PPU Committee

Andrea Mitchell (nee Ludwig)

After matriculating in 1997, Andrea attended the University of Cape Town and graduated with a Bachelor of Social Science majoring in Industrial Psychology and Sociology. There after she decided to further her studies with a Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing Management, also at the University of Cape Town. Subsequent to this she has worked in a variety of industries, including FMCG's, Finance, Outsourced Business Processing, Accountancy and currently, in the Motor industry.

In January 2008, she married Anthony Kerr Mitchell and they currently reside in Harfield Village, Claremont.

Andrea joined the Past Pupils Committee in March 2009 and enjoys being involved in helping to organise mini reunions, special interest events and hearing about and keeping in touch with other Springfielders who are all making a difference.
 

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Daniella Charles (Arendse 1991)

Has been a committee member since 1999 giving PR and communication support. More recently she has taken on the task of editing the PPU newsletter and providing insight into the social media space.
 
Daniella was a prefect in her matric year, a member of the Classical Society (for the girls who were brave enough to do Latin) as well as a member of Interact. Daniella is currently a member of the school board.
 
She has worked in Public Relations (PR) for 16 years at the then Cape Technikon, Old Mutual and Atmosphere Communications. Her passion is internal communication because she strongly believes that engaged employees are productive employees. Daniella took a three-year break from full-time employ to spend quality time with her daughter, but kept things sane by doing freelance PR work as well. She is now a Communications Manager at Santam.
 
She is married to Brent and they have a daughter, Hannah.

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Jane Theron (Bullen 1963)

grew up in Cape Town, studied harp with Beti Woolley at Springfield Convent and went on to study Music at UCT (BA Mus. STD. LRSM). From there, she became the Principal Harp with PACT Orchestra in Pretoria from1969-1972.
 
At present she freelances – acting as Guest Harpist for the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra, Chamber, Solo and Choral work.
She teaches at the University of Cape Town and the Hugo Lambrechts Music Centre….and enjoys playing at weddings and banquets too.
 
In 1973, she married Steve Theron and they have three children – Caroline, Paul and Beth. They lived in Springs, Pretoria, London, Port Elizabeth and came home to roost in Cape Town. She joined the PPU as a Life Member in 1986 and joined the Committee, being elected as Chairperson in 1995.
 
Her interests encompass the consequences of being the wife of a Rotarian, home and garden.

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Danielle Phillips - Secretary PPU

 
Danielle Phillips matriculated in 2008. She is currently studying at UCT and in her second year of Business Science.
She is specialising in Actuarial Science and is working hard to be an actuary one day. Danielle is thoroughly enjoying her university experience, though she still misses Springfield very much.
Danielle enjoys reading and cycling, and spends a lot of her free time with friends and family. She is always up for a challenge and enjoys meeting new people, trying new things and visiting new places!
 
I love being a part of the PPU and enjoy giving back to Springfield where I can. I look forward to many more years on the committee and hope to meet you all at our annual AGMs!
 

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Diana Knight

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Emma Selfe

Emma Selfe matriculated from Springfield in 2009 and is currently studying a Bachelor of Commerce, Economics and Law at UCT.
She joined the Springfield family in grade 8, and has loved it ever since.
She was very excited when given the opportunity to be apart of the PPU and currently serves on the committee in the Yvonne Richter chair.
She is involved with the Democratic Alliance Student Organization (DASO) and will soon be enrolled in the Democratic Alliance's Young Leaders' Programme.
She is aspiring to be a court Judge and after her meeting with Justice Kate O'Regan, another fellow past pupil of Springfield,
Emma has realized that she wants to serve in the Constitutional Courts of South Africa.
There is no doubt that Emma is passionate about making a difference in South Africa and we look forward to her updates.
 

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Marion Thomas (Adams 1997) - Webmaster

 
Marion took a "gap" year after matricualting in 1997 to gain some work experience. She studied for three years doing a Bachelor of Social Science (Social Work) Degree at the University of Cape Town but unfortunately did not complete it due to some unforeseen circumstances. During her studies, she au paired locally and gained some valuable parenting skills, that have come in handy.
 
Marion was an avid netball player at school, and found her real passion during her gap year in the fast-paced game of Action Netball, which is played in an enclosed netted court.
In 2002, she was appointed as the Tournament Director/Umpire for the Inter-provincial Action Netball Tournament held at the Claremont Arena. This honour opened many doors within the sports management field and she found herself passionately involved in the development of the sport. She sat the umpires exam for both outdoor and Action Netball and passed both. She was selected onto the Western Province Management team, where she managed two ladies sides and was a selector for the provincial squads too. At the age of 22 years, she was the youngest person to be offered the position of Western Province Co-ordinator. Despite the honour, she felt that the job was not where she wanted to be. Instead, she resigned from Western Province and returned to outdoor netball, where she took up coaching positions at UCT, Reddam House and Camps Bay High School. She retired from outdoor netball after the birth of her son.
 
She enjoys public speaking and recently joined Toastmasters, where she is currently completing her foundation course. Her long-term goal is to become a motivational speaker to young people in South Africa and is also interested in politics. Marion is the second-youngest of 5 girls, all of whom also attended Springfield. She is the only sister still living in South Africa, as her four siblings are stretched out across the globe. She has indicated that she is too passionate about this country to ever leave permanently.
 
Marion joined the PPU ten years after matriculating because of a promise she had made to her class - to arrange their ten year class reunion. And what a lovely reunion it was, with girls flying in from around the world to enjoy catching up with each other. She loves being involved with the PPU, as so many ex-Springfielders will agree, there is a certain magic that emanates from the school and it really doesn't matter when you left, as the emphasis is always on your return to a place that you once considered your educational home.  
 
Marion is happily married to Duncan Thomas and they have a son, Matthew. They currently live in Capricorn Beach, Muizenberg.
 

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Maureen Paveley (Wallis 57)

 
Maureen was born in Scotland and educated in four countries. She was fortunate to finally land at Springfield on the eve of St Dominic’s Day in 1953. With a holiday and Feast Day the following day, cake served at lunchbreak, and a special dinner in the evening with a film show afterwards, Maureen couldn’t believe her luck! Half a century later, she still feels fortunate to be a Springfielder.
 
After matriculating in 1957, Maureen trained as a teacher and taught at St Michael’s for two years. She subsequently left for London and had various temporary jobs, before returning to teaching, at that time at a special needs school in Earlsfield, South-West London.  She married her husband, Roger, a marine engineer and they left the United Kingdom for Malawi, on what was to become the first of their foreign stints.
They returned to Cape Town in 1965 and ten years and two children later, she joined the staff at the Junior School.
 
In 1985, Maureen retired, at which point she joined the PPU Committee, where she inherited the job of editing the Newsletter, but retired from that position in 2008 due to her busy travel schedule.
Over the years, Maureen has lived in diverse places, among them Taiwan, South Korea, Scotland and Germany.  
 
With Northern Europe as her home for the last few years, regular holidays in France, Scotland and England has enabled her to pursue an interest in the social history of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, particularly with regard to domestic architecture, antiques and the development of the great gardens. Another hobby is patchwork and Maureen has been fortunate to attend the two most recent International Patchwork and Quilting Exhibitions in Birmingham. Maureen says, that her patchwork skills are rudimentary by comparison as many of the exhibits there, are truly works of art, particularly those in the Japanese tradition.
 
In December 2009, Maureen and her husband, took the plunge and sold their house in Germany to return permanently to Cape Town where they are now renovating a house in Lakeside.
She says that when asked if moving back to Cape Town was a wise decision, she replies, "Perhaps not, but we’re happy to be back. We are South Africans by choice, if not by birth!"
 
 

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Pat Danford (1965)

Pat met her husband 'Drew Danford whilst studying at UCT in 1968. She  spent most of her career in the fields of Marketing and Sales.

She is the proud mother to son,Dru Junior and daughter,Nika. Her great passion is the role of grandmother to her seven treasured grandchildren.

Pat and her husband enjoy traveling both locally and abroad. They often visit their son Dru Jnr,who lives in London with his wife Mel and their 2 children, James(5) and Kate (3).
Dru is an accountant and Mel is a lawyer.

Nika, their daughter and husband, Chris - a Springfield old boy,himself from when boys were allowed to attend the pre-school - live in Constantia, Cape Town. They have 5 children, 4 girls and the 5th a long awaited son. Chris is in IT and Nika runs her own nursery school. Nika's four girls are currently at Springfield and thus keeps the family connected to the school.
 
Pat is an active member of Rotary and has thoroughly enjoyed being involved for many years. She is passionate about music, her home, gardening, flower arranging and Springfield.   

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Patti Cleveland (Hopley 1958)

Patti arrived at Springfield in 1952 and moved straight into the boarding school from Std 4. Her time at Springfield was very special and she happily shares the memories she holds dear.

Patti has many interests and enjoys a good game of tennis with the Springfield Parents' Tennis Club. She enjoys walking and playing bridge. Her hobbies include sewing and looking after her precious grandchildren.

Patti believes that being a part of the PPU means keeping in touch with generations above and below one's actual class, and still being involved with the sisters and school, which as a boarder, was home for so many years.

Patti has been happily married for 50 years and her 2 daughters are both proud past pupils of the Springfield family. Patti's love for Springfield continues to flourish as she has 3 grand-daughters who are presently attending the school.
 

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Victoria Wilson (1986)

Victoria is a free spirit, who loves beating to the rhythm of her own drum.

After matriculating from Springfield in 1986, Victoria went to study for a Bachelor of Arts and a Performer's Diploma in Speech and Drama at the University of Cape Town.
After graduating, she went to work in theatre, film and theatre-in education industries. She also worked part-time as a Drama Therapist at various psychiatric clinics.

In 2003, she left the Theatre, and entered the corporate world, working for a company that specialised in voice, presentaion skills and stress management training. Here, she gained wonderful life experience, while continuing to work part-time in  Psychiatric Healing Holistic Programmes i.e.drumming, meditation and workshop sessions.

Currently, Victoria is a freelance Communications Expert Trainer/Facilitator. She is also a Holistic Counsellor for Addiction and Occupational Therapy Clinics.
Victoria is passionate about what she does and thoroughly enjoys her work. She plans to further her qualifications in addiction counselling in the near future.

She balances her life by indulging herself with a walk on the beach, a swim in the ocean, a good book, running or a session at the gym. She also belongs to hiking clubs and loves a good trail whilst catching up with friends, who share her passions. The occasional social dinner with good friends or a night out at the pub is another way Victoria unwinds.

Victoria is currently training to complete the Two Oceans Half Marathon in 2011. She has recently joined the PPU Committee and is looking forward to getting more involved.
 

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Alison Dunn - Junior School Principal 

Alison Dunn is the Principal of Springfield Junior School. She is a Dominican through and through, having been educated at both Springfield and Star of the Sea Primary School in St.James.   

Before re-joining the Springfield family, as Junior School principal, Alison was head of St Mary's Junior School in Gardens,Cape Town which is also a Dominican school.  Alison was handed the reigns from Sister Caroline in 2003. The most  amazing part is that 40 years earlier, in 1963, Sister Caroline taught Alison in Sub A (Grade 1)!  

Alison is passionate about Catholic education, especially the education and formation of young girls in Pre-School and Junior School.

She holds a very special place on the PPU committee,not only providing a continuum between the Junior School and the PPU but also being a past pupil herself, it is evident of how past pupils can give back in appreciation of the love that was instilled in them when being educated at Springfield.

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