Thoughts from Tony Foster-Smith: David Hilary Foster-Smith was born in Pedwar Gwynt (Orta) on Anglesey in February 1936 at the same time as two others Richard Hardman and David Barnsley. The rural nurse was busy! As the David name was taken he was a Hilary named after a great friend in Para Brazil, Hilary Grove. Soon after his father got a job on a goldmine in Segovia Colombia. Hilary and his mother followed by ship (1937/8?) and sea plane to the mine. Settling in a comfortable mine engineer's house with a friendly crowd of ex-pats they had a good life. Two brothers were born Tony (1939) and Pat (1942). Being the eldest of three brothers meant he was always taking the lead. When Tony was still a baby (1940) the family travelled via Cuba, New York to Vancouver to visit Father's sister. They returned via the east coast back to Colombia. Whilst in New York it was said he climbed onto a window ledge of the multi-storey hotel they were staying. Getting him down was done by asking reception to ring, knowing his love of answering the phone. I can't remember much about him in Colombia as I was too young and being nearly 4 years older he had older friends. So by the time I was 3 he was ready for his first school. He must have gone from an early school set up by one of the mothers as I can't remember him being there. Mother was persuaded to send him to the local convent school in Segovia but locals tried to bribe their way for favours (Father being the manager then). Spanish customs as he came back from school with loads of presents. She then tried the American school in Bogota but this was political and mother discovered he was on a march demonstrating something or other which might have been a banner against Yankee Imperialism! Then he was sent with some of his best friends to de Cartret in Jamaica which was a colonial school run on rigid lines. He must have gone there aged 8 in 1944. So there were a couple of years when I did not see much of him. A story is told that on his return to Colombia, the chauffeur asked him in Spanish about his trip. Understanding but lost for forgotten words in reply. Later he was back again fluent in the language. Two years later aged 6 I was there, thrown into the deep end Christmas holidays were spent at Mrs Stevenson's in Montego Bay and he and his friends were good company, different from school. Soon after mother took us out of school in 1947 and travelled by ship to the uk and then Hallfield school. He went onto Bromsgrove and left school in 1954 before I went. He started an apprenticeship at Joseph Lucas and stayed there until he retired. He told me they should have given him a cuckoo clock as he had been with them for such a long time. Meantime there was a problem with bedrooms at Fircroft and he got digs up the road with Hilary Grove's sister, so we didn't see much of him. As far as exams and degrees he got them the hard way. Matriculation and night school and doing it this way he only got two week industrial holiday as well as usual bank holidays. I was luckier with a sandwich course which gave me university breaks. Afterwards we only met occasionally. In retirement he researched Lloyd, Steeds and Smith ancestries so we communicated about that and also about Mother's finances.