A.O.S.A. 2006 ANNUAL REPORT

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My first recollection of Martyn Gaudie was on the Boys’ playground one lunchtime; it was my first term at Ayton, in the Autumn of 1937. There was a metal dustbin up against the schoolroom wall. Martyn was bowling to me with a tennis ball, and yours truly was trying to hit him for six, a thud, I missed and was promptly out.

Towards the end of the autumn term, we had an epidemic in the school. The San was full, so was all of ‘A’ dorm. It turned out, after several days, that I had peritonitis, quite serious in those days. My parents were living in Uxbridge, Middlesex, Herbert Dennis the headmaster informed them immediately and my mother came north to see me, during which time I had the experience of riding in the brand new Ayton ambulance to the then Carter Bequest Hospital. The point of this introduction to Martyn was his stepmother Ruth Gaudie befriended my mother at this time in Nunthorpe, where the Gaudies lived. Martyn was already a day scholar having started at Ayton I 1935.

Martyn was born in 1925 of Quaker parents, his mother Eva died the day of his arrival, his Aunt Louie a trained kindergarten teacher came to live with the family, occasionally Elsie, his father’s sister, took a turn. At the age of three and a half, he attended, along with the postman’s son, the Preparatory High School in Middlesbrough 1930-1933, Collingwood School, Linthorpe until 1935 before attending Ayton. His time at Ayton was short lived as he was transferred to Bootham Friends’ School in York, where he stayed until 1943. During which time he became a convinced Christian and Quaker. About this time, he gained entrance to Cambridge to study economics and registered as a conscientious objector. The country of course was still at war at this time, so Martyn was able to register with the Friends’ Ambulance Unit.

Whilst Martyn was awaiting his call up to the F.A.U., the tribunal gave him the opportunity to work on the land, thus his taste for the land was now in his blood! He ventured north to Northumberland in 1947 to 1950, then back to Cambridge again to gain an agriculture degree. Then he went onto Askam Bryan College at York to lecture. He was also a sports instructor until 1958, thus his thirst for cricket and football were met.

Following his vast experience to date, he took up his next post in Ghana. He was made assistant to the farm manager at the research station in Nungua for the University of Ghana Accra until 1962, finally returning to England to Rounton, Northallerton, until his partial retirement in 1993.

Returning to his private life! In 1964 Martyn married Marjorie Hall, the daughter of one of our late President of the Ayton Old Scholars, Stanley Hall (1962-63). His son Angus became a partner in the farm and is now in charge at Samfrey. Martyn’s roots had now returned to Ayton, and during this time, he has been representative on the school committee on two occasions and served on the OS committee several times. He is a regular attendee at OS reunions, has played cricket many times for us, when he had the time, and finally but not least, he is an enthusiastic member of Friends’ Meeting at Ayton, and is in fact an elder of the Meeting. His work for the Meeting is unparalleled and has to be admired.

Roy George (1939-45)

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