Symon Dynes
Symon Dynes - Our Newest Member
Simon amazed the club last Thursday night with the story of his most adventurous and diverse life story. He is a Southlander with a paramedic degree.
Simon was born in eastern Southland to a Rotary family. He was educated at Southland Boys’ High and while there was heavily involved in St Johns.
His family originated in Ireland is mother’s family were early sealers and whalers.
From school Simon joined the army and was soon transferred to the medical core. For a while he travelled the Pacific with their emergency response team. Later he spent some time in Bougainville. Here he was amazed at how the copper which is an important deposit on the island had stained all the plants and vines red. He was job there was to help the local popular who were the victims of a 12-year gruesome civil war. He also had to help locals who were injured by explosives left by the Japanese and Allies after the fighting in World War II, which decimated the island. Those who have read Mr Pip will know what a grim place this was.
He was also scheduled to go to East Timor but as a senior medic with a young family he was kept at Waiouru to train some of those who were to serve there. In the end, the family spent five years at Waiouru.
In the early 1990s he joined the team at Outward Bound. He said that this was a wonderful experience and he really enjoyed watching young people grow through the challenges they were faced with there. He was involved in hiking programmes, sea activities and also the three-day solo where young men and women are left to their own devices in the bush for three days. While there they have to write a letter about their experience which they read in six months’ time.
After that he went to work as a safety officer on the oil exploration platforms at sea.
But he was also part of the army while belonging to a Territorial unit and it was this that led to his being accept for Op Belisi for six months and it was this that took him to Bourgainville.
Simon also gained his profession skipper’s ticket and with this he has worked for Fiordland Travel in the Doubtful Sound and also taking people to the Te Anau Caves.
He and his wife moved to Christchurch to give their children a chance of a wide ranging education. They have one daughter and twin sons. Simon is also a rugby referee.
He brings a wide range of experience and also the knowledge and understanding of some very different parts of the world. I know he will be a great asset to our club.