The Master’s kind invitation to the College gardens for sundowners was blessed with a warm, sunny evening on 29 June. This was to celebrate a reunion of Univ’s Rhodes scholars. Alumni had retraced their steps to Oxford from around the globe to join in with the 120th anniversary of the Rhodes Scholarships, which lasted through the weekend.
This gathering was full of unexpected encounters. I met the daughter of the schoolmaster who had recommended I apply to Oxbridge, back in the 1970s. There was one of my neighbours from Helen’s Court in 1980, a German Rhodes scholar who, having worked as a diplomat in Colombia and South Africa, now sails a wooden fishing boat in the Baltic. There were journalists, authors, business leaders, academics, public health champions. Current students added to the excitement for me, with their accounts of life and learning in College in 2023. What a pleasure to discover that they too sometimes walk the streets of Oxford, or river banks, in quiet, foggy times just to bring themselves back to reality.
To meet, mingle and share energies and experiences was a privilege. It was not a flamboyancy of flamingos – although the Master’s cerise jacket was pretty scorching – it was gentle networking across generations and cultures. Friendships were rekindled, lives celebrated. This was one of the points in summer which I found all too brief, full of small things, that influenced our thinking, discussions and debates about the Rhodes Trust. Not only in Oxford but in the weeks since. This unique scholarship system is growing: the weekend was also the 20th anniversary of the Mandela Rhodes Foundation and the 5th anniversary of the Schmidt Science Fellows programme. These scholarships continue to educate and provide opportunities at a time when the world has increasingly varied needs. The Trust’s commemoration, the reunions in colleges shared and renewed our ubuntu, the essence of our interconnectedness, among an increasingly diverse community.
So our collective thanks to you, Master Amos, for convening and providing so generously for this reception and for reminding us of our shared anchors in Univ.
Colin Michie (1980, Medicine)
As part of celebrations for the 120th Anniversary of the Rhodes Scholarships, The Master, Baroness Amos, hosted a drinks reception in the Master’s Gardens on 29 June for Univ Rhodes Scholars past and present and their guests. As part of the Rhodes Anniversary celebrations, Univ Rhodes Scholars and their guests were invited to attend a hard hat tour of the Univ North site. Rhodes Scholars are an integral part of the Univ community, as well as part of the wider collegiate university, and we were delighted to be able to commemorate this special anniversary with them.
