14
When we heard Ryan Georgiades (‘95), Nick Cole (‘95), Dan Dove (‘99) and Grant Georgiades (‘99) were all working together at family-owned insurance firm, The Plan Group, we caught up with them to find out how their time at Trinity led them to where they are now.
Ryan Georgiades
Nick Cole
What life skills did Trinity give you?
Were you all friends at school, I can see two of you are brothers?
Were there sports teams or societies that you were all involved in together?
Ryan: Nick and I were 4 years older than Grant and Dan, so our interaction at school with them was limited. But Nick and I shared the same group of friends.
Dan: Sport was key as you had diverse groups of friends through the different sports. Despite our diminutive size Grant and I played rugby together throughout our time at Trinity.
Dan: The expectation levels teachers placed on you meant exacting standards had to be kept. Also, sport plays a significant role in understanding that teamwork is needed to succeed.
Dan: Grant and I were close friends all the way from the 1st year when we met in Mr Judge’s class.
Grant: Seeing Dan swallowed up by future England prop Andrew Sheridan (who was 18 stone even then) in a 1st team game against Dulwich, is a favourite memory of mine. We also enjoyed playing in Trinity’s first-ever football team when it was introduced in around 1997.
Nick: Most importantly, the confidence to communicate with all levels in a workplace, the school really encouraged self-sufficiency and independent thinking. There was little handholding which is essential to get on (or it was) in a business environment.
How do you feel Trinity fostered your friendship?
Grant: Trinity enabled me to pursue a variety of interests and that helped make me a highly confident, sociable, and motivated individual. I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do in the future, but I felt ready to take whatever opportunity presented itself in my stride.
Grant: I had the honour of being Dan’s best man 7 years after leaving Trinity. What bonded you as a group? Ryan: We share the same outlook on life and sense of humour. Trinity filled us full of confidence, thanks to the fantastic education and access to tremendous facilities that we all benefitted from. It also achieved the difficult, but vitally important, balance of producing grounded individuals, despite the privileges we enjoyed.
Grant: There were so many activities be it drama or table tennis clubs, sports teams, or school trips that you always had an opportunity to interact and enjoy each other’s company. It also helped that Dan and I lived in the same area, so we often travelled to and from school together as well.
What challenges did you face once you left school and entered the big wide world?
