Lyn calls it quits after 34 years at KHS
Lyn has been at the school since 15 February 1982.
The welcoming smile that has greeted visitors to Kingsway High School (KHS) for 34 years will be missed when receptionist Lyn Cole retires at the end of February.
She has been teased by the staff for never stressing and being placid, but that trait has worked in her favour over the years.
Lyn, who turns 68 on 8 February, has been at the school since 15 February 1982.
During her tenure she has seen many principals come and go, including Dudley Forde, Ken Elliott, Clive Waddy, Bill Jarvis and, more recently, Geoff Harrison.
Lyn was born in the then Transvaal, but moved to Durban and Pietermaritzburg before settling in Toti, where she met and married her husband Kevin in 1968. “We met at the ice skating rink in Durban. Kevin was more of a skater, but I was a beginner.”
Like a scene from a movie, Lyn fell into Kevin’s arms. “He always says I tripped on purpose.” If it was a calculated move on her part, it worked, as the couple will celebrate 48 years of marriage this year.
They have three children – Clinton (46), Jade (43) and Samantha (42), who all reside in Gauteng. “All three of my children are ex-Kingsway pupils. They all went to school there while I was the receptionist. Clinton was in grade 8 when I started and he went on to be the school’s junior and senior Dux.”
Immediately or soon after her last working day, Lynn and Kevin will hitch their off-road trailer and take off for a wildlife adventure to Addo Elephant National Park, Kruger National Park, Mountain Zebra National Park and route 62 which meanders through the Klein Karoo between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. Along the way they will enjoy their two passions – camping and photography.
“That is what we are going to do in our retirement. The photography bug bit us 15 years ago when we visited Motswari, close to Kruger.”
Lyn enjoyed playing tennis and squash in her younger days, as well as cycling. “I would like to get a cruiser cycle when I retire.
I absolutely love my job and I’m very sad to leave, but there comes a time when you have to say this is it.
I love the people, children and teachers I have dealt with over the years. I work with some teachers who were once pupils here, and I have seen people who have come through Kingsway whose children have become pupils.
It is the kind of job that if you are a people-person, you will hang on to it for a very long time.
I will miss the staff, the children and getting up early in the morning to be at the school by 6.45am. I just love being with people all the time.”
