REMINISCING AND STAYING GROUNDED
Alumni celebrating their 20 , 25 , 30 and 40 year anniversaries offered a different vibe to the previous evening . They certainly spent more time appreciating the superb food than their younger counterparts ! But , again , they came to talk – about their current lives and their schooldays . This is a defining theme of our reunions ; the conversations that reflect the ties that bind alumni to one another and to the school . As Devinia Coco Lavan-Iswaran from the Class of 1989 reflected afterwards : ‘ Last night was a time to reminisce with my old friends , a chance to share some memories , and play our songs again . Like branches on a tree our lives have grown in different directions . Our branches , though , all stem from one solid trunk and the roots keep us all grounded . Thanks for your friendships so many years on .’
MID-CENTURY MEMORIES OF SEVENOAKS
Next we hosted a lunch for those who left 50 + years ago . In many ways this was the most distinctive of all the reunions ; OS from the 1940s , 1950s , 1960s and 1970s were at Sevenoaks when it was so different to the school it is now , but their affection for it is very evident . Kevin Sacco ( OS 1970 ) who has recently published Sevenoaks – a graphic novel he describes as his ‘ love letter ’ to the school – gave a wonderful talk about his experience in the 1960s .
Special mention was made of two OS at this reunion who are in their 90s : Jack Reason ( OS 1946 ) and Dr Philip Whitbourn OBE ( OS 1950 ) were pupils at Sevenoaks during WWII . In a subsequent message , Dr Whitbourn wrote poignantly : ‘ In a nostalgic moment a fortnight ago , I found myself pausing briefly on Jockey ’ s Platch on my way back into town from the splendid OS Reunion at Duke ’ s Meadow . Ahead of me was a scene as I knew it in the 1940s ; School House in the middle , Swanzy building on the left and Johnson Hall ( as was ) on the right . One could just imagine the ghost of “ Jimmy ” Higgs-Walker , resplendent with his red-lined hood and clutching his mortar board , making his stately way down the slope from School House to the Hall for Morning Assembly .’
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