19 October 2014 & 20 October 2014
The Class of 1974 enjoyed their 40 Year on Reunion at Pretoria Boys High School in October this year.
The traditional Friday visit to the school was the first time many members of the class of ’74 had been to the school since they matriculated 40 years ago. Naturally a fantastic time reminiscing and catching up was had by all!
Mr Patrick Stockwell did the bible reading and 1974 Head Boy Mark Marais delivered an inspiring speech to the school. Mark Marais went to UCT and obtained a BSc Civil Engineering degree and later obtained a BComm degree from UNISA. He is a professional engineer and is married with two children both of whom are at UCT. He has spent most of his life managing large multi-disciplinary engineering projects. He currently works for Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Africa, who is the major contractor for Medupi and Kusile Power Stations. Mark is the boiler fleet director and is responsible for the engineering, manufacturing and logistics for both power stations.
We have included an abridged version of his speech below:
Address to School Assembly on Friday 24 October 2014
Mr Reeler, teachers, pupils and especially the class of ’74 and your partners.
Like many of us I have made mistakes in my business career and in my personal life, and these mistakes have been added to my lessons learnt list. For me, one of the most important lessons learnt is to follow ones instincts or gut feel.
Invariably one is often faced with decision making, and one’s gut feel is to follow a particular course of action, but this is then superseded by rationalization and justification as to why that particular course of action should not be taken, as there is another possibility, which on face value seems to be more appealing, or less risky, or more fun, but at the same time there is a small little niggle, which is telling one what the correct decision is. Please, follow your instinct, but in so doing, apply sound judgment.
An important principle for me is loyalty and forgiveness. One must learn to forgive. Humans by nature will make mistakes, we all do, and it is easy to criticize, but please rather learn to forgive and be tolerant. Life is too short to carry grudges, and in turn one must also learn to accept forgiveness. Do not be suspicious or question forgiveness, rather accept it and appreciate it.
True loyalty is a very important attribute. It is so easy to be loyal when things are going well and to support a winning team. True loyalty is tested when the chips are down or when your team is going through a losing streak. This is when your support is most needed, and you need to stand up and be counted. This will happen often in your personal life and in your business career – be prepared to go the extra mile.
Gain as much knowledge as you can, and learn from your past mistakes, and mistakes made by others. Do not let history repeat itself, and apply sound judgment.
One man who achieved this was Nelson Mandela. He made many mistakes in his personal life, as well as in his political career, and he was not a whiz kid. But, he was extremely wise and loyal to his country. He followed his instincts, and knew what the right thing to do was. He had sound judgment and he did not follow greedy aspirations, as many of our other leaders have done. He taught us what true forgiveness is.
Applying all the principles I have been talking about, made him a great leader, and made me proud to be a South African. If only our current and future presidents could follow his example.
Organizing our 40 years on has made me realize how fortunate we are to be able to be here today for our reunion. Some of us have been faced with serious adversity, which in some cases has been overcome and we are able to be together today.
However, a few of our class mates were not able to join us today due to serious ill health, and some have sadly passed away. Spare a thought for those who would have liked to be here today, but due to unfortunate circumstances were not able to attend.
Mr Reeler, once we have settled our accounts for the cost of the reunion, the remaining money, which will be substantial, shall be donated to the school as a gift from the class of ’74. And on that note, I would like to say thank you to the school, and all of the best for the future.
– Mark Marais (1974 – SOL)
