Hereunder excerpts from the obituary submitted by Rob van der Velde (Class of 1958):
Frank van der Velde sadly passed away after a short illness on 6 July 2025.
He is survived by his wife Nina, three sons and their wives and 12 Grandchildren.
Frank was born in East London during the Second World War….a time when all windows were blacked out to protect the city from passing enemy ships.
He was a Day Boy (Town House) at Pretoria Boys 1956 -1960 and an avid Old Boy thereafter.
He studied Electrical Engineering at Wits University and after qualifying worked for such organizations as Conlog Electrical, The Argus Group, Hill, Kaplan, Scott & Partners Engineers (now Gibb Engineering) in Cape Town and eventually establishing his own Private Electrical & Mechanical Consulting Practice with Hubert Moelans.
Frank was devoted to his family ……a beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother and uncle……always giving them his all, participating fully in their lives and always there to lend an ear and give a helping hand.
Frank was a friend to so many whose moving tributes attests to his greatness. Frank – more than a mere man, a mentor to so many fortunate people, a deep thinker and a great “doer”. Frank would often stop just to meet people and make them feel special by showing a keen interest in what they had to say whether they be children or adults.
He had a great love for life…especially food, wine, nature and hiking, cryptic crossword puzzles and cycling…..having completed 37 Argus Cycle Tours – with his final tour on the back of a tandem with his son Mark to celebrate his 80th birthday.
Frank entered politics first as member of the Cape Provisional Council, then as a Cape Town City Councillor and at the height of his unblemished and successful political career he was appointed first as Deputy Mayor under Gordon Oliver and then Mayor of Cape Town from 1991 – 1993.
Always ready to accept a challenge …. during his tenure as the Mayor, when officiating at the send-off for The Cape to Rio Yacht Race, his adventurous spirit came to light when one of the crew present challenged him to fill the gap of a crew member who had dropped out due to illness. Not hesitating Frank accepted the challenge, packed his bags and set sail for Rio.
Frank you have touched so many with so much of significance and whilst you will be sorely missed by so many your legacy has and will for ever be an inspiration to us all.
We celebrate your life Big Man ! – Rob van der Velde, Class of 1958.