Friends,

I have now been asked to verify the dates of the re-union in Ooty by several people, So I am again attaching a copy of a letter sent out by Andy in December with the propsed list of events on it and the dates of the re-union. I ask that you read it carefully as it talks about arriving a few days early to help get your "hill legs" and then has a list of places we might like to visit etc as a group.......

I have also been in contact with the School Alumni Secretary on a very frequent basis over the last couple of weeks. He, ( Bill Tarter) has been extremely helpful, welcoming, and interested in our plans. He is going to look at places for us to stay and get some prices for us as well. These i will forward on as soon as i get them.

The School will be in the middle of a "drama Week" when we are there so it will be very busy, but we are invited to go and take a look and may, if we want, to take part in one school assembly. HOWEVER hebron has decided that they are going to be sponsoring an Alumni re-union every December from now on, this year being the first one. With this in mind, they have decided that they cannot sponsor us. What this means is negligable really, just that we will not be able to havd as much time or freedom to some of the Staff and Students and open discussion times with them as other groups would have had..... but we can still visit and enjoy the re-union and have a guided tour of the school etc.

In talking with Bill, the Alumni Secretary ( which is now a full time position ) he has informed me that many things in India have changed......so if you have not been there in a while let me list a few things:

Money.......   you no longer need to carry traveller's cheques or get receipts for foreign money that you bring into the country to help exchange rupees back to your currency when you leave. ATM's ( automatic Teller machines....bank machines ) are all over the country and will allow you to remove money ( with your bank card ) directly from your own account in your home country !

Travel and Hotel expenses can now be paid for in Indian rupees even by foreigners or with Visa or Instant Debit.

Internet access is readily available from many hotels and there are many Internet Cafe's where you can either use their machines to send messages back and forth to family and friends, or you can plug your own laptop in ( and make sure you have a virus program ! ) and connect to the outside world for a small number of Rupees.

meals are still resonable, with a good meal at a place like Shintow's for four being about U.S. $ 2.  ( Bill suggests that as a group we book their big room, which has not changed at all since the earliest days and will bring back many memories ) Other hotels and restaurants may be cheaper...and of course you can always find more expensive if you want !

As I have said, I have asked Bill for prices and contact info for places of accomodation......  he is going to collect that and send it on to me. I will forward when i get it. He still recommends places like Brooklands and says that he and his wife stayed there for about ten days, had two meals a day as well and the entire cost was about $100.  He said that Holiday Inn is quite a bit more expensive.....  but prices etc will follow.

Coimbatore and Bangalore are now BOTH International Airports and so you can fly into either of these depending on your airline. Bill and his wife went to Bangalore and took a taxi up the hill to Ooty from there as it was cheaper . 

I think that is all I have to report at this time..... I have got a few more names of people who will be attending the re-union in October......I will put a list of who is and who is not attending onto my website and will keep that updated.

www.tropicalnewfoundland.com/Hebronfirst.htm

PLEASE if your plans change in any way can you make sure you let me know as early as possible.

Thanks............

Below please find the agenda for the re-union as it currently stands.

David T.

Holyrood, Newfoundland,

Canada.

Hebron "Leavers’ Class of 1981" 30th Reunion

15th – 21st October 2011 in Ooty

Hi guys,

David Tutton, Paul Chote, Alan Martin, Paul Wiig and I put our heads together over the past months and wanted to get you all thinking and planning concretely about our 30th anniversary reunion in Ooty – scheduled in about 11 months

Below you will find a rough draft for the reunion week. We have tried to incorporate different interests and emphases and obviously are open to additional suggestions and ideas. There are several things that need to be planned concretely. Many other activities will be spontaneous, depending on the weather and our area of interest.

We planned the official welcome meeting for Sunday noon 16th October 2011. We thought that many will probably get of work on Thursday or Friday and fly out on Friday or Saturday. So to give everyone time to arrive and acclimatize, we planned the official begin at noon on Sunday.

Some of us plan to bring our spouses and children with us. We suggest that others do the same. It’s probably a once in a lifetime chance to do so and have our children share some of our childhood experiences. Depending on how many plan to do so, we would organize activities and outings accordingly.

For those wanting to see Hebron "in action" you would have to arrive a couple of days earlier. Therefore, we included a few suggested days ahead of the planned time frame…

12th Wednesday normal classes & Hebron drama week

13th Thursday normal classes & Hebron drama week

14th Friday School closes for autumn break

Official reunion week

15th Saturday Suggested arrival day for "Leavers’ Class of 1981"

(arrive / check into hotels / acclimatize / first orientation)

16th Sunday AM: Optional Christian Service at Union Church

Evening: open meeting / sharing / reflecting

17th Monday AM: Visit at Hebron School (Ooty)

Evening: open meeting / sharing / reflecting

18th Tuesday AM: Visit at Hebron School (Coonoor)

Evening: open meeting / sharing / reflecting

19th Wednesday AM: Outings / various electives

Evening: open meeting / sharing / reflecting

20th Thursday AM: Outings / various electives