs were very competitive.
On Champagnat day a mass was held at St David’s.The boys had dancing lessons but girls were not
allowed! Of his contemporaries Setty Risi is his cousin, Steve Muller was his optometrist and Ray Metcalf
who was Rhodesian used to stay with Alf during the holidays and he remembers Charlie MacAdam,
Norman Morgan and Itoro Baroni.
Just across the road was the Polliack property with a beautiful and lavish garden with an amphitheatre and,
after Bubbles Schroeder was murdered there, a group of boys decided to assist the police and went to look
for the missing handbag and shoes. They turned the amphitheatre in the garden upside down but then Mr
Polliack must have let the dogs and out and they had to run for it over the split pole fence, they all made it
but for one unfortunate rather overweight boy who caused the fence to collapse under him.
Alf was lucky not to be expelled after all these exploits but there was one important rule – you didn’t squeal
on your pals.
Alf managed to get a third class Matric and went to Wits University to study engineering but battled with the
Maths and failed the first year. He then went and found a job and attended Technical Trade School
studying industrial chemistry. He qualified, was awarded a diploma and began his first job as a laboratory
assistant at African Glue Industries. There were quite a few houses on the property, tennis courts and a
pool and Alf and his wife moved in with their birds and rabbits. Eventually they found the smell too much
and moved back into town into Hillbrow and his wife, a qualified nurse worked in the hospital. Initially they
were going to adopt a child and bought a house to qualify but then had two children of their own – Pia and
Mario. Sadly Mario died at the age of seven in a car accident outside a noviciate in Germiston during a day
of prayer. Alf’s wife never got over the loss of her child and after 57 years of marriage died of cancer. Alf
remarried but sadly his second wife died of Aids which she contracted whilst treating patients at the
pharmacy where she worked. His daughter, Pia is a Doctor of Linguistics working at the University of
Johannesburg, she is a single mother to Sophia. Alf, a devout Catholic, he and his wife both visited
Lourdes, feels that his mission in life is now to ensure that his granddaughter becomes a Catholic.
JE October 2014
Maristonian 1949 p61
Maristonian 1949

Interview with Alison Smith – Parent
Alison has been associated with St David’s from 1997 until 2012 whilst her sons Alistair and Stuart were
pupils at the school. She also assisted with a number of projects and stood in as “Matron” on a number of
occasions.
Alison helped behind the scenes in a number of ways believing that care and support stand out at St
David’s. A qualified nurse, she assisted Father Michael with special dressings when he contracted cellulitus
after his knee surgery and provided Monday evening meals for him and Father Chaka for some time.
Alison was on the line at rugby matches ready to assist if necessary and recalls meeting a rugby union
referee who she found impressive and particular in his requirements from medical support at matches.
Encouraged by Sharmani Pillay, the school’s child psychologist, she put together the manual for schools
writing the “Grief, Loss and Bereavement Policy for Schools”. Eric Annegarn’s company assisted in the
printing and publication of the manual.
Having the time, knowledge and connections with Hospice, Alison also arranged that Caren Marcus
undertake two workshops with teachers before the school term started covering other aspects of grief, loss
and bereavement in a school context. The workshops were entitled “Bereavment in Schools” and “Hot
Chocolate for the Teachers’ Soul”.
The Catholic School of Education also asked Alison and Sharmani to present a workshop for boys in
Catholic schools. This was a valuable experience and, judging by the feedback was worthwhile.
Alison is also closely involved with “Children of Fire” and St David’s has participated by the outreach
programme in community service with the organisation. Two boys Ruelle Jarvis and Joshua Jarvis are
currently being educated at St David’s with a bursary from the Foundation.
Some experiences have not been pleasant and Alison and her mother were hijacked at gunpoint whilst
waiting for the boys outside St David’s. The school was very supportive in helping them both to deal with
the trauma. Ten days later Judy Sexwale hit the headlines when she too was hijacked at gunpoint at the
same spot.
As Alison’s husband Robin has been a member and chairman of the board of governors and is the current
chairman of the Foundation, she is still very much involved with the school behind the scenes.
JLE September 2014

Interview with Allan Schwarer – 1941 – 45
Allan and his brother Paul attended Saxonwold Primary until Marist Inanda opened in 1941 and
were pupils at the school until they were relocated to Kimberly.
Allan recalled that Br Urban was the headmaster and a Br Pius was the eldest brother and well
liked by the boys. Br Urban came from Australia and Allan’s father helped him with regard to
local regulations etc regarding building work. As far as he can remember the school started with
standard1.
Allan’s family lived next to the Killarney golf course in West Street and he remembers playing in
a lane than ran alongside their property. To get to school they caught a bus as far as Dunkeld
and from there the school provided a taxi. All the roads to the north were dirt roads and Inanda
was very much in the country.
Other boys that he remembers being in his class were Michael Clarke, Steve Muller and Carl
Vermeulen. They used to play marbles in the quad and cricket although there was no soccer.
The school’s chapel was upstairs,
Allan currently undertakes legal work for the Catholic church.
JE July 2012

Interview with Allan Wotherspoon – 1980
Allan came to St David’s in the junior school but then left and went to the UK for 4 years and on his return
went into the high school. In principle he was put into the same class as people he would have been with in
junior school such as George Daras who was his closest friend in junior school, but had a different group of
friends by senior school, so Allan joined a new group of friends at senior school. Three of those five friends
now live close enough in Australia that they keep in touch on a regular basis.
Allan lived close enough to the school to be a day boy and saw his close friends out of school on a regular
basis but still had his parents and sisters around him. As he was one of the youngest in his class he had to
play sport with guys from the year below for many years.
He recalled Mr McFadden as he enjoyed History and remembered his favourite quote of “A for away and O
for Go”.
Allan enjoyed the sport, athletics 100, 200, 400 and 800m, physical education and especially games like
gaining ground, the odd game of cricket when he scored 50 runs or took a hat trick for the 2nd 11 team, or
played a good game of rugby. In athletics one year Allan broke a couple of school records and was victor
ludorum of both track and field, ending up with quite a few trophies and his father was asked to donate one
of them. Allan also ran in inter schools competitions.
He didn’t enjoy Afrikaans as he never had a good grasp of the language and struggled to pass the exams.
He disliked the sadistic canings by the headmaster and brothers and the attempts at bullying himself and
his friends.
Some disappointments included not being able to compete in running for athletics and not getting an
athletics scroll or honours blazer. Allan also had an accident which meant that he had to write his matric
exams with the wrong hand.
In standard 9 the boys decorated the hall and he recalled the difficulty and shyness of getting a date. His
matric dance was a great night out, the hall looked good and it was fun dressing up smartly.
On his last day he recalls all of the boys signing their school shirts, sneaking back in the middle of the night
and putting toilet rolls to stream all over the place.
After matriculating, Allan went on to Wits University to study BSc Commerce and completed many courses
throughout his business career. He is currently employed as an IT manager. Allan is still in touch with Lloyd
Wilkins (who he has known for 33 years), Brian Muller and Geoff Slaven, all living in Australia and literally
bumped into Gavin McLauglin who used to live in the same housing estate as his parents and went running
with him on weekends whilst he was temporarily staying in SA.

Interview with Andy Simaan – 1972 Std 9
Andy really enjoyed being at St David’s and wanted to write his matric here but, due to a
disagreement between his father and Brother Anthony, he was transferred to Marist Brothers
Observatory. He hated it there and was bullied by both boys and teachers. There was great
rivalry between the two schools and they hated each other. The dispute between Brother
Anthony and his father concerned a boy who was initially denied his colours and scroll for rugby
but was eventually awarded both. This taught Andy not to interfere with his children’s schooling.
Andy would have loved to have continued at St David’s and knew he would have become a
prefect and would have been awarded his honours blazer, however, maybe he would not have
met his wife who was also a pupil at Rand Tutorial.
Andy began his time at St David’s in grade 2 coming from St Paul’s. His first teacher was Mrs
Scaafsma, Brother Anthony was headmaster, and Brother Andrew vice-principal, who was
Spanish.
He believes he was fortunate to have had the brothers who were very dedicated and the
boarders who brought a special spirit to the school. He was very sad when the boarding was
closed down as he felt that the boarders held the school together. It was great to be brought up
a Catholic in a Catholic school, the boys were exposed to other religions and other cultures,
boys both rich and poor which made them much more tolerant. The boys were passionate about
the school.
Andy and his brothers used to have to milk the cows in the morning and bottle the milk which
they then delivered on the way to school. They lived on a farm in Buccleuch and times were
hard.
Andy was no academic but loved his sport. Andy’s father coached 1st team rugby. Andy was
selected for Craven rugby and was also a good tennis player.
The boys used to challenge each other at the end of the year as to how many cuts of the cane
they had received during the year. They used to line up for caning. He and John Jacob were
caned by Brother Andrew with his chain and they both bled. However he feels they were
brought up as gentlemen and had the right upbringing at school but were very naughty.
He missed 7 months of school, and eventually went to Rand Tutorial College for two years
where he wrote matric and became head boy. On leaving school, he went into the army in 1975
and 1976 which he loved because of the sport. Then he started working in a motor spares shop
and at the age of 27, married with two children, he decided to work for himself and opened up
Retail Management Services. He has been in the business for 30 years and now employs 1000
people; his company represents 12% of the total non-food business throughout South Africa
and neighbouring states. He opened an office in Dubai 4 years ago, is involved in property
development, game lodges and hotels. Another not so happy event was the jailing, 7 to 8 years
ago of another former St David’s pupil Gordon Ramsey who embezzled him out of R16 million.
Instead of giving clients gifts at Christmas he and his wife used that money to open an
orphanage catering for 30 children and adopted a little boy when he was 3 weeks old. He is now
7 and has brought a lot of joy into their lives. He has two other children and three grandchildren,
his daughter Samantha taught at St David’s for a year and his son Gareth runs his own hotel
group.
Gareth was also a pupil at St David’s and Paul Edey supported him and because of that he
became a prefect. Paul saw in him what his parents did and Gareth idolised him. There is an
amusing story about him. He was the first Marist boy to win the Rotary award which he very
reluctantly accepted at a school assembly. He was reluctant as, on one occasion at the age of
16 whilst his parents were away, he “borrowed” his father’s Porche and, with a group of 4 other
boys, was caught in a police road block. They were locked up, some teachers bailed them out
and negotiated on their behalf, hence they were allowed to do community service instead of
being jailed, which is how he got the Rotary award. As he was the leader,he got all his mates to
help him and the other four to finish some of their projects. He didn’t want to admit to this and
only told his father much later when he was 21.
Another story which Andy told was very moving and occurred during the time when he and his
wife were recently married with no children and staying in a block of flats in Highlands North
Corner, Johannesburg. A cafe owned by Uncle Harry Nicolau was below the block of flats. At
the end of every month Uncle Harry noticed that Andy and his wife did not buy their usual loaf of
bread and bottle of milk. He then sent his young son, Stavros upstairs to deliver bread and milk
to them at no charge, at the end of each month. Andy questioned Uncle Harry on the first
occasion and said it was not needed. Harry knew that Sandy and his wife could not afford the
bread and milk and insisted that he wasn’t prepared to listen to any excuses and that young
Stavros would be bringing up bread and milk at no cost. Harry knew that one day Andy would
pay for it.
When Andy and his wife moved out of the flat it always bothered him that he had not thanked
Uncle Harry appropriately and made a mental note to do something for him to show his
appreciation. The bread and milk had been important to him and his wife when they had very
little else to eat. However, when he did go back to the cafe to see Harry it was to find out that he
had recently died.
During his later years in business, he and his brother interviewed many people for the position
of marketing director for their pharmaceutical company. Andy was adamant that an
inexperienced young man that they had interviewed was the only choice. Without knowing him
and recognising him they employed him and he proved to be a great success in their business.
One night at a conference, Andy related the story of Uncle Harry to his directors and clients and
made the point that everyone should ensure that they always thanked someone for assisting
them, no matter how small or large the contribution was and, that he had regretted all his life
that he was unable to thank Uncle Harry for the kindness he had shown towards his wife and
himself. He would never be able to pay him back as he had already passed away. The young
man they had employed responded and said that was not correct as he had paid him back, he
had employed his son. The young man’s name was Stavros Nicolau!
JE January 2012

Interview with Angelo Haggiyannes – 1974
Angelo was day boy, with a brother Paul who matriculated in 1970. Angelo acknowledged that
the boarding facility had held the school together with its team spirit and sport especially
suffered when the boarding closed, the numbers declined and the spirit wasn’t there. In 1974
there were 263 pupils in the high school and then 1 boy was expelled.
He recalled his first day in standard 4 in 1968, Mrs Kempster was the headmistress and he met
his first friend playing marbles in the area next to what is now the Chapel of Mary. He was
originally at H A Jack and then his father decided to send him and his brother to St David’s. His
brother went into standard 6.
He was captain of the B swimming team, captain of the athletics team and played rugby until
standard 7 when he was badly injured, his left arm still shows the results of that injury. He was
awarded an honours blazer which he still has. He wasn’t a great academic, but had an ability
with the written word and did take part in the debating society and drama. He played the lead
role of Thomas More in the play ”Man for All Seasons”. It was during rehearsals at Rosebank
Convent that he saw Rosemary, his wife for the first time and said to his friend “that’s the girl I
am going to marry”. Four of the boys in his year married girls from Rosebank Convent.
He was the second non-Catholic pupil to become head boy, the first was Buckley-Jones. He
was elated when made head boy, the competition was strong, but it was the first year that the
boys voted which was probably the reason he was elected. Alan Van Den Handel was vice
head boy and his brothers Rick Standard 8 and Theo followed.
During his time at St David’s there were no black pupils but in 1973 an exchange student came
from the USA, he was black, it caused quite a stir and the school came in for a lot of flak over
this.
He knew Br Anthony and Br Timothy well. Other brothers were Br Mario (Boing) Br Andrew
(Drac) who was mean and drew blood; Br Bernard (he left the brotherhood); Br Aidan who was
involved with the boarders and controlled their purse strings; Father Plestus; Mrs Kempster.
He recalled the stables where the grade 00 block is now and “The Inandas” weren’t there.
Most of the boys in his time did well and went into the corporate environment; some such as
Thierry Dalais became brave and opened their own private financial institutions. Greg Boyes-
Varley, another old boy and Angelo’s surgeon, epitomises what the school stands for “Take
Courage and Be a Man”. Boyes-Varley had a cleft palate and a stutter for which he was
mocked, a humble man who became one of the country’s best maxilla facial surgeons.
His last day was rather a letdown and he remembers some of the boys went to his home for a
few beers. He was a people’s person and knew every boys name in the school. This principle
he took into the business world.
On leaving school he went to Wits and studied for a BA Law, went into the army for two years,
came back and did an LLB and was admitted as an attorney in 1986. He practised for five years
and then went into insurance.
MOBS put some money towards the bar in the College Pavillion including Mark Waner, Willy
Benson (DBN), Greg Hut (NZ), Alan Van Den Handel, John Koel (Dbn) became an actuary with
Liberty Life, Colin Richardson – senior partner, Mercedes Benz, Rivonia Rd.
JLE November 2011

Interview with Anthony Stanley – 1968
Anthony was a boarder at St David’s from 1963, standard 6. He initially went to Bryanston
Primary and found it strange as a new boy jostling for position with boys who had known each
other for some time. After the first couple of weeks he really enjoyed it. He loved the boarding
even though the family home wasn’t far away in Shepherd Avenue, Bryanston. One thing that
really stands out in his memory was the early morning mass and going to the courtyard
afterwards for coffee and a slice of bread and butter with his breath steaming in the cold air.
Anthony participated in the sporting activities swimming, athletics, cross country, tennis and
hockey where the boys played against some girls schools! He was also in the 1st rugby and
cricket teams and also played chess. He played flank in the 1st team in 1968 and recalls there
was a photo in the “Southern Cross”. The matches against Observatory and Parktown Boys
were always great; there was a lot of competition between the schools which generated a lot of
enthusiasm. Anthony really enjoyed the rugby games in which his younger brother Tim played,
he was a full back and kicked well. He now lives in Australia. Anthony remembered how, in his
matric year he was so sick with a cold but was determined to play in the last rugby game
against Parktown Boys. Other members of the team were Demata and Stravino.
Anthony recalled the trips to matches in the old school bus and going over the humps at St
Stithians which threw the boys out of their seats. He was a prompt for a play which took place at
the Sandown Hall.
There was talent contest in which Curtin was the drummer and Tony Riviera played guitar.
Brother Anthony was quite a character and used to tell the boys that he would show them how
to kick and would demonstrate by hitching up his cassock and kicking the rugby ball soundly.
There were other brothers such as Br Andrew (Drac), Br Michael who left a year after Anthony,
Br Liam who used to get the boys to warm themselves up by jumping up and down and
thrashing their arms about in the freezing classroom. Br Edwin, who was very old, was still at
the school but no longer teaching. Mrs Janusch was a tyrant and used to hit the boys’ fingertips
with her cane. Mrs Pretorius was gorgeous and taught Afrikaans, he remembers her saying to
him “Stanley, I don’t know what you are going to do because you cannot speak Afrikaans”. The
brothers were not trained teachers but weren’t too bad and in particular Br Mario – Science,
made things interesting. Some boys built the first computer in the school during Anthony’s time
in his class.
The discipline was good and the boys respected the necessity for it and there was no bullying.
Academically Anthony did reasonable well, there was a carefree attitude in the JMB class but he
achieved his matric. Willy Castle was in his matric year but in the Transvaal matric class and
was an incredible sportsman.
He took Alex Le Vieux, Pierre’s sister to the matric dance and had a great evening in the
boarder’s dining room.
After leaving St David’s Anthony studied for a BSc and BSc Hons at Wits University and had
started his Masters when he decided to study Medicine. He then had to do his military service at
a mission hospital in Nongoma, Zululand and also did 6 months on the border. He was then a
registrar qualifying as a physician in 1984 and then went on to become a cardiologist in 1988
and is currently practising at Sunninghill Hospital. He has two stepsons who were already pupils
at St Stithians when he met his wife. His daughter is a psychologist and his son went to Hilton
and is studying neurology at UCT.
He remembers Frank Cattich and is still in touch with Joe Stravino and Patrick Quarmby.
JE October 2012