Former Endowed School teacher Brenda Dunne is joining with former pupils to trek in the tiny country of Sikkim, Northern India, this month – hoping to catch sight of Kanchenjunga, the third highest peak in the world. The group all have some connection to the School – most from the days when it was Bridgnorth Grammar School. What’s What was contacted about the trip by former pupil and trekker Mike Collins, a seasoned Himalayan veteran whose book ‘A Few Steps Too Far’ has recently been published.
What’s What caught up with Mike, whose early memories of Bridgnorth are fascinating. “My parents started married life in Richard Baxter’s Cottage inSt. Leonard’s Close, before moving to Innage Gardens where I grew up. I would spend most of my summers nipping through the gap in the hedge straight onto the cricket pitch.” Cricket has been a lifetime pleasure, and Mike is still Vice President of Bridgnorth Cricket Club as were his father and grandfather before him.
One of Mike’s most vivid memories was when, as an 11 year old boy in 1942, he was pushed under a table in a cupboard as the Luftwaffe unloaded their bombs on Bridgnorth following a raid in Birmingham – creating the gap in Church Street which is now a garden of remembrance.
Mike’s interesting career in the Police Force is documented in his fascinating memoirs, his job taking him all over the world, including Sudan, Burma and many expeditions to the Himalayas – which is why he is especially keen to be part of this reunion trip with a ‘Bridgnorth Theme’ to it.
‘A Few Steps Too Far’ is published by Pearl PressISBN 978-0-956769725
www.afewstepstoofar.com
