By Chris Moore | Posted: Thursday April 30, 2020
From National President Chris Moore.
As with everyone else, I am writing this message in my home office in the middle of the world wide lockdown that has been imposed on us all - very trying times with serious ramifications in the months to come. I feel for all the hard working New Zealanders who have suddenly lost their jobs and their incomes. I feel for all the small business owners who are struggling to stay solvent and it is obvious that the government will have to commit to injecting billions of dollars to support all affected sectors of the economy.
Since the school started in 1880, New Zealand has experienced several major tragic events and of course many thousands of Old Boys have been involved in, and have contributed to, these catastrophes.
Boer War: 1899-1902 NZ sent 6,500 men and 8,000 horses. 70 men were killed and 150 were killed accidentally or died from disease.
World War I: 1914-1918 Overall there were between 15 to 19 million people killed and 23 million wounded. New Zealand sent 98,000 men and women and 16,000 were killed and 41,000 were wounded.
Russian Civil War: 1918-1921. 12 million civilians and 1.5 million soldiers were killed.
Spanish Flu Pandemic: 1918 One estimate says that 50 million people died worldwide. The total death toll for New Zealand is thought to have been about 9000.
Share Market Crash: 1929. There were 15 million unemployed in America and 85,000 in New Zealand which was 12% of the work force.
World War II: 1939-1945. It has been estimated that around 70 to 85 million people perished which was 3% of the world population of 2.3 billion. 140,000 New Zealanders, men and women, served in this war and 12,000 lost their lives.
Polio Outbreaks
In 1947, more than 1000 people were infected, around 70 died, schools and other facilities were closed and there were stern warnings against swimming in harbours.
The polio epidemic that gripped New Zealand for more than two years after World War II was considered the most persistent outbreak of the feared disease that the country had experienced up to that time.
But for numbers of cases and deaths, the epidemic of 1947-49 wasn't the worst. The most deaths in one year were in 1925, when 173 people died.
Korean War: 1949-1952. One estimate says that 5 million people were killed in this conflict. 4700 New Zealander served as part of the New Zealand contingent – Kayforce – under UN Command. 1300 served on the frigates during the war and for a period after the Armistice in 1957. 45 men lost their lives in NZ forces.
Vietnam War:1954-1975. One estimate states that 627,000 civilians were killed and there were 726,00 military deaths - 3000 New Zealanders, of whom 37 were killed and 187 were wounded.
The list goes on and on as follows:
1967 Six-Day War
1979–1989 Soviet-Afghan War
1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War
1990–1991 Persian Gulf War
1991–1995 Third Balkan War
1994 Rwandan Genocide
If you Google, there are many other wars going on as we speak.
It is well known that Old Boys of our school took part in many of these conflicts and many paid the ultimate sacrifice fighting against various enemies all over the world. All of their names are on the honours boards in the Memorial Library and each year we remember them especially at the ANZAC Services.
Unfortunately we had to cancel this year’s service because of a new enemy known as Covid-19.
The whole world is fighting this enemy which has killed 19 New Zealanders and hundreds of thousands worldwide. Hopefully, there are no Timaru Boys' High School Old Boys included in these statistics.
I realise this is a pretty gloomy newsletter and I believe we will all get through the situation in the long run.
All the best to all of you.
Kia kaha.
Chris Moore
National President
Timaru High School Old Boys' Association
