Born on 20 August 1926 Fr Simon was the eldest of four children. The religious life was deeply ingrained in his family. On his father's side he had two uncles who were monks of Downside and two aunts who were Carmelite nuns. His mother, a Clifford, was descended from Cardinal Weld and had an uncle who was a Trappist and an aunt a nun. He went to Gilling in 1935 and then on to St Oswald's House. He left in 1944 and immediately joined the Scots Guards. From there he entered the novitiate in 1948 and then went to St Benet's Hall, Oxford to read Classical Mods and PPE. On his return to Ampleforth he continued his theological studies and began to teach in the school.
His working life was dedicated to the school. He taught classics from the time he returned from Oxford in 1956 to a few months before he died; was deeply involved in games, especially cricket, rugby and golf; was a member of the CCF for nearly forty years, commanding it for twenty- five years; was Assistant Housemaster in the Junior House from 1963 to 1975 and was Housemaster of St Aidan's from 1975 to 1988. It was an outstanding record of service. And during most of this time he was able to live out the full routine of monastic life. When other duties did not prevent him he helped in the pastoral life of the area, first as parish priest of Helmsley and after that as school chaplain of St Martin's.
As a young monk Fr Patrick Barry had suggested to him that he should develop a skill to occupy his leisure hours and encouraged him to take up calligraphy. Its clarity, simplicity and beauty reflected the character of the man who was to develop the skill to a high degree. Not only was he an accomplished practitioner himself, winning national recognition, but he took great delight in encouraging the development of the skill in others. He taught boys in the school, held regular courses in the local community and in one instance used to make regular visits to Hull Prison to teach one of the prisoners.
His creative talents also found scope in writing. He created a character called Maria Hogwash and wrote stories about her for one of his godchildren. As his godchild grew up so did Maria Hogwash until the stories were discontinued when they both reached the age of eighteen. It was a case of Harry Potter before Harry Potter, and in due course they might well find a publisher. He had an impish sense of humour and neither took himself too seriously nor allowed others to do so. On one occasion he applied the tools of critical biblical criticism to the account of a rugby match played between Ampleforth and St Peter's in the 1920s and showed that the score of 150-0 (to Ampleforth!) must have been fictitious, and that the score was in reality 15-0. A warning that biblical scholars might well be advised to heed. Spoof letters abounded and deserve a wider readership.
Military life suited him. He served for four years in the Scots Guards, seeing service in Austria and North Italy in the immediate post-war years. He seriously considered a career in the army but in the end the draw of the monastic life prevailed. Perhaps forty years in the CCF made amends! Certainly the order and discipline of military life never left him. His creative talents even found an outlet in the writing up of military exercises, which themselves would be worth publishing.
Games always played a large part in his life for he was gifted with an eye for a ball. As a boy in the school he won the Downey Cup for the best cricketer, and he went on to play countless games for the Emeriti and for the OACC. He was a fine bat and a competent off-spinner. But he was always an experimenter, so his bats were either cut down, or shaved at the back, or had weights added. It was hardly surprising that he invented a bowling machine - the Bowlermatic - which not only had regular use in the school but was marketed quite widely in the 1960s. The discipline and etiquette of the game were close to his heart and in one of the last games he played, having stopped a ferocious drive which split his hand, he went up calmly to the captain and asked permission to leave the field. But it was golf that prevailed in the end. Its precision and culture suited his temperament, and its difficulties presented a challenge to his experimental mind. He played a steady game, was near to a single figure handicap, and on one occasion quite recently went round the Old Course at Sunningdale in three over par. He was fiercely competitive and therefore a formidable match player. It was fitting that only ten weeks before he died he won the over-50s cup at the Autumn Meeting of the OAGS at Ganton. His service to the game in the school was quite outstanding. Every games afternoon he drove a minibus across to the Gilling golf course, often returning for a second load. He would play with the less gifted and support anyone in need. The sharp increase in the standard of the game in the school is his legacy.
Although reserved Fr Simon was never cold and the warmth of his personality came out not only in his kindness to those he served, whether it was in the school or in the local community, but to the numerous people he met in the wider world. He was always courteous, thoughtful of others, loyal to his friends, modest to a fault, generous in giving his time to those in need and immensely conscientious. He had a wonderful rapport with children and an ability to relate to their world of discovery. It was curious that he was never in his element as a Housemaster perhaps because he found it difficult to link discipline with friendship. But those who got to know him saw through the outer shell of reserve to the goodness and warmth of the man and made enduring friendships with him.
His spirituality like his whole approach to life was simple, unostentatious and direct. There were no frills. It was almost childlike, and the goodness and integrity of the man shone through. One short extract from a sermon speaks volumes. “Remember the saints are not just those we all know, but members of our families who have died. I am convinced of this. I often ask my mother for help and have had some wonderful answers. She was always interested in my games ability so I have frequently asked her for help when playing golf and have had some extraordinary results. Things happened which looked like flukes, but I know they weren't because I had especially asked for them. I am sure that the saints are nearer to us than we usually think.” This normally happened when he putted!
The lives of some people are totally authentic; they give us bearings. Fr Simon's life was one of them. He wrote in a homily: “If God is love, then to be in love for all eternity is a wonderful prospect. Sooner or later we are going to be in a flash of 'now' without beginning, end or duration, and our whole self will be immersed in love, then, I believe, we can look forward to death and hope and excitement.” He will not be disappointed.
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