Dr Roger Davidson (ON 1940), Archives volunteer celebrates his 92^nd birthday on Tuesday 18 August. 

Roger graduated from Newington in 1940 having started at the College in 1932. He was born in what is now Braeside when it was a Hospital because his father worked there as a doctor and he has lived and worked within 10 kms of Newington all his life. For some 30 years, he was the College’s honorary Doctor and has been recognised by the GPS for his extensive research into Schoolboy Rugby injuries he carried out over many years. He is a past member of the College Council, Founding Chairman of The 70 Club, ONU President in 1972 – 73 and a Newington Medallist. 

For several years, Roger has been managing our Archives Volunteers program four days a week. He and his team headed by College Archivist Mr David Roberts have been responsible for over 100,000 individual entries in the Positions and Achievements Database, spread over some 170 different categories. This information has been extracted from historical source materials such as The Newingtonian, Council Minutes, Headmasters’ files, report cards and any other school record that can be accessed through the Archives repository. This detailed work now enables a full history of every past student, teacher and Master to be accessed with a simple enquiry. It was this work that allowed the Year 9 History students to undertake their detailed study of the 111 Old Boys, Staff and Divinity students that Fell during the First World War.

To put this all in perspective, if a Year 12 boy from 2015 was to volunteer his services to Newington as long as Roger Davidson has, you would find that Old Boy still at his desk in 2090!

The work our volunteers do could never be done by paid staff, no budget is big enough to afford our volunteers if we had to pay them. They are our Living Treasures and Dr Roger Davidson is the doyen.

Please join me in saying Happy Birthday to Dr Roger Davidson. 2015 marks his 83rd year of service to Newington and the 75th anniversary of his graduation.

Mr Rod Bosman (ON 1978)
Director of Community and Development