We love taking a trip down memory lane and welcoming back alumni. And so it was in late September when we were treated to a visit by 2021 Distinguished Alumni Award Winner Gonzalo Perez del Castillo and fellow alumnus David Angliss.
The pair first met at Robb College in the late 1960s and have remained firm friends, despite their careers taking them to all corners of the globe.
Gonzalo (better known as Pancho, after the Mexican tennis player of the time) graduated with a Bachelor of Rural Science degree in 1969 and has worked tirelessly to improve the lives of the disadvantaged through his significant contributions to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in South America. During a prestigious 23-year United Nations career, he worked as a senior officer in war-torn countries and under a number of repressive regimes. Later, as a senior consultant to the UN, he supported the recovery of Eastern European nations after decades of conflict, and he’s been responsible for countless successful development programs aimed at alleviating poverty and fostering social and economic prosperity in Third World countries.
David also graduated with a Bachelor of Rural Science, in 1971, and went on to complete a Master of Economics degree at UNE in 1975. He has been actively involved in the IT sector since the early 1990s and has also been involved in commercial property and Third World agriculture.
After meeting with Interim Vice-Chancellor Professor Simon Evans and Chancellor James Harris, the two alumni enjoyed a tour of UNE Sport, today’s Robb College, Trevenna, the Natural History Museum, Centre for Animal Research and Teaching, and the Agricultural Education building. They also met with senior staff from Environmental and Rural Science and shared lunch at the Booloominbah Café.
From the Trevenna lawns, the pair admired Lake Zot and recalled how, when it was considerably smaller in the 1960s, it was the site of a fierce contest. Tug-o-war teams would assemble on the opposing banks, the heft of the winning team pulling the losers into water.
David also recalled the keen eye of former Robb Master Ben Meredith, an admirer of a particular abstract painting that hung in the college. A student, eager to test Ben’s attention to detail, made a tiny alteration to the painting. That evening at dinner, Ben stood and said to the college denizens, “Whoever put the white dot on the painting come and see me”.
The son of a diplomat, Gonzalo arrived in Australia from Uruguay at the age of 16 with no English, but soon found a sense of belonging. He was an enthusiastic soccer player and eligible bachelor candidate, and gave many a memorable performance in the end-of-year theatrical reviews. So entrenched was his nickname Pancho that he had to visit the enrolment office to ensure that his graduation documents carried the correct name. And when “Gonzalo Francisco Perez del Castillo” was read out at his graduation ceremony, the assembled crowd was confused as to who that was.
Today, he is the President of the Uruguayan Council for Foreign Affairs and also a writer, and he donated a copy of his two latest novels (in Spanish) to the UNE Library.
Thank you Pancho and David for making the time to visit and regaling us with a few of your UNE stories. We are very proud of your achievements.
