Interview with “Sbo” Sibonelo Mbongwe – 2011 Sbo first came to St David’s from Montrose Primary and joined grade 8. He remembers the grade 8 camp and camping at the top of a big hill. Mr Rod Smith, Mr Lotter and Mr Williams were there with the boys and Mr ... »
Interview with “Sbo” Sibonelo Mbongwe – 2011 Sbo first came to St David’s from Montrose Primary and joined grade 8. He remembers the grade 8 camp and camping at the top of a big hill. Mr Rod Smith, Mr Lotter and Mr Williams were there with the boys and Mr Williams joined the boys on a hike. Sbo joined “The Bishops” house. His teachers, Mrs Russell - Maths in grade 8, very helpful and patient; Mr Lotter – Accounts, Mrs Khanyile – isiZulu, a stern motherly figure, Mr Smith – English and Ms Cambitzis who taught him in grade 11 and 12, he recalled that she gave them an insight into the life ahead of them and continued to help him with his English when she moved to Kingsmead to teach there. Sbo participated in sport, 2nd team water-polo; B team swimming and 2nd team rugby. He enjoyed drama and was in the cast of “The Little Shop of Horrors” in 2008. He was very nervous on the opening night but said it was a great experience. He participated in the house plays and wrote the script for the house play in grade 11. Sbo was appointed head of culturals of The Bishops in his matric year and also received scrolls, full colours for leadership and service, half colours for drama, a team award for music and was a peer counsellor. As a part of a community outreach project, Sbo and other boys went to Addo with Mr Fry and repainted a school giving out beanies and scarves to the pupils. Sbo did this because he enjoyed it and it cemented the need in him to give. The school motto is also very important to him “Comfortare Esto Vir” – take courage and be a man. Sbo remembered his matric dance and the before party with a couple of friends, the dance was held at the Wanderers. Sbo was a member of the matric dance committee in grade 11 and assisted in the preparation of a masked ball. Sbo says that he enjoyed being so silly whilst at school, it was great fun with lots of laughter and jokes and his grade are very close. After matricualting, Sbo enrolled with UNISA and studied for a BA Accounting Sciences and is currently attending lectures at the Edge Business School. He will complete his degree this year followed by a post graduate year in 2016. He is a member of the MOBS committee and attended this year’s matric rite of passage which he thought was perfect being held at St David’s. He would definitely send a son of his own to St David’s. JLE August 2015
Interview with Sabelo Sithebe – 2005 Sabelo’s mother was determined that Sabelo be a pupil at St David’s and went in everyday to the admissions department with this objective in mind. Sabelo remembers his first day at St David’s in the old grade 0 block. He ... »
Interview with Sabelo Sithebe – 2005 Sabelo’s mother was determined that Sabelo be a pupil at St David’s and went in everyday to the admissions department with this objective in mind. Sabelo remembers his first day at St David’s in the old grade 0 block. He watched Andrew Prior and Kyle Burger playing cricket, the first time he had seen the game played and joined in. His teacher was Mrs Tyack and he made life-long friends that day. The head of the prep was Greg Royce followed by Rick Wilson who built on the merit system which motivated many of the young prep school boys and changed the mind set of many. He was a father figure who interacted with the boys well and was always fair. He remembers Mrs Hurley, Mrs Rose who pushed him with his reading and to achieve, Mrs Geldenhuys whose approach to Maths was invaluable. In the high school Paul Edey was headmaster and the teachers he particularly remembers are Mrs Marais, Mrs Roman, who struck a good balance, being caring and tender but also strong enough to control a class. Mr Van Den Berg taught him to enjoy Accounting and the atmosphere he created. Great teachers had good balance and knew which buttons to press at the right time. Sabelo feels that it’s not the buildings at St David’s but the people who make the school. The school grew enormously whilst he was a pupil with the building of the Champagnat hall, high school pavilion and library. For Sabelo, school was a huge part of his life and he participated in sport in all the three terms playing tennis, cricket, football, rugby, athletics and swimming. He learnt to swim in grade 6, as Willy Castle took no excuses and said “you will swim”. Willy Castle was a father figure to all the boys who were initially afraid and in awe of him. Willy pushed you to be better than yourself and had a great influence on many of the boys. Sabelo thought the sport was fantastic and the way in which it helped develop ones character. He was a member of the 1st team football, 1st team rugby and also did a lot of running. The rugby was tough in the beginning, building bonds, relationships with fellow soldiers, and believes that’s why rugby is important at a boy’s school, Sabelo said it wasn’t the same at university, at school every Saturday was special. He recalled the Johnny Waite victory over schools such as St John’s and learning that even being a small school they could still achieve a lot. He felt that there was a lovely balance of academics and sport as school is also about people development, building young men who participate in society using the Marcellin and Marist ideals with modesty. Those traditions were instilled in the junior primary with highlights such as the football tour to East London. The 1st team were in their special kit and everyone played hard to ensure they upheld the tradition and values of the school. In the high school going to St Andrews, Bloemfontein was always great. The camps were sometimes controversial with his grade 9 and 10 year camps being held in appalling conditions with particularly bad weather. However the grade 11 camp held under the same conditions went very well. He really hated the camps but really enjoyed that one. Sabelo participated in the SMILE programme, performed in three school musicals produced by Mr Dry, and remembers Nelson Mandela coming to watch “West Side Story”. He was also a member of the school choir in grade 11 and matric. Sabelo looked up to some of the older boys such as Jason Simaan, Robert Smith, Gareth Kolkenbeck-Ruh, Bevan Winderly, boys he saw achieving and wanted to emulate them. They were setting the standard achieving not just for themselves but also for the school. On becoming head boy, Sabelo knew he would be amongst a group of individuals who would help him. It was a phenomenal experience and also quite overwhelming being one of a line of leaders of men such as Mike Von Guilliame, Gareth Kolkenbek-Ruh and Robert Stuart. Academically Sabelo did very well and was in the top 15 when he matriculated with 7 distinctions. His last day was surreal and emotional and he is very much a product of St David’s. He went to Wits and studied for a BA Accounting Science until 2009 and then went onto Investec to write his articles and, having passed the exams, being the first overall in the country and will start practising as an accountant in November 2012. JE 2012
Interview with Father Michael 1999 – 2007 At the end of 1998 Father Brewer had retired because of advancing lung cancer. Father Michael had left Rivonia having completed a 10 year contract 1988 – 98 and was in London on long leave in May 1998 staying at the ... »
Interview with Father Michael 1999 – 2007 At the end of 1998 Father Brewer had retired because of advancing lung cancer. Father Michael had left Rivonia having completed a 10 year contract 1988 – 98 and was in London on long leave in May 1998 staying at the Jesuit church, Farm Street when he was told that Father Brewer had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. There were boys at St David’s whose families were parishioners and he was sometimes invited to functions at the school. As he had always liked the school, he offered his services and was accepted as chaplain. He had taught in three Jesuit schools when younger and he prided himself that he never had to use corporal punishment on the boys and always managed to subdue them with a look or a tongue lashing. At St David’s he joined the RE department and taught RE to the matrics and then to grade 8. It is difficult teaching a subject that is not counted for marks so this provided the opportunity for some boys to misbehave. Also this teaching caused him to be regarded as a teacher and member of staff rather than as chaplain and priest. Father Michael considered that extra-curricular activities were important occasions to interact with and get to know the boys, so he was involved with debating, public speaking and was time keeper at the swimming galas and judged inter-house plays together with Julie Egenrieder. He had a good relationship with Paul Edey. After he had a knee replacement, he became rather unstable having no sideways movement and boys like Greg Hammond would see him coming and clear a path for him. They were spontaneous and protected him. He had a good relationship with a number of boys. high school mass was held on Thursdays, before the chapel was built was celebrated in the Champagnat hall on a table on the stage. There were volunteer teams to transfer the requirements for mass to the hall and to return them to the sacristy afterwards. They were faithful and utterly reliable. He remembered Stuart Fould’s production of “Guards, Guards” by Terry Pratchett and felt strongly that there really wasn’t any acting just a lot of shouting. Gareth Dry’s gift to the school was instituting musicals of such a professional standard which revived interest and brought new energy into the school. It was Paul Edey’s idea to get a musical component into the school and the musical for 2006 was “West Side Story” with David Schneider taking the male lead role and managing the aria when Maria is dying. It’s a very difficult aria and without, any musical background, David pulled it off. Father Michael found it very emotional and was very involved. In 2007, Gareth Dry approached him with the request to put on a musical “Jesus Christ Superstar” and asked him if he would have any objection to such a controversial musical. Father Michael said he would use the occasion to catechise on the gospel events to instruct the boys. He and Gareth were on the same wavelength and at no stage did he have to say this is inappropriate. However a former pupil, Deneys Williamson living in the States sent an email complaining about the musical. Father Michael decided to ignore it and the irony was that his younger brother Alex Williamson played one of the high priests in the show. Kylo Molefe played Jesus Christ and found the part to be very emotional for him and for the cast. It was also difficult for a boy like Kylo to be head boy but he had the support and the ability to handle it. Father Michael is rather proud of the organ that was donated to the school for use in the new Chapel of Mary. It is apparently one of the best organs in any school in Johannesburg if not in the country. He thought it would be appropriate for it to be used for recitals and mentioned Cameron Upchurch (St John’s) who is teaching a number of boys to play and also plays the organ at the university church on a Sunday. JE August 2011
