Page 40 - The Old Ratcliffian 2011

The Old Ratcliffan 2011 | Obituaries ‘Blessed are the Gentle’ small x10 pocket magnifying Tony was as gifted with his to have great discussions glass. Very quickly, he hands as with his brain. I about everything that I never realised how became an expert in remember him building a had happened in the day, privileged I was to get to many fields of botany. cathode-ray oscilloscope discuss possible future know and love Tony whilst He was also an expert (whatever that may be) for outings and talk and laugh teaching at Ratcliffe in the in metalwork. His family the Physics lab. All these with great contentment. late fifties. There would be had contributed towards achievements and many many of us from that time setting up the workshop others were made in the As far as Tony’s spirituality who would have felt the and Tony used it brilliantly almost pre-communications is concerned, I am sure that same as me about Tony. he will be very high up on for his own purposes. He and pre-world travel era. Perhaps our close friendship constructed a microtome The above were not the the ‘Heavenly Ladder.’ Once I remember him giving a began when I started (basically an instrument for reasons I respected Tony. talk on the union of body teaching Biology. We both cutting very thin slices of He was such a gentle, and soul and on faith and agreed that really we hardly plants, especially root tips, humble man. He used to reason, which has had a knew the difference between and animal plants which love to drive the old brown permanent effect on my own a dandelion and a daisy and could be viewed under the van at Ratcliffe in those thinking on the subject. so, from that time onwards, microscope.) To do this, days. When we had free we started collecting, he had to make the tools time together we would go His ideas were not as set as pressing and cataloguing to make the machine. My and search for ‘new’ species some of my other mentors. the plants of the district function all the time was in places we thought might Tony was characterised by and the British Isles. Tony to be with him and to talk be interesting, such as the this gentleness, humility was the organiser of to him in order to keep his Barnack Hills. We would and complete genuineness. everything. He was the one nose to the grindstone. He take care not to dig up rare I never heard him blame who carefully recorded all thought out and constructed species. We would return anyone or speak ill of the finds. He was the one a system for ringing the in the evening, take out our others. who first grasped all the bells which would start and finds from the vasculum, May he rest in contentment technical language involved end classes then and which press them all between big before God. and who became the expert continue to do so in the green sheets of blotting at identifying all the difficult Ratcliffe College of today. paper held together in an Fr Tim Maloney I.C. (48) species of grass with his iron grill frame. We used David Arthur Fagan MBE Old Ratcliffian 1956-62 He was educated at Grace Dieu and on Selby Citizens’ Advice Bureau and Ratcliffe, before working briefly as Selby Area Learning Partnership. an articled clerk with Hull solicitors, David, a committed Roman Catholic, Rollitt, Farrell and Bladon. He then joined Rowntrees of York in was for many years a member, then 1966, where he worked in sales Chairman, of the Board of Governors administration until he retired in 2000. of Holy Family Catholic High School in Carlton, near Selby. Before moving to Selby, he lived in Bolton Percy, near Tadcaster where, In retirement, he and his wife Mary, having always been interested in whom he met in York at the church they both attended, also spent a lot of politics, he became involved with the Conservative Party in the Barkston Ash time travelling. David Arthur Fagan died at home in constituency, which later became Selby, He was a keen racegoer, being a Selby on 28th March 2011, aged 67. under Boundary Commission changes. member at both York and Wetherby He was a Selby councillor, former and had only recently returned from Conservative regional party officer When he moved to Selby, he threw the racing at the Curragh in Ireland and charity worker who always threw himself into work with the party, last September when he suffered a himself into any challenge he took on. becoming at various times Treasurer, severe stroke. Chairman and President of the He had only been on Selby District constituency. After he retired, he was He is survived by his wife Mary He was Council for four years as Conservative Area and then Regional Chairman a Lifetime Member of the Ratcliffian representative for Westward, but was of the party in North East Yorkshire, Association and regularly attended so well thought of that, for two of and was involved in the Yorkshire and Association functions and, in particular, those years, he had been Chairman of Humber Region European constituency. the Yorkshire Dinner. Pierre Bouvet the authority’s Economy Board. (71), Yorkshire Secretary, said: In 1995, he was awarded an MBE for David was born in Rhyl, North Wales, his work. In 2007, he took on a new “David rarely missed a dinner and his the son of a Hull optician, although he challenge when he was elected to Selby company will be greatly missed by was brought up in Bridlington, where Council, representing the authority us all.” his family lived. 40