No. 123
The Trusty Servant a daughter from his first marriage and a son and a daughter from his second. Obituaries in The Times and The Daily Telegraph.
Aubrey Fiennes Trotman-Dickenson( D, 39-44): died 11.11.2016 aged 90. Founder’ s kin with six generations of Wykehamists since the first Trotman arrived in the school in 1734. Father of CFT-D( D, 68-73). Exhibitioner and Science Prize. Published his first scientific paper in 1947 on work done at Winchester with Eric James( Lord James of Rusholme), whom he joined on the Committee of University Vice Chancellors, the only time that a master and pupil served on the same committee. Frazer Scholarship and Williams Exhibition, Balliol College Oxford 1944, 2 Natural Science 1948, MA 1952. Oxford University Cross Country 1944-47. He first worked as a research chemist at the National Research Council in Ottawa 1948. Assistant Lecturer, Manchester University 1950. Lecturer Edinburgh University 1954, DSc. Professor of Chemistry, UCW Aberystwyth 1960. Tilden Lecturer at the Chemical Society 1963. In 1968, he left a highly distinguished academic career where he was the leading authority on Gas Phase Kinetics to take up the challenge of being the first Principal of UWIST in Cardiff. He remained in Cardiff for 25 years – the longest serving Vice Chancellor. Under his leadership, Cardiff University became a member of the Russell Group and one of Britain’ s leading research universities. He saw it as his job to ensure that highcalibre academic staff were appointed, and then he supported the departments as generously as possible. He was an excellent financial manager – UWIST and Cardiff were said to be the only universities in Britain that consistently made a trading profit. He also served on the Wales Gas Board, the Welsh Council and was chairman of Job Creation Wales. He was knighted for his services to
Education 1989. He was awarded LLD by the University of Wales. Although intellectually intimidating he got on extremely well with his students: he and his wife entertained 20 at a time for lunch and some students had them back for meals in their flats( cooked by their girlfriends). The University did not experience any student unrest in the 1970s. His‘ out-of-hours’ dress-sense could be described as scruffy. This led to misunderstandings – he was offered a tip by a parent for repairing a tap in one of the student houses. He is survived by Danusia, his wife of 63 years. She was appointed MBE and is Emeritus Professor of Economics, University of South Wales. Also by their two sons. One daughter, Professor of Radiology at Harvard University, died in 2015.
Robert David Sheaf( E, 39-43): died November 2016. Captain Under-17 Fencing 1942-43. He served in the Royal Navy 1943-47. Stage manager and Producer 1948-51. Law student, Middle Temple 1950-53. Barrister 1953- 70. He was then Information Officer EEC Communications 1970-86. On retirement he was the editor, Interspace Europe. Married( 1) 1967 Wendy McCredie,( 2) Teresa Goldie and( 3) Vera Farley.
Charles Stuart Alexander( F, 40-44): died 18.11.2016 aged 90. Brother of WBA( F, 31-37), JRA( F, 33-37) and KAA( I, 42-46). Commissioned into the Black Watch 1945, with whom he served in India. He emigrated to Canada in 1948. McGill University 1948, BA 1952. Captain in the Black Watch of Canada. He first worked as a Lawyer with McMaster Meighen & Co, Montreal 1960-71 and then for the Federal Department of Justice, Ottawa 1971- 78. He was a salesman, lawyer, grocer, philanthropist and farmer. In 1989, he created the Chawkers Foundation to support Canadian educational and environmental charities. Married 1956 Josephine Parker( died 1999). He is survived by his partner Emilia Taylor and his three sons and a daughter.
George Erasmus Darwin( I, 40-45): died 3.2.2017. Son of WRD( B, 08-13) and Brother of PWD( I, 43-47). Head of House. Trinity College, Cambridge 1945, 2 Nat SCI 1948, MA 1953. He first worked as a metallurgist with Metro-Cutant Ltd 1948, attached to AERE Harwell 1954. He then worked for Babcock & Wilcox 1957-78. Vice Chairman London Metallurgical Society 1970. Richardson Westgarth & Co 1978- 82. Treasurer, Institute of Metals 1988-92 and later Chairman, Home Grown Produce. Publication, Beryllium 1960. He was a Common Councillor of the City of London. He is survived by Shuna, his wife of 52 years, and their two sons and a daughter.
Christopher( Kit) David Wyndham Savage( H, 40-45): died 21.11.2016. Brother of ACMacES( H, 28-33) and MJS( H, 45-50) and father of WSS( E, 87-92). He was commissioned into the Royal Engineers 1945 – 48, with whom he served in East Africa and Palestine. Magdalene College, Cambridge 1948- 50, 2( 1) Mech Sci. Blue for Shooting 1950( Captain). Alfred Newton Essay Prize 1949-50, MA 1955. He trained as a civil engineer with Sir Alexander Gibb & Partners from 1950, working in Tanganyika, Swaziland, Iran, Sudan, Pakistan and Thailand, mostly on water-resources development. He retired from civil engineering to concentrate on renewable development, which included invention of large flexible barges. He worked for Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion in the Oman, providing high-quality renewable energy in conjunction with Sultan Qaboos University. From 1984-92 he lived mainly in Japan working for Nippon Koei. He was the first President of the
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