In Memoriam

We were saddened to learn of the recent passing of the following members of the Trinity community and we offer our condolences to their families and friends.

Graeme Caldwell (OTG 1955-67)

enjoyed a career as a dentist and is survived by his wife and children. He was a member of Arnold House and enjoyed basketball, cricket, football, squash, tennis and drama during his time at Trinity. He regularly kept in contact with the school and his friends through various events including the Gold Mitre Lunch.

Geoffrey Fookes (OTG 1963-70)

worked in real estate and is survived by his wife and two daughters. The Fookes family has a four-generation relationship with Trinity, going back to the early 1920s, that includes his father, Eric (OTG 1937), and uncle, Alan (OTG 1941), who still regularly attends Trinity functions.

Victor Grant (OTG 1942-46) passed away in 2020. At Trinity, he was involved with athletics, Cadets and was a St Paul’s Chorister. He received Colours for football and was a member of Merritt House.

William (Bill) Orford (OTG 1960-68)

passed away in early-January 2021. He spent most of his life in Kew and was a member of the Habitat Uniting Church, Canterbury, where his funeral was held. At school, he was a member of Henty House and enjoyed athletics and softball. Bill’s brother David (OTG 1963) also attended Trinity and maintains a strong interest in the school. A memorial to Bill, created by his niece, Lara, is available here: youtube.com/

watch?v=L8pqrNoATYE Mark Schedlich (OTG 1963-65)

was a boarder at Trinity, a member of Merritt House. He lived in Benalla and was a sheep farmer and wool classer. Mark passed away in January this year after a five-year battle with cancer.

Frederick Stewart (OTG 1947-53)

passed away in 2020 and is survived by his wife and three daughters. During his time at Trinity, he was involved with the school play and was a member of Roberts House.

Bruce Whitehead (OTG 1942-50)

was one of only a few students to be awarded Trinity School Colours in tennis, football, athletics, swimming and cricket. He was a Prefect, Captain of Roberts House, and has his name engraved on the Trumble Cricket Bat for scoring 100 runs in a cricket match.

Graeme Caldwell (third from left) with David Mansour, Ian Friend and David Langley in 2019 at a Tunga Society lunch

Bill Orford running for Trinity Grammar School Three generations of Trinity - Bruce, Craig and Finlay Whitehead in 2019

Bruce will be sadly missed at the Gold Mitre Lunch. He remained involved at Trinity and is pictured with his son Craig (OTG 1978) and his grandson Finlay (OTG 2020) at the Bulleen Playing Fields in 2019.

Marcus Ma (OTG 2019-21)

The Trinity Grammar community, especially the Junior School, was deeply saddened by the death of Year 2 student, Marcus Ma, in February after a long illness. Marcus was away from school for much of 2020, but was an enthusiastic participant in the Distance Learning program. He returned to school in Term 4, to the delight of his friends and teachers and spent many happy times back in the classroom and playing with his friends. Marcus was known as a loving and much-loved classmate and student. It was a great privilege for the school to host a service celebrating Marcus’ life in the Trinity Chapel on 11 February.

He is greatly missed and fondly remembered by the Trinity community.

Marcus Ma with Cecilia Fairlie, the Junior School Chaplain

Past Staff Members

It is sad to write about the passing of two of our longserving teachers.

David Laird (staff member 1974-

1991) passed away early this year. After arriving from Glasgow in Scotland in 1974, David started at Trinity as a senior Mathematics teacher and stayed for 18 years. He was also a tennis coach of great distinction and he was the Head of Arnold House for many years.

Peter Nicholls (staff member 1966-

1994) passed away in September 2020 at 81 years of age. Peter was the Head of Counselling, based in the Lower Robertson area. During his 29 years on staff, he provided great guidance to many hundreds of boys. Peter also coached (and played) tennis with great passion. He was kind, considerate and always helpful when the boys needed assistance.

Kevin Ridges (staff member 1962-

2014), who was Trinity’s longestserving staff member, passed away at the end of 2020. By the time he retired, Kevin was Head of Maintenance and had supported five headmasters, hundreds of staff members and thousands of students, all of whom could rely on his methodical approach, unflappable manner and intricate knowledge of the infrastructure of the school. Kevin was known for his loyalty and his innate generosity – he helped so many people, from staff members with flat tyres to a local resident who came to him annually seeking palm fronds for the Palm Sunday church service.

Kevin Ridges

Peter Nicholls

A valued member of the wider Trinity community, who left a significant imprint on the Kew campus, architect Peter

Crone passed away in January this year. Peter’s design of the Chapel of the Holy Trinity won a Victorian Architecture Medal in 1993, and his practice, Crone Ross Architects, worked on the refurbishment of many areas of the school. The Peter Crone Award in Design and Architecture is awarded at Presentation Night each year. More information about Peter’s work on the Chapel can be found here: issuu.com/trinitygrammar/docs/134442_trinity_grammarian_hr/16