No. 187		The Old St Beghian
			January 2015

BILL DOVE,    The Newcastle Branch’s long-serving Secretary.
Bill was a pupil on Foundation North from 1957 until 1960 and left behind him a distinguished cricketing record. As a fourth-former he was the regular 1st X1 wicket-keeper and a member of a team that took many notable scalps.
On leaving school Bill embarked on a long and distinguished career in banking and financial services and settled in Morpeth, Northumberland, where Marjorie and he married and raised a family. A major road accident led to his having to take early retirement seventeen years ago. However, in spite of this, during the fifty-four years since leaving St Bees, Bill has avidly maintained his involvement in cricket at the highest level. He rose to become a level two umpire, standing in Premier League matches involving both Durham CCC and Northumberland CCC. He also became a level two assessor and tutor and is now the ECB county performance officer for both West and North Yorkshire.
Apart from cricket Bill is a talented and keen watercolour painter and carries out commissions and sells works at local art exhibitions. What little time he has left he devotes to gardening - his gardens are thoughtfully laid out and immaculately maintained. With his wife Marjorie now suffering health issues, he has decided to relocate to a bungalow in West Yorkshire where Marjorie and he will be close to a daughter. Bill’s most impressive record as having served as Secretary to the OSB North-East Branch for forty years is an achievement unlikely to be equalled. Both the Society and its N.E. Branch have jointly and tangibly recognised this remarkable achievement. As keen and loyal as ever, Bill is hoping to complete a half century in post and has taken no persuading to continue his work, albeit from a greater distance. George Robson (FN 57-64).