Given the current circumstances across the UK, the OBA Committee has confirmed that the 2021 Dinner will not take place. The current pandemic situation negates our usual early Spring date and of course we are still uncertain when restrictions will be fully lifted to allow indoors social events such as our annual gathering. We will of course alert Members to any decision on potential events later in the year if the opportunity to hold them safely arises.
A recent article appeared in the Sittingboune local paper recalling an article from 75 years ago detailing the 1945 OBA dinner.
In September we published articles detailing the early life and school memories of Ron Swan, who attended the School 1936-1941. Ron's family have now provided a further and final instalment bringing us up to date with Ron, likely our oldest living Old Bordenian.
On 11 November, the School held an Assembly to mark Remembrance Day and in particular Old Bordenians who served and died fighting for their country in conflicts since 1914. There was no OBA Remembrance Sunday ceremony this year due to Covid restrictions.
A video of the School proceedings can be found here:
It is with sadness that we report the death of Ray Hill at the end of September 2020. He died peacefully at home in Minster.
Unfortunately, the OBA's Remembrance Service has been cancelled this year because of Covid19. However, by kind permission of the Headmaster, the OBA will be represented at the School's Remembrance Service on Wednesday, 11 November by committee members Neil Hancock and Mick Pack, who will lay a wreath on behalf of the OBA.
The 2020 AGM of the Association was held online on Thursday 24th September. The papers and minutes are available for members.
We recently published some pre-war memories of Ron Swan (1936-41) and we now publish the next phase of his time at the School, which includes evacuation to Pengam in South Wales. We are grateful, once more, for Ron for sharing these.
OB Norman Wigg has previously provided a personal history of the Battle of Britain over Kent. Now he has penned a further article on his wider memories of a Kentish schoolboy during WW2.
The Sittingbourne Heritage Museum has produced an excellent video about the School's boys who died in the First World War. We are grateful to Ann Sefton from the Museum for sharing this with us.
Geoff Rousell is looking to bring together Old Bordenians who joined the School in 1971 for a reunion at the 2021 OBA Annual Dinner.
After several months of closure and the summer break, the School is preparing for a new School year which will be like no other.