Geoff Woodman of the matric class of 1962 passed away at his hometown, Benoni, in June, following a courageous fight against cancer.
As a schoolboy, he lived in Albert Street, Waterkloof. His wife, Jeanne, rightly recalled him as having had an amazing presence, was fun-loving and a force of life. His first love was for his family, and then in no particular order he loved aeroplanes, the bush, the sea and sport.
A good father and grandfather, he often joked with his family and without exception made time to interact with each and everyone, especially his grandchildren. And he never missed listening to his air traffic radio when Debbie (his daughter and senior SAA 1st officer on international flights) was flying.
Geoff married twice, first to Joy with whom he had two daughters, Hayley and Debbie; and then in 1982 to Jeanne and embraced her two children, Sean and Kim.
Said Jeanne at his Memorial: “I am so grateful for the 35 years we shared, you were an honourable man and a gentleman for whom I thank you. I was always touched by how you appreciated the things people did for you, no matter how small. That force of energy and life that was you will leave a huge gap in my heart.
“The wonderful memories of our time together will be cherished and held close to my heart forever, and I will find comfort now that you are resting in peace”.
Geoff and Jeanne never had a situation in their family about ‘your children and mine’, Jeanne related. “All our children and grandchildren were loved equally by us”. Kim remarked in her tribute: “Our dear Geoff and Grandpa, over the years you have given us so much laughter and fun. We have really enjoyed the special times we have had together, whether around a braai, pool table or boating at the dam”.
For many years the family had a little place at Bonamanzi near Bronkhorstspruit, Jeanne explained. “We spent most weekends boating and sailing there. And, of course, true to form, Geoff would arrange a game of bowls, cricket, or whatever. In fact, it was Geoff’s wish to have his ashes scattered there, which we have done”. Geoff’s love for the outdoors was arguably embedded in his membership of the 2nd Pretoria Brooklyn (56) Scout Troop in which he was extremely active and an avid camper. A
mong his fellow-travellers were John Abbott, John Cooper, Jonathan de Souza, Ian and Keith Ingram, Winston Kew, Peter Theron and Colin Waterston. Jeanne also related to Geoff’s passion for music which he shared with Hayley. “He would regularly blast it out at such volume with no thought to his or other’s ears.” This had clearly been a longstanding delight. As a schoolboy and scout he loved chatting about the latest on LM Radio or Springbok Radio’s ‘Top Hits’, ranging from Pat Boone to Elvis Presley, Little Richard, The Beatles, The Shadows and alike. In fact, he was also particularly well-versed about his favourite presenters such as Darryl Jooste, John Berks, Gary Edwards and Robin Alexander. At one stage he was riveted by Johannes ‘Spokes’ Mashiyane, one of the greatest pennywhistle artists to grace the South African Kwela music scene. Mashiyane was a resident of ‘Vlakfontein’ (Mamelodi) in the late 1950s and caught the imagination of thousands of Pretoria teenagers.
Geoff was especially amused by ‘Spokes’ name having been derived from the bicycle wheel spokes from which he fashioned his first pennywhistle. Naturally, Geoff loved most sports, Jeanne said. “His favourite being rugby, cricket, golf, tennis and British football. The TVs were always on one or more sports channels when he was at home, and, of course, he would be very vocal with praise or disgust”.
He is perhaps best remembered by most School mates as having been an extremely tenacious and talented sportsman who excelled at cricket, rugby, tennis and athletics. He also played Nuffield Cricket and represented the Far Northern (Transvaal) Cricket XI. In his later years he impressed at bowls and snooker respectively. He partnered his captain, Tom Brown, at centre in the School’s 1st Rugby XV in 1962, which included a trip to the then Rhodesia. “He was a tremendous factor in any side, in spite of a smaller build than many of his opposite numbers”, recounted Tom. “Much of the Mannetjies Roux mould – he was speedy over 60 metres, tough, passed well, kicked well, caught well, and in fact very seldom dropped a pass. “As a team mate he was exemplary – loyal, well-liked, wellbehaved, joined in the fun, was always willing to lend a hand, and in fact nothing was ever too much for him to do”. First team cricket captain, Donald Jones, endorsed Tom’s views. “A good all-rounder, very much a team player, and a joy to have around. In fact, he generally remained positive, no matter how adverse the situation. “Of course, there were the odd exceptions. At Nuffield in Cape Town, for instance, he dropped a catch off Mike Proctor who went on to a high score along with Barry Richards. It wasn’t the end of the world though and in the end we drew the match. “However, so perturbed was Geoff that his father (Swanee) phoned my father to apologise. My father replied that it was one of those things and ought to be allowed to pass. Mr Woodman was very polite about it. Geoff, however, remained extremely remorseful”. Mr Woodman was very supportive of Geoff, Donald recalled, attending most important matches and he was never invasive. The Woodman’s grandson, Josh Birkholtz, has been accepted as a pupil at Boys’ High from next year, according to Jeanne. “Geoff would have been so proud and over the moon”. After school Geoff was conscripted to the SA Navy, which he loved, and became extremely partial to the sea.
He often joked that he accepted a ‘second class engine mechanic position’ to get on to a frigate, but in effect that meant shovelling coal. He then joined the SA Perm, followed by the Natal Building Society (NBS). At the latter he was promoted Branch Manager in the former Pietersburg. In due course he re-joined the Perm and was transferred to Benoni to manage its branch there. This was followed by a stint at Syfrets, and Geoff ended his official career in Nedbank’s Property Finance Division. After early retirement, he managed the K90 Shopping Centre in Boksburg. During his stay there he placed the Centre on the map; was held in high esteem by his colleagues and tenants; nothing missed his eye; and he ran the Centre as if it was his own. Diagnosed with prostate cancer, Geoff’s last years were pretty trying, but he held up with enormous courage. Radiation was probably the cause that he was later diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia. “Geoff hardly ever complained and had all his treatments while taking no time off work”, said Jeanne. “His whole outlook and attitude changed, he knew that his time was short, and he made amends where needed and lived his life to the fullest while he could.
After his retirement he played bowls two to three times a week until about four months before he passed away”.
LEON KOK