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DAVID  ANTHONY REEVE (G55-57) , of Ixworth, Suffolk, died on March 5th 2024. The Funeral took place at St Mary’s Church in Ixworth on Thursday 21st March and was followed by drinks afterwards at the Pykerrel pub.

David had a rich and varied life, despite living and working in the same area all his life, something that is rare nowadays. David was born on 9th February 1941 at Dover Farm House in Ixworth. He grew up on the family farm in Ixworth, together with sister, Janet, but at an early age went to boarding school at Moreton Hall in Bury St Edmunds. He didn’t particularly enjoy Moreton Hall but from there he progressed to board at Eversley School in Southwold, and so began a life-long affection with the Suffolk seaside town, only emulated by his connection with Ixworth. One of dad’s vivid childhood memories was seeing the 1953 east coast floods rise to within feet of his boarding house. He then attended Framlingham College, then on to Shuttleworth College in Bedfordshire before coming back to Ixworth to work on the farm. David had great fondness for his days at both Framlingham and Shuttleworth, going fairly regularly to reunions over the next half century.

David came back to the farm, working with father, George. Shortly after marrying Jeannie, David and his young family moved into a house in Ixworth which David had been renovating and restoring. It is the oldest house in Ixworth, and would remain their home for over 50 years. Apart from Boarding Schools, Shuttleworth College, and more recently Fornham House Care Home, David lived his entire life in Ixworth.

Outside work on the farm, David invested himself in various aspects of local village and farming life, apart from YFC, he was Churchwarden and on the Church Council of the village church for many years, a Parish Councillor, and one time, Chair. There was also the National Farmers Union and local Conservative Association of which he was an active member.

David and his wife Jeannie had 2 children, James and Christopher, and fostered their nephew, * Edward, following David’s sister, Janet, passing away when he was young. They had 7 grandchildren.

Unfortunately David spent his final few years following the pandemic with declining health, mainly due to dementia. He passed away at Fornham Care Home, near Bury St Edmunds aged 83.

*Contributed by Ed Groenhart

KEITH MAUNDER (K58-62) passed away on 27 January 2024 at the age of 79.  His funeral took place at Henstead Pavilion, The Old Rectory, Hulver Road, Beccles, on 15 March 2024. OFs present were Mike Hills (G 60-63), Keith’s cousin, and Andrew Lillie (K57-65).

On leaving school Keith qualified as a Chartered Surveyor, and worked in London with Chesterton’s. In 1980 he was found to be suffering from a rare disorder – Guillain Barre syndrome, in which the body’s immune system attacks the nerves.  A lengthy stay in Charing Cross hospital, followed by intensive physiotherapy, resulted in Keith making a complete recovery. Later, in 1982, he moved to the West Country to manage the privately-owned Harbour and Dock Company in Porthleven. He moved back to Suffolk in 1990, working for Countrywide (property surveyors) and retired fully in 2009. Keith lived with his second wife, Liz, in Dunwich, and while there, was an active member of the Dunwich Town Trust, a charity formed to help and support local individuals in need of assistance.

During retirement Keith and his wife travelled extensively – Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Bulgaria and Iceland, to name but a few.  Photography was one of his main hobbies, and these trips helped him to enjoy this to the full.

He is survived by his wife, Liz, former wife Jennie, daughter Katie, and five grand-children.

Contributed by Andrew Lillie

EDWARD FOX (G46-52) passed away on February 1^st 2024, aged 88. After leaving the College, Ted went to Writtle, where he excelled and was awarded a Gold Medal. In 1955 he started three years of National Service in both Cyprus and the Suez, gaining commission to Lieutenant in the third year. (RASC)

On his return to Hemingstone, he built up a very impressive pig breeding business, together with the farm at Barham.

He married Jane in 1963 and they had three children, Marianne, William and Richard. William and Richard are both OFs, as indeed. are Ted’s former brothers-in-law, Clive Cooksey (K53-61) and George Gooderham (K45-53). Indeed, it was through them that he met Jane.

Amongst other things, Ted was an enthusiastic supporter of rugby, on and off the field, for many years.

In later years it was necessary to diversify and Ted built a successful Kennel and Cattery business, alongside his second wife Mary.

He never really ‘retired’, but continued to manage the farm until his death, in spite of some health setbacks, particularly in his later years.

Sarah and I went to a get-together at the farm on Saturday, to celebrate his life, and this was well attended by friends and family, both old and new. Sadly, his long-standing friend, John Graham, was unable to attend, as he was not well enough. This was a shame as he was going to give the eulogy which would have been interesting. He and Ted had been close friends for 77 years!

Contributed by Clive

The Rt Revd GEORGE EDWARD DAVID PYTCHES died on 21 November 2023, aged 92. David Pytches, founder of the New Wine network, was one of the Church of England’s leading pioneers of Charismatic renewal and church-planting.

Born in Suffolk in 1931, the ninth of ten children, Pytches was part of a clerical dynasty. His father was an Evangelical clergyman, his mother was the daughter of a clergyman, and two of his brothers were later ordained. His great-uncle was the former Bishop of Calcutta and Dean of Durham James Welldon. After Framlingham College and National Service in the army, Pytches trained at Tyndale Hall, Bristol, and was ordained deacon in 1955 to a curacy at St Ebbe’s, Oxford, a conservative Evangelical parish.

In 1959, Pytches and his wife, Mary, sailed for Chile with the South American Missionary Society (SAMS) to pioneer Anglican church-planting in Valparaíso. There, he made two discoveries that profoundly shaped his future ministry. First, he embraced missional flexibility even when it disrupted traditional Anglican ecclesiology.

Next, he embraced the gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as miraculous healings, which Pytches previously believed to have died out with the apostles, but which were common among South American Pentecostals in the 1960s. Mary began to pray in tongues, after seeking to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Her husband was initially alarmed, but was soon persuaded to follow suit. In his autobiography, Living at the Edge (2002), he recalled: “It’s quite a shock to suddenly wake up in bed with a Charismatic! I had been so opposed to all this for so long, and a loyal Bible-loving, card-carrying evangelical all my life.”

In 1970, aged just 39, Pytches was consecrated bishop for the suffragan see of Valparaíso. Three years later, Archbishop Michael Ramsey, as Metropolitan of the Southern Cone, promoted Pytches to be Bishop of Chile, Bolivia and Peru, a vast diocese covering 1.2 million square miles, 24 times the size of England.

It was a period of rapid church growth but deep political crisis, as Chile descended into paramilitary violence and civil unrest. During this time, the Pytches family feared for their lives. The Marxist government of Salvador Allende was toppled in September 1973 in a coup by General Augusto Pinochet, placing the churches in an invidious position. The politics were difficult to navigate, and Pytches found himself criticised on all sides.

In 1977, Pytches swapped the poverty of Chile for the leafy lanes of Hertfordshire, as Vicar of St Andrew’s, Chorleywood. There, he sought to embed lessons from South American Anglicanism into the Church of England. One of Pytches’s friends and fellow Chilean church-planters, Eddie Gibbs, introduced him to John Wimber, the Vineyard evangelist and former rock musician. Wimber’s first visit to Chorleywood resulted in “holy chaos” and was transformative for the congregation. Pytches became one of Wimbers’s chief promoters in England. His book Come, Holy Spirit: Learning how to minister in power (1985) repackaged Wimber’s teaching for a wider audience. It was translated into Spanish, German, Swedish, Finnish, Arabic, Chinese, and Korean.

Next, Wimber introduced Pytches in 1988 to the so-called “Kansas City Prophets”, a group who claimed dramatic encounters with God and special prophetic knowledge. Pytches visited them in Missouri, prior to their bursting upon the scene in England, and wrote up the story as Some Said It Thundered (1990). Wimber also encouraged Pytches to expand his teaching ministry and contributed £3000 to the Kingdom Power Trust, which distributed Charismatic cassette tapes. In 1989, it launched New Wine, a Charismatic jamboree which soon grew into a massive annual event and gave birth to a vibrant renewal network. New Wine was pioneered by Pytches until 2001 and continues to attract thousands of people each year across numerous denominations.

Another of Pytches’s lifelong passions was church-planting. He advocated the formation of Charismatic congregations across parish boundaries, linking congregations outside parish structures, to the chagrin of Archbishop George Carey. It was a forerunner of fresh expressions of English Anglicanism.

Pytches retired from St Andrew’s, Chorleywood, in 1996, but continued his worldwide peripatetic ministry. He was unafraid of controversy and, in 2000, participated in the consecration in Singapore of two bishops for the Anglican Mission in America, a conservative breakaway from the US Episcopal Church.

He is survived by Mary, to whom he was married for 65 years, their four daughters, and their families.

Dr JOHN GRAHAM RANKIN (K47-56) John was taken ill on Thursday 7^th December 2023, and passed away the following day. Despite having had Covid in early September, and a fall which resulted in a broken wrist, he had been in seemingly good health. He will be hugely missed, not only by his OF friends, but by the whole local community in Dovercourt, where John had been a doctor for most of his professional life.

It is not easy to write the Obituary of someone whose friendship had been enjoyed and valued for some 75 years. Our years in Kerrison were soon followed by a fortnight spent together in Paris, learning a bit about the world beyond Framlingham. The roots of that long friendship run deep. So this is an obituary not easy to write, but a privilege nevertheless, to try to sum up a life of so many parts, with Framlingham so often at the heart of them. John had been one of the very first boys to attend Brandeston in 1948. He was upset not to be able to attend the 75^th birthday celebrations.

To take the Framlingham perspective first: John was a loyal supporter of the Society. He organised the Essex Supper for several years, calling on both his love of cricket and his links with Essex County Cricket Club to organise some of those Suppers at the County Cricket Ground in Chelmsford. John, together with his much missed, late wife, Angela, also attended many other OF occasions. John’s loyalty to the Society led to his being elected Vice President.

His OF activities were rooted in his time at the College, where he is remembered as excelling at cricket and table-tennis in particular. Of particular note is the fact that he and his great friend, Norman Mayhew, played in the same cricket team during all eight of their years at the College. John went on to become a member of the MCC, and President of Dovercourt and Harwich Cricket Club. A yearly visit to Lords with John to see a Test Match had been, for me, a highlight of many a recent year. John was still playing table tennis, and still capable of beating all-comers. Another anecdote worth mentioning comes from On an Eminence, and another great friend, Chris Sneath:

Chris Sneath and Dr John Rankin (Kerrison 1947-56) remember an incident, when the firing of a Verey pistol on a CCF Corps day mysteriously led to a fire in a haystack. After fire engines had dealt with this a local police constable entered the dining hall (unannounced and in instant silence) demanding to know who the culprits were. However, the resourceful Sneath and Rankin were able to persuade him that the stack fire must have been caused by internal combustion!”

John would be the first to admit that academics did not come easily to him. He had to work hard to achieve the qualifications needed to go on to study Medicine at St Georges Hospital, London. That aspiration was not one readily endorsed by his teachers. But John persevered, showing that human qualities and empathy are perhaps even more important than formal qualifications as criteria for assessing the success of a career dedicated to medicine, and General Practice in particular.

John was born in Colchester, close to Layer Road, the old football ground, and that explains his lifelong support of “the U’s”. His father was away fighting in North Africa in the early years of infancy. After Brandeston, Framlingham, and medical training, he enlisted with the RAMC, became Captain Rankin, and spent time with the troops in Borneo.

On return home, he met his wife-to-be, Angela, while playing mixed hockey, and their marriage was blessed with two children, Marcus and Abi(gail), both of whom went on to give John those grandchildren who came to mean so much to him in later life.

John’s funeral was held on Friday 12th January at All Saints Church, Dovercourt. A packed church heard tributes from his son, Marcus, son-in-law Gary (Squires) and grandson, Harry. Around a dozen OFs were present, alongside former colleagues, and what seemed like half of the population of Dovercourt. John represented those old-fashioned values which put a doctor at the heart of a community, living in their midst, knowing them as friends as well as patients. In recent times he had come to know Gwen, the elder sister of another OF, Roy Farman (K47-55), who died in New Zealand a year ago. Margaret and Andrew Wright had suggested to John that singing was a good way of filling a post-bereavement void. So John joined the local choir, Harwich Sing, and met Gwen, and their latter-day friendship came to light up the lives of them both. John – whether or not he was good singer – must have made an immediate impact. Some 50/60 members of that choir came along to the funeral to give John a rousing send-off. The final musical accolade, provided by a community that loved him well.

That community perspective is summed up by a lady we sat next to at the funeral, Ann Duggan, whose tribute included: “a brilliant GP who spent more than 40 years caring for his many patients.” “I met Dr Rankin in 1972 when he moved to Dovercourt.  As his patient and later good friend, I saw first-hand how caring he was to his patients and the staff working with him.” “John was patient-centred, good-humoured, consistent in his manner, generous with his time and always approachable.  He always treated his patients with kindness, compassion and integrity.  It is not an understatement to say he was loved by everyone.” “He was a brilliant father and husband.” He was involved in our community, with, to name just a few: PTA, U3A, Sports clubs – and waswell known by everyone.””A life well lived by a gentle and lovely man.”

In an age when one hears so much sneering about the privileges and advantages of attending independent schools, John was the epitome of kind and gentle service to others, and an example of the very best selfless values that our independent schools can inculcate.

Contributed by Norman Porter.

BARRY LORKIN (S54-57) died on 4^th December 2023.  He was a great servant of OFGS and was for around 20 years OFGS Secretary. He was also a past President of the Society from 1995-97.

His good friend and fellow golfer, Robin Anderton writes:

Barry Lorkin was a late entry to the 1954 intake, arriving in January 1955. He was a year older but soon became one of us. He was a keen rugby player and good golfer, playing off 8 whilst still at school. He continued those two games after leaving, and from one look at his shins you could tell he was a hooker! We both worked in London, and we used to meet up at lunchtime in Simpsons in Cornhill, fairly often. He was in the Discount market, so was handily placed, and it was over a pint that he persuaded me to join the OF Golf society in the early 1980’s. He was heavily involved in the OF society as well as the golf. Section. He took over as OF Golf secretary from Michael Powesland and then seemed to be running it for ever. Barry played in nearly all the subsequent meetings, as well as representing Framlingham in the Halford Hewitt and later in the Cyril Grey, for which you had to be over 50! He was a steady player,  always consistent, though he never mastered the shortest club.

Barry is survived by Wendy, his wife of over 50 years and his two sons , Simon who lives in France with his family, and Nicholas  He was a great mate!

His brother Colin (S55-59) said “We have just returned from Wimborne in Dorset where, sadly, Bruce died on Friday evening 8th December aged 89.  He had been suffering poor health ever since he caught Covid in January 2020 in Mougins near Nice where he had been living for a number of years.  Bruce’s wife, Harriett is still going strong.  They came back to England about eighteen months ago to be close to two of the children.”

Some years ago Bruce had a chance meeting with distinguished OF Bill Goldfinch (26-32) at Old Sarum Flying Club. Bruce had spent many years as a Cathay Pacific pilot after being in the Royal Canadian Air Force and when he retired he restored a Tiger Moth and finished it in the Framlingham colours of chocolate and blue. This was spotted by Bill at the airfield and the pair became firm friends in the seven years before Bill died.

Bruce went on to say “I spent my career in aviation and on my retirement restored a Tiger Moth and finished it with light blue wings, chocolate brown fuselage with white registration lettering. I considered registering it as G-FRAM and flying it over the school on the Millennium, however, I missed the date to complete the restoration and I subsequently registered it as G-EMSY, my daughter’s pet name.  Shortly after the completion of the rebuild, I moved the aircraft to Old Sarum near Salisbury and one day this elderly gentleman approached me in the hangar and said “I believe you own this lovely aeroplane and I am intrigued whether you had any particular reason for choosing chocolate and light blue as a colour scheme?” When I told him they were my old school colours he replied “Not by any chance, Framlingham?” On confirming that they were, he replied “How wonderful, I also went to Framlingham”.  We spent many hours reminiscing about Framlingham, our service careers, aviation and of course Colditz. His attitude to the time that he spent in Colditz was one of privileged confinement! He loved the castle and said his fellow prisoners were the most marvellous collection of intelligent and inspiring men from throughout the Commonwealth and the USA. He was also quite fair to his captors. Bill was a charming, unassuming, delightful man. He died in his sleep, fit and well to the last.”

COLIN HUGH RIGBY (R43-45) passed away on 27^th March 2021 after a short period of ill health. The news was passed on to us by his daughter.

Colin was born in Norwich in 1929 and had a relatively normal childhood with his family until his early teenage years when he lost his dad to meningitis. As he put it himself, he graduated early as a teenager and was sent to Framlingham to ‘put him through the mill’. It worked, as he left with 6 credits. He tried some chemistry, mixing elements and bomb debris to make fireworks, which didn’t work; but success came with discoveries at the local munition store which resulted in an excellent rocket. He was inspired by electricity and took an apprenticeship at Laurence, Scott & Electromotors (LS&E) and qualified as an electrical engineer. Weekends were filled with frequenting local dance halls and riding pre-war motorcycles. He went on to spend 5 years in the merchant navy working on Elder Dempster Lines and Canadian Pacific Empress Liners; seeing the world before returning to Norwich to LS& E and meeting Diana, whom he married in 1960.

He briefly moved to Commercial Union, and when he was overlooked for promotion, he switched to Lloyds Register of Shipping, which he always said was the best move in his life! The family grew to 4 children and having undertaken an intense language course, they were sent to Italy where he worked in the Milan office, first living in an apartment in Milan, then moving to the countryside to a rambling old house. With a caravan as a holiday home the family spent weeks away at the Italian lakes or touring the major cities, and even up to the Alps in the caravan for skiing.

The cycle was broken when Lloyds needed a surveyor to start with immediate effect in Iran, working, amongst other things on the gas pipeline running from the Caspian Sea, through Iran. This was a temporary move for the family, and they were soon back in Italy but for a short time as he was sent to South Korea where he oversaw the building of 11 ships for the Nigerian National Shipping line in what was the biggest shipyard in the world in Ulsan.

Colin was moved back to the UK when Diana was found to have a malignant melanoma. It was back to East Anglia, where Colin worked in the Lowestoft office, and Diana received treatment successful treatment for her cancer. The work was varied and amongst his list of jobs was offshore work on North Sea Gas platforms.

As a man of faith it was no surprise to the family when he decided to take early retirement and go abroad with Diana to help others. Their first venture was on a boat to help Vietnamese boat people, however the boat never got further than the Mediterranean! But it was all good experience, Diana had been a nurse and she took a course in Tropical Medicine at Liverpool University, which was a must for their next venture. They worked for 5 years in a small mission caring for orphans in Mozambique. The mission had endless work for an electrical surveyor who could turn his hand to anything, and Diana busied herself running clinics. Word moves fast when there is health professional in town. They moved to Uganda and attempted to set up clinics, but they were fraught with bureaucracy. There was another stint back in the UK due to ill health, and they were then off to Tanzania. After 3 years there they retired and moved to be halfway between 2 of their children. They spent time travelling, visiting family, one of whom lived in the Alps. Colin always insisted in fitting in  a ski trip in but the family got increasingly concerned and he gave up at the age of 84! They moved to West Bridgford in Nottingham about 8 years ago, to be near one of his sons, and found an assisted living apartment, beside the river Trent. Always the fixer, he set about modifying furniture and working out how to make the most of cheaper off-peak electricity to heat the apartment. He advised all the other residents and produced instructions on how this could be done. Even just a few days after having a pacemaker fitted at age 91, he was down in the laundry room doing the weekly wash and using the time to discuss plans for the next residents meeting!

Since he died during the restrictions of the pandemic there were only 30 people at the cremation and the celebration of his life at St Giles church in West Bridgford. However as his son in law was adept at streaming services from his church, he set about doing a live stream on Facebook for those who were not allowed to attend.