Journal plea finds for Kirkley Hall college reunion

Jul 6 2009 by Karen Dent, The Journal

A FILM-MAKER'S quest to reunite classmates from more than 50 years ago is tantalisingly close to completion – after an appeal in Saturday's Journal uncovered two of the remaining four he had been unable to trace.

Another former student from the 1957-58 general agriculture course at Kirkley Hall college in Northumberland also emailed reunion organiser David Taylor, 69, from his home in Scotland at the weekend.

That has left the Emmy award-winning documentary maker and former Journal writer with just one person – Jenny Dodds – to find in order to have a full house. He said: “Thanks to my old paper – which I’ve always believed is read by the entire farming community in Northumberland – we’ve almost got the whole year together. We were a pretty fit and healthy crowd and we seem to have had good lives.

“I’ve now traced 30 of the 31 students in 1957-58.”

After reading an appeal in Saturday’s paper Mike Crozier and David Broom contacted Mr Taylor and will be attending the class reunion at the Northumberland College campus on July 12 and 13.

Mr Crozier, who moved from farming to local government in the 1960s, got in touch from Morpeth and Mr Broom, who worked as a butcher in Fenham, Scotswood and Dinnington, is still living in Newcastle.

Edward Dunn, who worked as an adviser with the Scottish Agricultural College in Orkney, Shetland, the Outer Hebrides and Morayshire, will also be travelling to the event from his home in Scotland after contacting Mr Taylor by email.