Family Fun at Forest - Old Foresters Reconnected

Ben Gibson, aka Ben Santiago
(Miller’s 1987-1992)
I left Forest School in 1992 and six years later
I found myself heading for Heathrow airport,
firmly clutching my passport and a one way
ticket. I was twenty two years old and about
to embark for South East Asia, followed by a
twelve month working holiday in Australia. I
had initially planned to travel for a while to
'get it out of my system' before returning home
and settling down for good. However, upon
returning to the UK, I soon found that settling
down there would be almost impossible now
that I had tasted life abroad and so it wasn't
long before I was setting off again.
In 2000 I set sail from the Canary Islands and
headed across the Atlantic to the Caribbean.
The crossing was an amazing experience; I spent
Colin Williams
(Johnians 1969-1976)
twenty-one days at sea before arriving in St.
Lucia and spent the next three months cruising
from one Caribbean island to the next. Sadly,
this didn't last forever and I returned to the
Canary Islands, where I stayed until 2005 when
I changed location to a different set of Spanish
Islands, this time the Balearics. My new place of
residence was to be (and still is) Ibiza.
Fast forward to the present day and I have got
engaged, bought a house and better late then
never, I have finally settled down! To put it
plainly, I love Ibiza and the life I have here. To
many people, Ibiza is a non-stop party island,
but to me, it is a beautiful, quaint little island
in the Mediterranean and my life here is very
peaceful and content. It has also granted me a
Why Australia? Well, I have just walked home having surfed at Bungan Beach,
sharing my waves with two pods of dolphins. It’s winter here, the time of year
when you can see migrating whales, just off the beach where we live, heading
north. I count myself very fortunate to have such a happy life here and also to
have been a pupil at Forest School for my formative years.
I often reflect back to those days and every memory is a fond one. The school
afforded me so many opportunities; a quality education taught by very individual
teachers, playing field sports to a high level and even driving rescue boats for the
sailing club in the Lea Valley with the Venture Scouts. The school has a proud
history and proud buildings. I always felt a part of it.
I made many close friends whilst there and many of us shared a passion: the Forest
School Boat Club. I rowed as bow in a four with James Deacon, Andy Armstrong
and Steve Collinson. We achieved success in most of our events and spent all our
time travelling to regattas. There are so many funny stories about the Boat Club,
for instance, the converted fire- engine that ferried us to the river, being in the
minibus that crashed twice on the way home on the Lea Bridge Road and pushing
our master's broken Zephyr 6 along the hard shoulder at the Dartford Tunnel on
the way home from a regatta! Our crew trained with David Applin, Paul Dafurn,
David Tudor and Colin Barker. The Boat Club was an awesome way of life!
After Forest, I graduated with a joint honours degree in marine biology and
physical oceanography from the University College of North Wales, Bangor and
then returned to London to start a career in wholesale money broking in the city.
After short spells in New York, Toronto and five years in Bahrain, I transferred to
Sydney and Australia became home. Having run my own brokerage for several
years I decided to join Macquarie Bank Ltd as a derivatives trader and this is
where I am today.
Outside of work hours, Australia offers me the finest beaches and surf in the
world and life is totally geared to the outdoors and a vast country to indulge in
any activity you desire. I am married to a wonderful Australian lady and we are
both very proud of our two sons, aged 24 and 26. We do everything as a family
together. I am equally proud to have been a pupil at Forest School. What will I be
doing tomorrow? Catching another wave before work!
Ah, yes, as for the Olympics, I will be supporting Australia!
moderate
level of
success as
a DJ for
brands such
as Cream,
Hed
Kandi and
Ministry
of Sound.
My life
abroad has
worked out
better than my wildest dreams.
www.djbensantaigo.com
Michael Head MBE
(Guy’s 1954-1961)
I left Forest in 1961 and entered The Royal Military
Academy Sandhurst as an Officer Cadet the following
January. I was the eighth regular officer to be
commissioned into the Intelligence Corps, together
with the future General Sir Michael Jackson, who was to
become the Chief of the General Staff.
After a young officers’ course, I was posted to the 1st
Battalion, The Somerset and Cornwall Light Infantry,
the idea being to study one’s own army, before studying
foreign armies. After winter warfare training in Canada
and Norway, I found myself as the point platoon
commander of Nato’s Allied Mobile Land Force (North)
at Kolsas, facing a potential Soviet threat, as this was
at the height of the Cold War. I also studied Modern
History at New College, Oxford, where I met my late
wife, Maureen.
After further postings to Hong Kong, the Army’s Strategic
Reserve (which took me to Cyprus during the Turkish
invasion), the Ministry of Defence, the Army Staff College
at Camberley, and Germany (where I was heavily involved
in countering the IRA threat), I was sent, in June 1982, to
Belize, where a Guatemalan threat was developing. I ended
up in Cyprus as the Chief Intelligence Officer, where I was
responsible for reacting to any event that affected British
interests in the Middle East. I left the Army in 1986.
I had several jobs before retiring in 2006 after fortyfive
fulfilling years and after visiting over fifty different
countries, all at Her Majesty’s expense!
I now live in south west France and have a new partner,
three children, fourteen grandchildren which results in a
very expensive Christmas!
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