VP’s story finally told
Former teachers’ book tells of school’s struggle to get to where it is today
DIGGING through a treasure trove of dusty boxes – and armed with their own intimate knowledge of the school – a pair of retired teachers from Victoria Park High have resurrected the past in the form of a book.
Both retired deputy principals, Dr Joan Clarke and Marintha du Preez, have tracked the school’s history to its roots in South End in the book With Courage in Heart.
The pair, who have a combined 80 years knowledge of the school, said the seed had been planted in their minds by school principal Michael Vermaak.
Du Preez said: “The headmaster, one day, asked us if we would please draw up a list of staff members who had been with the school for 10 years or more, and when we started that we discovered that there were lots of things that . . . people didn’t seem to remember anymore.
“We realised that for people who have been a part of Victoria Park High School for many years, the history of the school was something that every one of them should at least have,” Du Preez said.
Clarke explained that the school had originally been started in 1940 in South End.
She said: “We thought it would be a good idea to get it all down. Get all the beginnings of the school along with the real story of how and when it was actually founded.
“It was founded for the area of South End.
“It’s very closely linked with the history of that area as well and so we thought it would be great to compile everything because even us, when we came across some of the things we saw, we asked ourselves but why did some of these things pan out the way they did?
“Why did this happen and why did that happen and so on. We just got so emotional and interested in it,” Clarke said.
Sharing snippets of some of the events in the book, Du Preez shared what she considered unforgettable and emotional memories.
She said: “What people need to understand is that Victoria Park High School was not an easy one to get off the ground.
“Back then, the people in this area that wanted their kids to attend schools which made them eligible for university had to send their kids to Collegiate or Grey.
“Back then, going to university was something a lot of people only dreamt of.”
She said children from the South End and Walmer area often had to walk long distances to attend schools that prepared children for university entrance. For this reason, the community realised a school in the area was essential.
Clarke recalled another memory that stood out in her mind, when in the early 1990s black pupils were first admitted to the formerly whites only school.
“I was there on the day and I can tell you now that it was very moving,” Clarke said.
Vermaak said he hoped that today’s pupils would be taught about the school’s history and struggles it went through, “because I believe that to fully appreciate your future one has got to understand the past . . . The book tells and makes one understand the rich and complex history of the school”.
The official book launch of With Courage in Heart, will be held at the school’s clubhouse tonight.