Page 21 - The Old Ratcliffian 2011

The Old Ratcliffan 2011 | Old Ratcliffan news his family were still in a young, post- also a keen guitarist and saxophonist, Force Officer in 1978. I started in the colonial Kenya. His first few weeks at playing in the school’s celebrated Security Branch organising security Ratcliffe were spent with an African Jazz Orchestra. Samuel Echevarría for VIP flights on the RAF VC10s. I Brown House snake in a cage under (04), who also attended Ratcliffe until travelled with Margaret Thatcher his bed in Our Lady’s Dormitory and the end of Year 6, is now at Liverpool to Moscow, Tokyo and Canberra, Jackson’s chameleons kept in the Hope University. He is studying with Her Majesty to Lusaka for the Biology lab! He never shook off his Philosophy and Ethics and Theology Commonwealth Conference, and I colonial roots and seven years ago and Religious Studies, which is quite also recovered British subjects from bred over two hundred Madagascan a mouthful, but then he is looking to Iran immediately after the revolution. Panther chameleons. follow his dad into teaching RE. He I then transferred to pilot training also sings and performs regularly and and got as far as the Jaguar OCU at Adrian Fidler (98): “I’m in the was lead guitarist in his band, The RAF Lossiemouth before crashing Merchant Navy training to be a Radioholics, before going solo when and having to transfer to Air Traffic Navigation Officer. I’m currently we moved to Scarborough.” Control. I was a controller for the training on a cargo ship on the English majority of my 33 years, finishing Channel. I should be off this ship Sebako Siame (91) has been living before Christmas and onto another in Bangalore, India for the past my service at the Scottish Air Traffic Control Centre at Prestwick. I was after Christmas. All being well, I’ll two and a half years, where she is very lucky in 2002 to be awarded finish training and hopefully qualify working for Goldman Sachs managing the MBE, in 2006 the Chief of the next December. Training is enjoyable, their Margin, Valuations and Pricing Air Staff’s Commendation, and in although I still struggle with the maths Operations Team. She spends a lot and studying - old habits die hard! of her spare time travelling across 2007 the LG Groves Memorial Award for Flight Safety. I retired from I’d trained for two years before this India and broader Asia. After leaving the Service in 2009 and am now as a yacht rigger, tuning race boats Ratcliffe, Sebako qualified as a employed in Customer Services for amongst other things, but I find this barrister and was called to the Bar at Vodafone. I live in Dundonald in South much more enjoyable.” Middle Temple after completing her Jurisprudence degree at St Anne’s Ayrshire with my wife Mhairi and 18 year old daughter Caitlin.” College, Oxford. She then spent some time working in Zambia before Andrew Mason (96): “I am still returning to the UK and beginning working at the family sheet metal her Operations career at JPMorgan business, now with Alison Court Chase. Sebako has kept close ties (née Mason) (98) alongside me. with Ratcliffe and with Leicestershire Alison recently got married at in general, particularly due to her Ratcliffe to Ben Court. I have mainly godchildren who live in the county and been planning our house move to to her longstanding friendships with Thrussington, which should hopefully Jesús Echevarria and family in others in the area. be any day soon. Business is very Javea, Spain busy, which is great, but it’s keeping Ciaran Grant (10) has just started his me there for too many hours each Jesús Echevarría, ex teacher (04): second year of university studying week. Tomas is in the Cygnet’s senior “After five years at The Blessed Robert Media Production and will soon be class now, starting his first full year. Johnson Catholic College in Telford going into the recording studio to Lucie is 18 months old, creeping as Deputy Head, I was lucky enough record his band’s debut album. closer to joining Ratcliffe. John Yates to be appointed Head Teacher of St (95) was at Ali’s wedding and in good Augustine’s Catholic High School, form, enjoying full-on fatherhood since Scarborough, where I am now in his second child arrived, and still a my third year. The school is an mad man dashing all over the place outstanding co-educational Catholic with work. Mike Mahiga (95) is finally state school for 11 to 16 year olds engaged and doing well in Geneva. serving the coastal area from Whitby Nadia (91) and Mal Hawes (93) also down to Bridlington. My wife, Laura, have a second child the same age also continues to teach and is in the as Lucie. They are all well down in English Department at Headlands Windsor, where Mal works for IBM School in Bridlington. and Nadia is a High Court barrister in Simon Tyas (71) We live by the sea and enjoy a great London.” live music scene where I am a regular Simon Tyas (71): “After leaving Sylvester Cheung (95) wrote: “I am performer, together with my youngest Ratcliffe, I joined the Rosminian still living and working in the county. son and former Ratcliffe student Order as a Postulant, then Novice. I qualified as an architect in 2004 David Echevarría (04), who is now in Realising that the calling was not and, in 2007, I was made a partner of Year 10. In fact, we opened at this as strong as I first thought, I soon Parkinson, Dodson and Cheung.” year’s Acoustic Gathering Festival left the Order and joined Harrods to in Peasholm Park in Scarborough. sell fruit and vegetables! 1974 saw Ian Warrington (80): “I worked David is interested in drama and me join the Metropolitan Police. I for the MOD for the last 25 years music and has already performed served at Bethnal Green in the East at St Georges Road, Harrogate, in in productions of Billy Elliott, Little End for two years, then became a Washington DC (1990-93), RAF Wyton Shop of Horrors, Treasure Island and DC in Special Branch, before (like Dr and the British Embassy, Kuwait Midsummer Night’s Dream. He is Who) regenerating as an Royal Air (1997-99). I’m currently working at Register online at www.ratcliffanassociation.co.uk 21