TOTT 6 October 2016.compressed

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Talk of the Town 17
Grahamstown
THISWEEK
CONTACT US
Newsdesk: sidp@imaginet.co.za; Cell: 071-969-6330
... with Sid Penney
HAVE SOME: Talk of the Town advertising sales consultant Mitch Haupt, left, hands a slice of
birthday cake to a Pepper Grove Pick n Pay customer on the occasion of the newspaper’s 20th
birthday last week
Pictures: SID PENNEY
A RATHER SPECIAL SPEAKER FOR LUNCH
Zelda la Grange, former private secretary and
personal assistant to President Nelson Mandela,
will be guest speaker at the annual breast cancer
awareness lunch at The Wyvern on Monday. Now a
much-in-demand inspirational speaker, La Grange
spent 19 years as presidential aide in different
capacities, and will no doubt have many an
anecdote and story to share with her audience. She
has authored the book Good Morning, Mr Mandela,
and was a founding staff member of the Nelson
Mandela Foundation.
Event promoter Cathy Braans said the venue had
capacity for 170 seats, and tickets were selling very
well. She said the lunch was previously held as a
breakfast, and the first one was held in 2009. Past
guest speakers have included Alison, Wilma van
der Bijl, Joy Duffield and Danel Pruissen.
UPDATE FROM CAMPUS
An update from Rhodes University issued on
Sunday stated that the university was aware that
staff and students might be feeling insecure about
returning to campus (on Monday) following the
arson attempt over the weekend. Staff and
students were reassured that further precautions
had been put in place to ensure their safety, and
they were requested to continue to support each
ot h e r.
WEEKLY NEWS FROM GRAHAMSTOWN
Last week’s edition of Talk of the Town gave
readers good value for money, what with
32 pages of good reading, and some
“histor y’ thrown in as well. Then, in some
areas, readers received two newspapers for
the price of one – The Herald and Talk of
the Town! The ToTT pages contained
comments and anecdotes from staff
members and columnists past and present,
writing about their association with the
newspaper over the past 20 years. Here’s
my story.
After taking early retirement from
Grahamstown Municipality in 1996, I joined
the staff of Grocott’s Mail as deputy editor,
later becoming editor and staying there
until 2005 when the new owners
restructured the staff make-up.
My association with Johnnic began in
2005 when, upon leaving Grocott’s Mail,
group editor of Johnnic community
newspapers, Cal Seton-Smith, offered me
the position of editor of the newly-launched
Grahamstown This Week, which I gladly
accepted. The free community newspaper
proved very popular locally, but after four
years Johnnic closed several community
papers within the group, and ‘GTW’ wa s
one of them.
Again, it was Cal Seton-Smith who arranged for
me to write a weekly full-page Grahamstown
column in Talk of the Town after talks with ToTT
management, and here I am, seven years later and
not having missed a column in that time. In fact,
this year marked my 36th year in the wonderful
and wacky world of journalism, both part-time and
fulltime.
Accordingly, I thank Mauneen Charter and Jon
Houzet for their co-operation and cordiality over the
years, Cal Seton-Smith (since retired) for the part
he played in my being part of Talk of the Town, and
the readers of ToTT, particularly those in
Grahamstown and the former Grahamstonians who
have retired to the coast.
GIVING RED
Each month staff members of the SA National
Blood Service based in Port Elizabeth visit
Grahamstown to collect units of the life-saving fluid
from local donors. Their next visit is on Tuesday,
October 11 when they will be at the NG Kerk hall at
the corner of Hill and Beaufort Streets from 1pm to
6pm. Meanwhile, SANBS is concerned that its
blood stocks have dwindled to two days’ s u p p l y.
A BLOOMING GOOD SHOW BECKONS
Tucked away in homes and gardens this week have
been the plants, shrubs and flowers that will be
entered in the many sections of Saturday’s
Grahamstown Flower Show at Oatlands Prep.
Chairperson of the Albany Horticultural & Lilium
Society, Marion Jayes, is convenor of the show. She
says that besides the adult competitions, there are
also competitions for primary school children, and
garden-related stalls and food stalls. Gates open at
10am, the competition halls will open after judging
at 11am, and the prize-giving is due to begin at
3pm. Tomorrow afternoon and Saturday morning
will see the entrants in the children’s competition
putting together their entries in boxes at Oatlands.
Their task is to come up with prize-winning
arrangements.
DIRTY, DIRTIER, DIRTIEST
I was horrified and shocked the other day to see
the state of the pavements and gutters of Cloncore
Street and Victoria Road across the road from the
former shunting yards at the rear of the local
railway station. Really, the state of the area has to
be seen to be believed – it was an unbelievable
mess when I visited the area early last week. There
was litter, garbage, cardboard boxes, paper, metal
parts and domestic rubbish all over the place. I am
surprised businesses in the area have not
mobilised staff and done a clean-up. When I was in
the area last week, vehicles were even being
repaired in the street. The last time I saw
MODERN ART: A visitor to the Johan Carinus Art Centre
admires the colourful and quirky painting by Oyisa Katshaza,
Grade 11 pupil at Graeme College, during the centre’s recent
exhibition. Scores of works of arts in various forms were part
of the exhibition by local school pupils
something like this was a few years ago when I
drove through Butterworth in the former Transkei.
GRAEME WINS IN SOUTHERN SUBURBS
Graeme College enjoyed a comfortable 160-run
victory over Westerford High School in their first
team 50-overs cricket match in Newlands, Cape
Town, on Saturday, with four visiting batsmen
putting in some fine innings. Summarised scores:
Graeme 284/6 Richard Beyleveld 54, Nicholas
Zimmerman 54, Mark Amm 42 not out, Chris
Gleaves 48). Westerford 123 all out (R Beyleveld
3/29, Dampies 2/8, Amm 2/58). Graeme won by
160 runs, then followed it up the next day with T20
wins over Bergvliet High (by nine wickets) and
Pinelands High (by three wickets).
FLYING IN FOR REUNION
Dr Viv Gibson, president of Albany Rugby Football
Club in the ’80s, has confirmed that he and his wife
Judy will attend the club reunion in Grahamstown
at the end of October, flying in from the US. A
chiropractor by profession when he lived in
Grahamstown, Gibson was also president of the
Lions Club of Grahamstown in the ’80s.
BIRTHDAY SMILES: Shoppers to Pepper Grove Pick n Pay last Thursday morning were greeted with
smiles and slices of cake in celebration of Talk of the Town’s 20th birthday. Here, Pick n Pay
customer care staff members David Desek, second from left, and Belinda Emmerick are flanked by
Talk of the Town staffers from Port Alfred, Louise Knowles, left, (reporter) and Mitch Haupt, right,
(advertising sales)
GRAEME ELECTS LEADERS
Graeme College headmaster Kevin Watson
announced the school’s leadership body for next
year at a special assembly last week. Cameron
Amos has been elected headboy of the school and
Thandwefika Mgidlana deputy. The leadership body
also comprises Mijean Annandale, Eric Barnard,
Odwa Basson, Donovan Brits, Lelethu Cekiso,
Julian Gardner, Hlumelo Jubase, Mothusi Kabi,
Bukhosi Mlambiso, Siphelele Ngoma, Sive
Ntsunguzi, Asher Pearse and Matthew Robertson.
PUPIL LEADERSHIP AT KC
Kingswood College has announced its senior pupil
leadership for next year. Headgirl is Tina Madasa,
and headboy Hilton Wicks. Ella Denton is deputy
headgirl and Nathan Stone is deputy headboy.
BIG PINE WILL WITNESS START
Hundreds of road runners from Port Elizabeth,
Uitenhage and Grahamstown head for the Big
Pineapple in Bathurst early on Saturday for the
BUCO 27km race to the Port Alfred Country Club.
The Kowie Striders-organised race is open to
runners (7.30am start) and walkers (7am start),
and is an Eastern Province participation league
event. Medals and glass tumblers will be given to
finishers, and the leading category
finishers will also receive prize money.
Entries will be accepted from 5pm to 9pm
tomorrow (Friday) and from 5am to 6am
on Saturday at the country club.
ATHLETICS ON GANE
Kingswood College’s Gane field is the
venue for the inter-house athletics
championships from 8am on Wednesday
October 12.
ATHLETICS ON LOWER
The Diocesan School for Girls and St
Andrew’s College inter-house athletics day
will be held on Lower field from 7.45am on
Thursday October 13.
FETE ON STANTON’S
The Oatlands Prep mini-fete on Saturday
October 22 promises to be a fun-filled day
with various stalls, children’s activities and
games, face-painting, go-kart races and
fo o d .
FOOTBALL ON ST AIDAN’S
Football – known as soccer to some – is
alive and kicking at St Andrew’s College, and the
school hosted the Heritage Day tournament on St
Aidan’s field a fortnight ago. The event was
contested by Woodridge College, Lawson Brown
High, Nombulelo High and St Andrew’s. A week
earlier saw St Andrew’s fielding four teams against
Victoria Park High in Port Elizabeth, and last
weekend St Andrew’s took part in a tournament
hosted by Grey College in Bloemfontein. The St
Andrew’s coach is Craig Hatches.
This reminds me of the very first football match I
refereed at the beginning of a 20-year refereeing
career in Grahamstown and Port Elizabeth. It was a
friendly match involving a Grahamstown City Xl
and St Andrew’s College in 1975, and was played
on the Fort England Hospital ground in Sunnyside,
since taken over by ward complexes. But the
original change room is still there, utilised these
days as storerooms. I believe.
HONOURS ALL-ROUND
The Diocesan School for Girls has made cultural
and sporting honours awards to the following
pupils: Wandithanda Makandula (chorister and
soloist), Tegan van der Merwe (pianist), Lenta
Cullinan (hockey), Sandisiwe Tabata (hockey),
Emma Koster (netball) and Hannah Rippon
(netball). Cullinan, captain of the DSG first hockey,
tennis and squash teams, also has colours for
tennis and squash.
EFFORTS ARE BEING MADE
Walking along Hillsview Road extension leading to
the veterinary research station at the top of George
Street, I noticed that concerted attempts are being
made to repair the donga-riddled section between
the tar and the vet station. However, I doubt it is
the municipality doing this great job, and think it is
probably a concerned building contractor filling the
dongas with builders’ rubble. Only thing that spoils
the area is the indiscriminate dumping of garden
refuse alongside and even on the gravel road. Once
upon a time this section of road was tarred.
THEY WERE HERE BACK THEN
These days we have many major insurance
companies whose ranks include OUTsurance, King
Price Insurance, Auto & General Insurance,
Sanlam, Discovery Insure and Old Mutual to insure
our lives and our property. Back in the 1960s there
was an insurance company agency at almost every
at torney’s office, estate agent’s office and travel
agency in town. Maybe some readers have never
even heard of some of these insurance companies
from the ’60s, and some of which probably do not
exist anymore. Parity Insurance, Eagle Star
Insurance, Prudential Insurance and Rotterdam
Insurance, all at Tom Tits Travel Agents, 76 High
Street; Century Insurance and Sun Life Assurance
of Canada at HG Levey Attorneys, 111 High Street;
London Assurance at Digby & Francis Estates, 79
High Street; North British & Mercantile Insurance
at Grahamstown Building Society, 18 Hill Street;
South British Insurance at AR Whiteley
Accountants, 69 High Street; and Commercial
Union Assurance at EP Guardian Loan &
Investment, 103 High Street.
A LANE OF CLOTHING
A few decades ago, Hepworths men’s outfitters,
tailors, suppliers of hats and boots and stockists of
academic and college wear, occupied premises on
the southern side of Church Square, where Pep
Stores is today. Hepworths then closed shop and
left town, but the lane between Clicks and Pep is
still known as Hepworths Lane. It was known as
Hepworths Lane back in the mid-60s when Bertie
Thomas Liddiard occupied premises halfway down
the lane.
COUNTRY SERVICE
Those readers and residents with connections to
Salem and its district are invited to a special
service from 8.30am on Sunday October 9 in the
1850 Salem Church. The service will be conducted
by Rev Rod Burton and Rev Glen Craig.
ACROSS THE WORLD
Here’s some more news of former Grahamstonians
following my request in last week’s column. Twins
David and Bradley Springer had an eventful month
in September this year. Bradley Springer took part
in the 70.3 Half Ironman world champs in
Mooloolabar in Australia, finishing in the top 20%
of the field of 3000 athletes. David Springer
graduated with a DPhil in biomedical engineering
from Oxford University.
Let us hear more about former Grahamstonians,
our sons and daughters – e-mail me on
sidp@imaginet.co.za