Reunions held in 2007: Class of 1992

Date held: 23-25 November 2007

Kevin Adams, Hemanth Baboolal, Craig Birch, Duncan Carmichael, Gregory Cleveland, Shane Cullis, Lynette Duckworth, Alan Davidson, Patrick De Waal, Douglas Dumbrill, Shaunagh Emanuel, Bob Funnekotter, Kathryn Grammer, Dale Harrison, Diane Hawarden, Bruce Howard, Anthony Jackson, Lynette Jansen, Zareena Jedaar, Saadiq Kariem, Sandi Kuper, John Lazarus, Pippa Macdonald, Susie Marsh, Richard Matthis, Zainab Mohamed, Fazila Moolla, André Nadler, James Nuttall, Patrick Purcell, Bronwyn Sara, John Scadden, Guy Scott, David Shaefer, Sabine Scherzinger, Anthony Smith, Bool Smuts, James Stevens, Julien Trokis, Susan Warner, John Wilson

(Click on the image to see a large version.)

This was the first class reunion for our class and, only being 15 years after graduation, I was a bit apprehensive about the response. This was soon put to rest by the amazing turnout from people all around South Africa and the world. Classmates flew in from around the globe including New Zealand, Australia, USA, United Kingdom and Holland. Some came just for the weekend! This enthusiasm made the weekend unbelievable and a great time was had by all.

The registration was on the Friday afternoon and luckily we recognised most of our classmates! This was followed by a tour of Groote Schuur, the UCT Private Academic wing, the new Cardio-Thoracic unit and a sneak preview of the new Heart Transplant Museum. Our class was very privileged to be taken on the tour by Saadiq Kariem, our classmate who is now CEO of Groote Schuur Hospital. He gave us a unique insight into the challenges facing GSH and healthcare in South Africa.

A cocktail party was held that evening and it was great catching up with many of our old professors. Professor Solly Benatar addressed us about the changes that have occurred over the last 15 years and the challenges facing the university and hospital. The evening then continued for some, in the heart of Long Street, until the early hours of the morning. We were reminded of John Scadden's abilities as a dancer, had he not decided to do medicine, and Dave Schaeffer was mistaken a few times as an overweight George Clooney. Great fun was had by all!

Saturday morning, armed with sunglasses and cooldrinks, it was off to Robben Island on the ferry. Despite the howling South-Easter, there was no excessive nausea, and an interesting tour of this historic site was enjoyed by all. We returned to the Waterfront and had a pub lunch at the Paulaner Brauhaus. This was followed by a Springbok rugby test match victory against Wales, our first as world champions! (Sorry New Zealand classmates, had to put that in)!

The Gala Dinner was held that evening in the Smuts Hall dining room. Being back on upper campus brought back great memories to many of us of our early university days. The classmates were all dressed to kill and many observations were made as to how we had changed since varsity days. The general consensus was that the women had all improved and looked amazing! The same could not be said for the men, who were definitely balder, larger and greyer!

The atmosphere and food was great. Dr. Mike Wright was our guest speaker and gave an excellent, thought provoking talk about important aspects of our medical lives. The dancing continued until Dale Harrison's rubber legs could no longer move!

On Sunday, the families all met on a sweltering day at Kirstenbosch gardens and had an enjoyable picnic lunch while all the kids ran wild.

The weekend finally came to an end and I'm sure it was enjoyed immensely by all that attended. Our next reunion will only be in 2017 (25 years) and the consensus is that all those that attended this reunion will be back again, hopefully with others! Many thanks to my fellow organisers, Shaunagh Emanuel and Di Hawarden, but especially to Joan Tuff and UCT who did all the hard work!

Thanks once again to all those who travelled so far. It was your effort that made it all worthwhile! Hopefully see you all at the 25th !