Mary Cavanagh (from the 3rd reunion website)
After we all said our farewells in Nairobi, Pete and I headed south with Dave and Cheryl, Scott and Sue, and Pam and Paul. We spent a year in South Africa before making our way to Australia, catching up with Helen and Greg. We worked in Sydney for 9 months whilst exploring Australia and New Zealand, then ventured back to South Africa via Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and India. After 6 years of domestic life in South Africa, buying a house and enjoying both our work life and the social scene, Pete got the wanderlust again and our plans got underway to set off for the Americas. We joined Encounter Overland to travel through South America, then continued on our own through Central America, the U.S.A. and Canada, reuniting with various Siafuers along the way. Finally we made our way back to dear old Blighty and our families, where we have, effectively, been ever since.
In 1988 we started our own business, in Telecoms (structured cabling), which had always been Pete's area of work. Mine, being accounts, meant we could keep an eye on our progress, and we made a good team in our usual way, with Pete at the helm and me in the supporting role. It's been a lot of hard work over the years, but it continues to be a successful company, with a good reputation in the industry. His younger cousin, Dave, who joined us a couple of years after we set up, now runs things on a day-to-day basis, so Pete is able to spend more time at his second home in Spain, whilst still keeping an overview on things remotely.
Pete and I separated in 1996 and divorced in 1997. Sadly, we had outgrown our marriage, but we remain friends and I am still involved in the business, although my role has scaled down over the past few years. I am no longer a director, and now work part-time, but still have the interest of the Company at heart, and have the overview of the Accounts department, with three assistants carrying out the daily tasks.
Now, I divide my time between skiing at every opportunity in the winter, mostly in Europe, but sometimes in the U.S.A. and Canada, visiting my apartment in the north of Spain as often as possible, socialising with friends, and occasionally fitting in a minor trip here or there (nothing to compare with our earlier travels!). Doesn't sound like much, but I always seem to be busy and rushing around!!
Luci Hunt Edwards (from the 3rd reunion website)
Following the end of our trip, I flew to Johannesburg and stayed the first night in the YWCA and then moved in with Cheryl's parents until the Ellen Landrover arrived. After that Paul and I found a place together and I found a teaching position at Jeppe Prep School. Our plan was to earn and save and then travel to South America and drive the continent eventually arriving back in Calgary. However, in March of that year, my father had a serious accident so my plans changed and I flew home in August. It was my intent to meet Paul in South America but it never panned out.
Back in Calgary, I went back to university to finish my degree but I also worked part time at Bawden Drilling. When Peter Bawden bought an aviation company including a flying school and offered to give free flying lessons to obtain my pilots license if I would go work there, my life changed direction. I never did teach again. A few years later Bawden hired a retired Airforce Brigadier General to come to Calgary to run the flying operations and I moved over from the flying school to be the flight dispatcher for this individual. In 1979 I decided that while I loved my job and the people I worked with, especially my boss, there was no future for me with the company and I resigned. Five days after I resigned, I went back to visit my boss and thank him for the party he had thrown for me. He closed the door and said I wish I was 20 years younger. I asked why? He said because I think you are the greatest gal on earth. To which without hesitation I responded what difference does 20 years make? And my life changed forever. I had a wonderful marriage of 26 years and we had two wonderful children. Sadly I lost my brigadier in 2005 but he left me with his story to tell which I shall do in time and in the meantime I have much research to do.
I worked for 10 years as the Executive Director of a national organization of medical professionals but I decided at the age of 46 that I would prefer to be my own boss. I quit at the end of August, took two months off and then founded Concierge On Call. We are now into our 9th year and it has been quite the journey with many rocky spots but I think we have turned a major corner in the business and I hope to grow the company into a national franchise.
I feel very blessed in my life experiences and my Siafu experience had a huge impact on my life. The friendships that continue are absolutely wonderful and I am so looking forward to seeing people in Gargunnock!
Sue Batten Guelpa (from the 3rd reunion website)
After leaving Nairobi, I travelled south to Durban and the luxury of a Mum and a Dad (borrowed from a former roommate in London) looking after me for a few weeks. It was heaven, but I soon moved on to Joburg for a short while and then down to Cape Town ostensibly to attend the wedding of another travel companion from Europe. In the end, I was invited to stay with family friends of the Bride and tarried for quite a while, meeting up with old friends from London days and working for a Temp agency.
When I moved on, I went by ship to Australia and lucked into a ready made roommate in the form of the sister of a London friend. Jenny and I had a great time in her little house in Sydney (me working for a Temp agency again and also as a waitress at the Rose Bay Steakhouse).
However, after three years away from home and my Dad becoming very ill, I decided to pack up the bags one last time and head for home. I went to Ottawa first, to see the parents, and within days had a lovely visit from Janie who was still wandering the globe!
Once back on Vancouver Island, I found work immediately and settled back into life as if I had never been away!! Funny how that happens whether you are away for three weeks or three years?!
Three children and thirty years of marriage later, I am now living on the East Coast of Vancouver Island, overlooking the Strait of Georgia. Stephanie, Lindsay and Paul have all left the nest and are making their way(s) in their various fashions. Each of them is happy, healthy and self-sufficient. They stay in contact with me way better than I did with my own parents and for that I am ever grateful.
I work full-time for a federal Crown Corporation which handles the contracting and QA supervision of large construction projects for the Department of National Defence. My office is located at 19 Wing Comox (the only Cdn. Airforce Base on the West Coast). The Base is largely responsible for Search and Rescue on the West Coast of Canada.
I still love travelling and have recently spent a little time in China. With one daughter attending University in Adelaide, I have been to visit Australia a number of times and was fortunate to get in another trip to South Africa to catch up with some wonderful friends there.
Janie Alston Habla (from the 3rd reunion website)
“. . . don't worry Mum I'm driving home through Africa" said the postcard to Melbourne, and so began that great adventure . . . opening my eyes to the world, giving me the most insatiable "travel Bug" for remote and less travelled places, unsettling me for years, giving me some very real friendships and a lifelong bond with my fellow travellers.
I was supposed to go home from Nairobi but I headed back to London for awhile then home . . . to the really quiet life. I got malaria badly, quit the job I loathed and as quickly as possible headed back overseas. I was an Occupational Therapist and specialized in the treatment of handicapped and learning disabled children, so in1994 I did Post-graduate study in London, as soon as the exams were over I headed to Canada and stayed with Luci, Sue and Francie, John Thornley even made the trip to Francie's to catch up, it was a wonderful holiday. The same year I headed home to Australia in a small minibus with an "odd bunch" we had fun though. We travelled through Europe, Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iran, Afghanastan, Pakistan, Kashmir and India . . . a different world now, some of it was wild but fascinating.
At home afterwards I had some great jobs in schools with handicapped children.The years between 75 and 78 were pretty hard as both my parents developed terminal illnesses, I was lucky enough to have the independence to nurse each, Mum on our family farm with my two brothers. After they died I went back to Darwin Hospital where I worked, I loved the bush and the wonderful distant gorges and waterfalls we drove to each weekend. Saw Helen up there at remote Gove which was good.
The need to upgrade my studies was pressing, so I went back to Uni in Melbourne. I missed Darwin a lot but got on with a massive job in charge of Rehab services at the Alfred , a uni Teaching Hospital in Melbourne. There were a few trips to Europe and I saw Francie and her cute little children in Melbourne from time to time.
At 32 years I met the love of my life, Gilbert, in Melbourne, then I disappeared to go camel riding in Rajasthan. We share the love of travel and saw many Pacific Islands together after we married in 85 we took off on the big backpacking trip. We hiked in Nepal for weeks, were the first foreigners to go overland into Tibet in 86 and spent an extraordinary time there, then off to India, Europe and Greece.
Our daughter Mary was born in 86, Peter in 88, Christian in 90 and James in 93, a few days before a Siafu reunion. Things have been pretty busy, four children in five years, dogs, kinder, school, etc
Gilbert helped to build a ski lodge when he was younger so all the children are comfortable skiers, I'm hopeless and just organize the troops!! We have had two massive camping trips taking the children out of school for 11 and 6 weeks to travel with an off-road camper trailer throughout the outback up to Darwin, Cape York, Thursday Island, the Tanami Desert and the Kimberleys . . . I haven't had the time to get back to OT, two of the boys missed years of school with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, that's another story!!
These days I have four big healthy and happy teenagers (20,19, 17 and 14) I think I'm what they call "an Older mother", it's still busy but I more or less keep up. Gilbert and I are very lucky older parents!!
Jo Heathcote (from the 3rd reunion website)
From Jo's website at www.jhhotels.com
Joanna Heathcote was virtually born in transit. As the daughter of a career military officer, international travel was part of the family routine. So, although her birth certificate reads United Kingdom, it might easily have been anywhere from the banks of the Nile (where she learned to swim) to the Yorkshire moors (where she developed her love of horses). Her formal education took place in England, Italy and France.
Before joining the workplace, Joanna decided to see as much of the rest of the world as time and funds would permit. While the sixties wound down, she managed to explore the USA by bus before boarding a freighter in San Francisco bound for Singapore, with stops in Hawaii, Japan, Hong Kong, and Vietnam. After a sojourn in Singapore, she joined a small party of British VSO and American Peace Corps workers driving from Southern India to London. During the many months of this journey, she got to see a lot more of the world.
In 1970, Joanna settled in at her first real job as a travel agent for horses. She worked for a company that specialized in the shipment of racing, breeding, and competition horses throughout the world. Here she discovered that horses have passports and are subject to immigration laws that are quite strict. Her next job took her to Kenya where for two years she worked on the registry of British owned land in that country for the British High Commission in Nairobi. It also allowed her to travel extensively throughout Africa during this period.
But the British Isles beckoned and she returned home in 1976. For the next few years, she worked as a tour guide for Take-A-Guide, a car/driver company specializing in private tours throughout Britain. In 1978 she took over the running of the company's London office where she supervised the planning of client itineraries and lodging. Her duties include visiting hotels recommended by the company in Britain and France.
In 1981, Joanna broadened her knowledge of the hospitality business by working with ITP Villa, a company based in London, that specialized in luxury villa rentals throughout Europe, the Caribbean, and Florida. Again, her work required extensive visiting and evaluating company-recommended properties as well as the development of marketing plans and materials.
In 1985 she rejoined Take-A-Guide in London as head of operations, with overall responsibilities for sales and marketing worldwide. This included many sales and marketing trips to visit travel agents and tour companies in the United States and Europe.
The proverbial seven-year itch prompted Joanna to take a sabbatical from the travel business. In 1993, she volunteered her services pro bono, running a summer program for disadvantaged children in Boston. She spent some time freelance writing and traveling internationally. Several new travel ideas seemed appealing, wine tours in California, horseback riding in Spain and of course, the hotel business.
In 1995 she contacted a number of charming, unique luxury hotels she had come to know over the years with a view to establishing herself as a marketing person for them. Her portfolio of hotels includes deluxe boutique hotels in London and Paris, chateaux and manor houses in the French and English countryside and romantic castles in Scotland and Wales. Lately, Joanna has added hotels in Spain to her portfolio and in 2007 she will be expanding her horizons to include New Zealand. All the hotels are very much Joanna's personal selections. She bases her choices not only on comfort, friendly staff, good service and location, but good food and fine wines. Joanna presently numbers ten Michelin stars amongst her collection of hotels with fine restaurants. All of the hotels she represents are individually owned. Indeed, many are private houses with the owners beautiful furnishings, including antiques and fine art, available for guests to enjoy.
Joanna plans to continue to combine her work with her personal interests discovery of new treasures throughout the world, enjoyment of fine food and wine, and travel . . . travel . . . travel.
Ray Hobson (from the 3rd reunion website)
You mentioned putting together a small blog of everyone, as we haven't seen each other for so long, but it is difficult to keep such a thing to just a few words, as you can see from above I do tend to ramble on; however, I shall give a brief description of what has happened.
Barbara and I arrived back in Australia in March 1974. We stayed in Sydney for about six months, then I got a job in Perth W.A. We lived there for seven years, both David and Katriona were born in Perth. I then got a job in Brisbane, so moved there for three years, then got a job in Sydney. Had five jobs in Sydney, ended up with Philips Electrical (the Dutch Company) stayed with them until I retired two years ago. I moved around from job to job as the industry I was in always had openings in different fields, I was a Customs Broker, and found staying in the one job a little boring if I was handling just a particular range of goods. Barbara has been working in Sydney almost all the time since returning from Brisbane. She has a job with the state government, and works in the premier's department looking after recruitment. Katriona had an ideal education, and on the way was lucky enough to have some wonderful friends, (two in fact are in New York working at the moment). Katriona went onto Uni and graduated in Eco Tourism, but must say not much work in that field. She now lives at Stanwell Park, a surfing beach about 30 kms south of Sydney. Matthew, her husband, is the life guard at that beach, so he just has a 200 metre stroll to work!!! They took 12 months off work in 2005 and drove around Australia in a second hand Toyota 4 wheel drive, that had already done 300,000 kms before they took off. They had no trouble with the vehicle; it was petrol/gas so they had two fuel sources. David is keen on surfing, but to date has not taken to girls, so he is still living at home with me. He is working as a contractor for the local water board, and ends up working at all the plants in and around the city, depending on the problems they may be having.
I spend my time now making silver jewellery, doing wood work in my workshop, going to the gym, bicycle riding, collecting semi-precious stones, and polishing them. Some stones I use in the jewellery I make. I also my go fossicking for stones but have not had a great deal of luck. I get most of my stones from the rock and mineral markets that come around every three months or so. Have just bought myself a digital camera so getting back into the photography. Marvellous not having to worry about film anymore.
The two pictures one of me and Katriona on her wedding day 2003 and the Siafu one packing the landrover before taking off on the first day of the Beni Road.
Mike Madgin (from the 3rd reunion website)
Six of us left Nairobi (Clive, Denis, Tar, Sally, Cherry and I) to travel south and climb Kilimanjaro. Tar and Cherry returned home after the climb, I had also planned to do this but decided to go further south - for a short while. Clive and Denis travelled through Malawi to Rhodesia (as then was). Sally and I went through Zambia. However, we reached the border crossing between Zambia and Rhodesia too late; it had just been closed and was being patrolled by the army. Very frustrating. We had to return north again and finally reached South Africa via Malawi and Rhodesia. I saw Denis some months later when he travelled through SA en route to NZ and I saw Clive in Umtali, in the eastern highlands, nearly a year later. Although we all corresponded for a while we have now lost contact.
In Johannesburg I stayed initially on the floor of Heather and Hendrick's flat, then met Ian and decided to look for work - so much for a "short while". Familiar faces passed through Johannesburg over the next few months, with many staying; it was a great year. Then, at broadly the same time, everyone decided it was time to move on, with S America, the most favoured route home. I travelled back up Africa, but this time on the eastern side, using buses, steamers and trains; it took over 4 months and was very enjoyable. There were some hairy moments but the trickiest moments were after just leaving N Africa for Europe, as Turkey and Greece had just began hostilities in Cyprus. Fortunately, outside Cyprus itself, it was mainly sabre rattling; I met up with a friend from SA and we spent 2 enjoyable months travelling around the Greek isles - made more pleasant as there were few tourists!
After returning to London I put on a suit again and joined a large professional services organisation; I had intended to work for them overseas in either Australia or Canada but ended up working for them in London for 28 years. They had a worldwide presence and I have been lucky to work in a lot of overseas countries over the years. During this time I met Cathy and we married and had two daughters. We have loved watching the girls grow and mature; we have also enjoyed a number of fun family holidays combining some travelling and relaxing and occasionally visiting old friends, including Siafuites. Cathy had also travelled widely - her parents had worked in Australia and N America for some years - so we were delighted the girls enjoyed doing it as well. Both girls have grown up now. Melanie has just graduated from university and is currently trying to resolve how best to celebrate her 21st birthday while she will be working in a Canadian ski resort later this year. She has no difficulty celebrating anywhere; it is just that all her closest friends will be a long way away. Miranda starts at university in September and, after working in the early summer, is currently relaxing with friends in the Greek islands.
Cathy continues to be busy with her business she set up more than 20 years ago. I joined a smaller international consultancy firm, nearly two years ago, to help build up their practice and am also kept busy. However, retirement is now not far away. Cathy plans to reduce her work load gradually over the next few years. I would also like to wind down over a similar period but working for a large organisation makes this a little tricky. Still we are both looking forward to more leisure time soon.
Greg Packer (from the 3rd reunion website)
My short story since the Siafu trip, i.e. after a year travelling the world and not working, I returned to Sydney and within a month had a job in commercial building construction with a major company. Over the next 35 years I remained in this industry but 20 years ago my family and I relocated 1000km north to Queensland. I married Libby in 1975 and we had 3 children: Gareck now 30, Leisl nearly 28, and Megan 26.
The kids were only young when we moved to a State that in those days was a bit of a backwater but with great weather. Queensland is now one of the growth states of Australia due to mining and tourism. First, we lived on the Gold Coast for a year; then moved to the Sunshine Coast 120km north of Brisbane to build a large resort: Hyatt Coolum. During this time I bought a block of land opposite the beach up near Noosa. Six years ago we built our retirement house there, but as yet haven't moved there full time. ( I am currently semi-retired but work about 3 days a week advising a major developer.)
After that we moved to Brisbane and eventually built on 2-1/2 acres 20km from the center of Brisbane in the beautiful hills to the west. I promised the kids we wouldn't move again until they finished High School. We still haven't moved as we love the area and the kids have well and truly finished school and university.
My daughter Leisl is working at a medical research center at Chelsea in London for 2 years and Megan (who just went to Tibet with Libby and me ) is going to London in 3 weeks to do a Masters at London University.
So I will be visiting the UK quite often.
My other interests in life are cycling. I ride over 8000km per year averaging around 200km per week while at home and I now do quite a bit of oil painting . How we condense 35 years of our lives.
Rob Stephenson (from the 3rd reunion website)
I continued on to Ethiopia with Francie and John Thornley and others for a month perhaps, then back to Nairobi where Francie and I hooked up with a few Brits and headed south eventually to Jo'burg where we got together with some of the Siafuers there. I then went on my own to Durban and arranged for passage up the West African coast on a freighter which I boarded in Cape Town. The voyage was great after all that hard travel: air conditioned cabin, three meals a day, clean sheets, nothing to do but read and go ashore for a few hours at any number of ports. Disembarked in Dakar and then flew back to the UK.
Once home I started a job or two in planning and sometime in the late 70s did a London to Kathmandu overland trip. In 1977 I bought my present house in New Hampshire and took a "temporary" job in Boston working for a group of institutions in the Fenway neighborhood: universities, hospitals, museums, etc. Ended up staying until 1992 when I settled fulltime (versus just weekends) in Jaffrey.
My 1800 house became my nearly full-time project--total renovation and then a new addition begun in 1991. Just as that was nearing completion (believe me nothing along these lines is ever completed), I hosted the first Siafu reunion.
Over the years I have become more and more involved with Antarctic affairs, amassing a large collection of books, art and artifacts and running a website at www.antarctic-circle.org
I've travelled there six times, four of those as a lecturer on Antarctic history on cruise ships. I'm signed up to go back in February 2009.
I also seem to spend an inordinate amount of time on local affairs: Overseeing the Town's cemeteries, the 1775 Meetinghouse, Dump Committee, Water Committee, Energy Committee, blah blah blah.
I've organized seven, I think, Landmark Trust house parties for friends and several years ago Gargunnock was one of our week-long destinations. So this reunion will be deja vu all over again. After this reunion I head to the southwest where I'll spend a week at the next Landmark Trust houseparty, at James Boswell's Auchinleck. Have a look at http://home.comcast.net/~rs41/boswell.htm (The website will look familiar!)
Francie Walls (from the 3rd reunion website)
After Siafu, Rob, Maureen, Ray, Barb and I travelled around Ethiopia for a month - bumped into John Thornley in Harrar. It was an very interesting month, I thought, although some of my strongest memories are of finding the worst loo in the world, and of Maureen taking the heads off fleas. Huh - those were both at the same 'hotel', now that I think of it! Rob and I then hitched a ride to South Africa via Trade Winds (where I played hide and seek with a baby octopus!), Lake Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe (still Rhodesia). I finally headed back home in July.
I took the rest of the summer off up here in the country (it was hard to come back down from those 9 months away) and then found a job at McGill University's Law Faculty, as exec. secretary at one of the post-graduate law institutes. Was planning on staying there for at least 2 years while saving up for South America, but I ended up meeting and marrying Jade, an Aussie student at the Institute, and moving to Australia in September 1974. We lived in Melbourne for about a year and a half, both of us working, and doing a lot of exploring of Victoria whenever possible.
Then we moved back to Montreal, where Jade began working for ICAO, which is part of the UN, which meant that we were luckily sent back to Australia every 2 years to visit Jade's family, first of all in Queensland (north of Brisbane), then in Melbourne, and then again in Queensland (Gold Coast). In the meantime I became a Mum - we have 3 kids (30-1/2, 29 and 27): - Erin got married here last September - she and Rod (from Calgary) are living in Vancouver and have a newspaper distribution company but they're both really supposed to be artists, very good ones. - Brendan got married here in May to Malaika, from Nairobi - nice African music in the ceremony (I've got it on my MP3). They're working in Montreal but Mali wants to go into medicine and Bren's still working on his science degree and they want kids soon. Sounds impossible to me. - Andrew is working at FedEx, doing very well, and is the one I see the most - lives half way to Montreal. Is luckily very good at changing gallery boards and insulating basements.
Going back to when the kids were young, I worked a couple of days a week once they were in school (that allowed us to build our own house in the country), and also went back to horseback riding, jumping and then dressage. I returned to art too - took classes for years with the same teacher who taught all 3 kids, especially Erin.
Jade and I decided to split up at the very end of 1999 when he grabbed a job offer in Sydney. (We got along very well but had lost something over the years, neither of us knowing how to communicate properly.) We divorced a couple of years ago, I think, and he's remarried with someone who lived in Montreal, so he's had to move back to Montreal just when he was happy to find himself back in Australia. I think if you marry a Canadian, you usually have to live in Canada, although Bren and Mali may end up in Nairobi... (Andrew's my only hope for a nearby grandchild!)
Ever since Jade and I split up, I've been living where I've always wanted to live - in the house we built in the Laurentian mountains 1-1/2 hours from Montreal. I'm trying to be an artist, but at the moment I'm customer service manager for daughter Erin - I call her customers who've called in with complaints, among other things. I'm actually very good at it and the customers really like me!!! That was a surprise to both of us. It's keeping me afloat, so although I wish Erin would go back to her paints, I'm very glad to have this usually very pleasant job.
