Old Davideans\' > News From ODs

News From ODs

April 2009 - David Rawlinson's Australian Reunion

January 2009 - David Head (1973) - Sixth Form Presentation

Earlier this week Old Davidean DAVID HEAD (1973) gave a most interesting presentation concerning his time at school and his life after St. David's. He studied at St David's until the lower sixth when he moved to Australia when his father was transferred there.

After completing his studies at the University in Melbourne he became involved in the corporate world and by the time he was 32 years of age he became CEO of Pepsi for Australasia trying to balance married life with travelling 70 flights a years and covering 400,000 km.

He worked alongside Michael Jackson, Tina Turner and Lionel Ritchie when hiring them to advertise the Pepsi brand and showed the adverts that they used on Australian TV to promote it.

After making his name at Pepsi and Cadbury/Schweppes he became headhunted in order to rescue underperforming companies and moved to Sydney and Auckland with his family before returning to Melbourne.

David told how life had never been easy when he was young but the School had given him the confidence that was needed to progress into the real business world. One of his basic messages was that when you come up to a brick wall in life you do not just stop and go back, rather you find a way around or over it. There is always a way!

His other message was that however important or well paid your job is, you realise that your family is even more important. When his twin daughters nearly died in childbirth it put his dismissal by Pepsi into perspective.

David finished his presentation by explaining the qualities required to succeed in business, and stayed behind to talk to those who wished to see him.

David has offered to run the Oz/NZ section of the ODA with the assistance of Jonathan Howell (1976). Already David and Margaret, his wife, have entertained the touring rugby team in 2004 and have also assisted 'gap' year students during their year off.

We look forward to welcoming him back when he is next in North Wales.

JCAB

ODs

Are there members out there who would like to come and speak to the sixth form?

It would be so good for the present pupils to hear what you have to say. Your input would be most welcome and invaluable to them.

CHRIS GRIBBIN (1985) wrote this email to the ODA Chairman in September 2008

Thanks for your email it is good to hear from after all these years. Life is treating me well in Australia and I have been here for over 12 years with my wife Merryl and two daughters Jean (12) and Laura (11), my wife is Australian and comes from a very large family and I have 3 great brothers in law and 1 sister in law; they all certainly helped me to settle in when I arrived.

Work is good and I am a partner in a small recruitment company in Sydney and I work with some great people from all over the world.

I am still in touch with a number of people from St David's; Toby Baxter lived in Australia for a number of years with his family before moving back to England last year ; I was on holiday last Winter skiing with Ian Temple and his family and Ian is certainly busy as he has 4 boys between 12 and 5 years of age. Tim Hooper stayed with us about 7 years ago.

If ever you are planning a trip to OZ let me know and you can certainly stay at my place. It is small but has a barbie and a pool and a fridge full of beer!! When I am next in England I will let you know as we normally stay with my parents in Goostrey and Buxton is not far away so we should catch up.

Send my regards to all the other "old boys" and please pass on my email.

I look forward to hearing your news.

Kind Regards

Chris Gribbin

BRENDEN BITHELL (1987) wrote this in September 2008

Just a quick note to say I will be away again during this years Old Boys but I have a good reason, I have gained a position since returning to the UK at Easter this time with the British Antarctic Survey based in Cambridge and from the end of October I will be in Antarctica at a base called Sky Blu.

http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/living_and_working/research_stations/skyblu/index.php

I guess I will have a 'White Christmas' while living in my fibreglass melon hut in -10c to -30c temperatures.   Thank Ray again for all those Automobile Mechanics classes and I am sure I will think of him often while working in my 'Ice Garage', be sure that if I get frost bite I will be taking it up with him when I return !

Maybe the next time he takes up teaching he could do a subject such as 'Jet bike servicing in Miami' so I can try and keep a bit warmer !!

Do you know if I am the first Old Boy to work in Antarctica ?   I am told its only .001% of the UK population who will ever work there so I hope I will be the first, if not I will have to set up a new branch out there and have a reunion over some dried food and snow melt coffee.

Look forward to seeing you both again sometime and gifting a first edition of my book... a Welshman Travels, when I get around to writing it.

Brenden Bithell

KRISTIAN SELLERS (1994) wrote this in July 2008

What am I up to now? Well, currently, I'm living in Malta with my wife, April, and our two girls, Corinne and Morgan. However, we'll be moving to Cyprus in October. I'm an internet entrepreneur - which covers a multitude of sins: I develop seo software, practice seo myself, buy and sell sites and domains, consult occasionally. I also still write a lot. I've had several short stories published and I'm always working on screenplays or going to horror cons in the U.S. In a few years I hope to retire, partially, from internet work and go into independent filmmaking and use what I know of internet marketing to distribute them myself online.

BONGO WOODLEY (1980) wrote this in October 2007

I left Kenya Wildlife Service after 17 years and am now in the world of private security and have operated in places like Afghanistan, Chad and these days Sudan and East & Central Africa generally. Quite lively at times but then so was protecting wildlife!