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"Sic itur ad astra, we’ll reach for the stars…"
As the chorus to the new school song swelled, the hearts of all those
present lifted. The song, written by Bud Cockcroft especially to mark
the 50th, was a fitting culmination to the Commemoration ceremony
marking the opening of the College on 3 February 1954. The song itself
expressed much of the school’s history with its opening deep bass
notes – "Mulungwane, Usandisa …" – the familiar landmarks originally
named by the Ndebele people - and then "The old Bushtick lay quiet,
with abandoned shafts and mills." The redundant mine that became a
school certainly can no longer said to be quiet, not with close on 400
schoolboys thundering around its environs!
The memorial unveiled that afternoon also served as a tribute to the
origins of the College as a gold mine – a pile of rocks, typical of
the rough, rocky Matabeleland terrain, on which is balanced a coco pan
and behind which looms a huge hoist wheel. The memorial is placed in
front of the Dugmore Library, creating an unintentional symbol of the
transition from mining to education.
The ceremony was held in the late afternoon, just as the ferocity of
the summer sun eased. The entire school body of boys assembled outside
the library with staff and invited guests. The guests included
present-day Board members Tim Tanser, Alistair Coulson and Andy Laing,
who had themselves been pupils at Falcon. Sadly the flamboyant Patrick
Mavros was unable to attend! A very special guest was Barry Hubbard,
one of the founding members of the College in 1954. Of that class of
‘54, Barry is one of only two still in Zimbabwe – the others are
widely scattered in South Africa, Canada, Australia and the UK.
After the opening prayer and school hymn,
Nigel Pegram’s poem
( a copy of which features on the website) was read by Terence
Odendaal, the Head Boy, and Brian Chingono, his Deputy. Although the
poem concerns the experience of the school and its teachers as it was
50 years ago, it is still entertaining and easy to identify with for
the present generation of Falcon schoolboys. Teachers are still
viewed, and indeed often behave, as eccentrics with odd habits and
badly behaved dogs. No-one has quite equalled the "defenestration"
manoeuvre, however, although many may have felt tempted to do so!
Tim Tanser, current Chairman of the Board and FOB, delivered the
afternoon’s keynote address, in which he recalled the era in which the
College was founded – and noted the difficulties in obtaining the
initial funding for the school. Ironically Anglo-American had been
reluctant to assist because the site of the proposed school had been
examined by the Governors of Peterhouse and turned down as unsuitable!
Long Service awards were then presented to 16 members of the Grounds,
Maintenance and Kitchen staff. The longest serving was Willie Sibanda,
now chief plumber, who has worked at the College for 38 years. Many of
the faces would be familiar to generations of Falcon schoolboys –
Teddy Dube, the water man, Pamminous Ndlovu, carpenter, Michael
Mshlanga, chief electrician, Sam Nyathi, lab technician and i/c
reprographics, and Abednigo Sibanda from the kitchens, better known as
George.
After the ceremony staff and guests repaired to the new Bushtick
(former cricket pavilion) overlooking Main Field for drinks and
snacks. In spite of the paucity of rain this season, late January had
seen Falcon plunged into a week of soaking rains and the playing
fields were looking splendidly green as a result. The surrounding bush
had taken on a new lushness and in the distance the Mulungwanes
brooded darkly against the horizon as evening dimmed the sky. Falcon
was looking spectacular for its Birthday!
Finally, the climax of the Anniversary day was the dinner. This took
place in the Dining Hall with the boys. As the College is the boys it
educates, the dinner was regarded as being for the boys and there was
no VIP Top Table or segregation of guests and boys. Guests, staff and
boys shared tables together and enjoyed a delicious meal of crumbed
chicken with potatoes and vegetables, followed by ice cream and
meringues. The hall had been beautifully decorated with dried
arrangements (appropriate for usually parched Matabeleland) and
candles on all the tables, displays and 50th banners outside. After
the closing Grace the candles on the Birthday cake were lit – and
blown out by the Head and the Head Boy. And as a finale the prefect
body led the school in a rousing War Cry!
Click
HERE to see our
calendar of events for the 50th Anniversary Year. If you are not
yet on the Old Boys’s mailing list, send an e-mail to
falconcollege@comone.co.zw
for the attention of Brigitte Randle.
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