Alan Bushell

It is with great sadness that I have to report the death of my good friend Alan Bushell – or Alan Harris-Bushell, to give him his formal name!  Alan died on March 4, 2021, after a six year fight with Parkinson’s.  Alan leaves a wife, Candy, but no children.  At the time of his death Alan and Candy were living in retirement in Medford, Oregon. 

Having lived across the road from the School on Windmill Road, Alan was a fairly constant presence at the School in his years at DHS.  While – like me – he was a small and physically immature boy, whose only sporting achievement was to play on the second hockey team in respects other than sporting Alan immersed himself in school life.  If I remember correctly, Alan was the scorer for the 1^st XI, and Brian Christie tells me that he has a photo of himself winning the 880, with Alan in the background with a stopwatch in his hand!  And Alan was on permanent call to do the Bible reading at assembly every time one of the designated readers failed to show.  Alan was in the A class in every year at DHS.

Alan went on to graduate with a BA Law degree from Stellenbosch (where he and Brian Christie were roommates).  While at Stellenbosch Alan worked for a local sports shop, and in that way he made friendships with many distinguished sportsmen.  One was Springbok rugby captain Dawie deVilliers, and for years Alan and Candy would spend a month or two a year away from California in Stellenbosch, where he got together on the golf course with all his old Stellenbosch sporting friends.

Alan obtained a CTA at Natal University, and qualified as a Chartered Accountant.  He then attended the Harvard Business School, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he was either top of the class or one of the top students in the class.  One of his classmates was Mitt Romney – later to become the Governor of Massachusetts, and now a U.S. Senator.

After business school Alan settled in Silicon Valley, in the San Francisco Bay Area.  He had a series of ever more important positions in Silicon Valley companies, ending up as the CEO of a succession of start-ups.  However, even though statistically at least one out of ten start-ups usually make money for their shareholders, none of Alan’s ever did.  He often said that all his option certificates could be used for is wallpapering his toilet!

I renewed my acquaintance with Alan when I moved to Silicon Valley in 1986.  I started a “First Friday Beer Drinkers’ Club” that met for 30 years at the British Banker’s Club pub in Menlo Park, and Alan was one of the founder members (although he was not much of a drinker – but he was always good company!).  My wife and I also saw Alan and Candy socially on a regular basis – often meeting at Stanford University football games, as Alan had season tickets.  Alan and I also played golf together from time to time; he was a good player, and very proper – and I will never step on anyone’s line again after the reprimand I got for doing so in a game with Alan!

Alan and Candy retired to Medford in around 1985, and we never managed to make the drive to visit them.  But we maintained telephone contact on a regular basis, until shortly before Alan’s death.

Alan was a good man, and incredibly modest and self-effacing despite his stellar academic record, and his impressive career.  He was also a great supporter of DHS and the DHS Foundation, and made one of the largest donations so far to the Class of 1963 Bursary Fund.

Rest in peace Alan.

Stuart “Mossie” Clark

May 9, 2021