I was born in Sussex, England in 1950. At the age of eight, I was sent to the British Seamens’ Boys’ Home at Brixham in South Devon, where I remained until I left school in 1966. This was a home for the sons of British sailors, where boys in difficult circumstances were offered a safe haven. It was run along military lines, but enabled boys to receive a normal education in ordinary schools. I was fortunate enough to gain admission to Homelands Technical High School in nearby Torquay. I found that English was the subject I enjoyed the most, and I will always be grateful to have been tutored by some very dedicated teachers during my five years at Homelands. When I left Brixham, I trained to become a diesel engine fuel injection specialist, a trade which I still continue today here in New Zealand, the country to which I emigrated in 1991.