Old Boys Updates – a new chair
New Chairman – Ralph has passed over the reins to Ian Traquair, after 30+ years of service.
COVID has interrupted our activities and it is my intention determine how best to proceed. I hope that we can regenerate interest in our association and determine what our members would like to see in the way of activities that we may share together. We are a unique and shrinking group of people so the FAOB Association is a special vehicle for sharing our experiences in our formative years as well as enjoying the company of other persons outside our form years at Fort Augustus and Carlekemp.
I hope with your help, to achieve this in three ways.
Firstly, to validate the register of members. This will be done by a mailed questionnaire to the last known address of FAOB’s. Please confirm your name and email address used on this Google form and also please help us to widen our search for Old Boys and Girls by sharing this link with fellow Old Boys and Girls. If you have moved or believe that your details are out of date, or even if you have never had any information directly from the Fort Augustus Old Boys Association, please use the contact section in the web site corbie.com This will be invaluable help to ensure that we maintain contact with former Old Boys and Girls.
Secondly, to re-establish our Annual Dinner fixture on the second Saturday of October – Saturday 14 October 2023. This has been a huge success in previous years and is a great opportunity to be together and share comradeship over the different generations.
Finally, we would like to determine other activities or media that would be of interest to as a group. To that end we will prepare a questionnaire and if you have any suggestions meantime, please feel free to add to your input in the contacts section of the website. The goal is to promote activities and to encourage opportunities for contact between FAOB’s before the Association ceases to exist on the death of our last student.
It is your Association and it exists for your benefit and is a valuable historical resource. Please consider what you can do and how you can benefit from your contribution.
Many thanks, Ian Traquair
News update – Steve and Yvonne Jones (Catering managers)
Jason Jones, son of Steve and Yvonne Jones has provided some sad news about his parents. Steve and Yvonne came to the Abbey in the late 1970s replacing Mr Harrison as the Catering Manager. Steve and Yvonne were very popular with the boys and went out of their way to help with events including CCF and social events. Steve set up the Cookery Club in 1985 for sixth formers The Cookery Club, founded in January by Mr Jones the Abbey Chef, met as two groups of Sixth Formers on Tuesday and Sunday evenings. They learnt how to choose, prepare, cook and serve a meal, and capped their efforts by inviting guests to a three-course dinner. (from the book Abbey Boys)
Jason reports that his mother Yvonne passed away in 2019 with acute myeloid leukemia. His father Steve has recently had a leg amputated due to vascular disease.
We send out very best wishes to Steve adn thank Jason for the update.
ABBEY BOYS – Kindle edition
Abbey Boys, the book about the Abbey School from 1876 until its closure in 1993, has been republished as a kindle eBook. The text remains the same but now has 150 photos added including many sports teams photos from as far back as 1923. The Sports Colours list has been updated and two additional appendices provided; Girls at Fort Augustus and a list of OBs who took up vocation in the priesthood. Kindle eBooks can be read on smartphones, tablets and computers using the Kindle app as well as being available on an Amazon Kindle itself. Abbey Boys can be downloaded from the Amazon website or just search Fort Abbey Boys under Books. It is priced at £9.99.
Another sad passing has been notified to the FAOBA courtesy of Gordon Shand regarding his brother Mike Shand. Mike was at Carlekemp 1966-67 and Fort Augustus 1967-69 (it is thought Mike had to leave FA due to his diabetes?)
Mike passed away on 18 October after a spell in hospital when he unfortunately had to have a lower leg amputation due to circulation issues caused by his diabetes. He managed home on the 17th but passed away shortly after.
Our condolences go to Mike’s family.
Additionally, news has been received of the passing of Alan Blackburn as a result of asbestos cancer, brother of Nigel Blackburn and father to Hugh Blackburn. Alan left the Abbey in 1956 to go to university. Alan lived in Lochailort as a child before heading south.
His funeral will take place at Glenuig church, Lochailort on Thursday 30 November at 1200
A reminder of further sad news previously provided to us;
We’ve recently had news of the passing of some of our dear schoolfriends – Des Martin, Jimmy Doland, John Airs and Laurence Cable. Obituaries for Des, Jimmy and John can be found in our Obituaries section. De mortuis nil nisi bonum dicendum est
A photo gallery is starting to be built up again using photos from the old photo gallery. These can be found in the photo gallery section in the top menu. As before, we welcome any photos relevant to the Abbey School and comments or names of the sports players. Please send to corbieweb@gmail.com
