At the AGM of the OA Club on 21st November 2020, Mark Cotton (Graham 1991) announced that due to work commitments he would not be available for re-election as Vice-President of the OA Club. The 2020 OA President, Myles Ruck (Armstrong 1972) thanked Mark for the enormous effort and commitment he has put into the OA Club.
Mark took up the reins as Vice President of the OA Club in 2015 and immediately set about trying to make the Club more relevant to the needs of especially its younger members. An important part of this vision is trying to connect OAs to College and each other outside of just their College Reunion weekends. OA Connect, the online app linking OAs across the world, is one outcome of this vision. A further initiative is the holding of functions for young OAs at university at Rhodes, Stellenbosch and UCT. An additional important step was the amendment of the Constitution of the Club in 2019 to allow OAs who do not live in the former Albany District to be members of the General Committee. An immediate result of this change was the appointment of the Chairmen of the Western Cape and Gauteng branches to the General Committee. At the 2020 AGM the Constitution was again amended to allow the Vice President to live outside the former Albany District. The Andrean community is greatly indebted to Mark for his contribution as Vice President. A more passionate and committed OA you will not find anywhere.
At the AGM Gavin Keeton (Graham 1976) was elected Vice President pending the appointment of an appropriate replacement for Mark. Gavin stressed that his appointment was interim as it is important the Club find someone younger to fill the position. He noted that the Club needs both younger and more diverse members to serve on the General Committee so that it can become more reflective of the whole Andrean Community. The amendments to the Constitution in 2019 and 2020 had been made precisely to facilitate this process.
A call was made for nominations and for OAs to step forward and volunteer to serve as Vice President and on the General Committee. It was agreed the General Committee would appoint Mark’s replacement once a suitable candidate had been found.
After deliberation of the nominations received, the OA Club General Committee is delighted to announce that Mila Mafanya (Espin 1999) has accepted the position as the OA Club Vice President. Mila attended St Andrew’s Prep in Griffin House from 1990-1994 before advancing to St Andrew’s College in Espin House from 1995-1999. He was the inaugural recipient of the Harry Birrell Scholarship during his time at St Andrew’s College. He currently serves as the secretary of the Old Andrean Club’s Western Cape Branch. Mila looks forward to taking up the role and will be a huge asset to the OA Club. Please click here for Mila’s resume.