?He was the right man at the right time?

TOWNSPEOPLE, staff and students will tomorrow pay their respects to the well-loved principal of Okehampton College, who died suddenly last Tuesday, aged 51. Chris Powell?s coffin will be walked from Maddaford?s Funeral Directors through Okehampton town centre and around the college campus tomorrow (Friday), before being driven to a private service for family and close friends only at Exeter Crematorium. The cortege will leave Maddaford?s just before 2pm. Acting principal Daryl Chapman said the school will close at 1.30pm on Friday ? parents are being notified of the arrangements. He said: ?We are going to hold a celebration of Chris?s achievements at the college on Friday October 28 at 11am in the college sports hall, which will be open to all members of the community. ?And in the first two or three weeks of the next half-term, there will be an opportunity for the youngsters to come together to remember Chris at a college service.? Mr Powell collapsed following a meeting at Ivybridge Community College last Tuesday night (October 11) and was pronounced dead soon after. Tributes have poured in in memory of Mr Powell, who joined Okehampton College at the beginning of 2001 and oversaw a rapid resurgance in its fortunes. He was previosuly assistant principal at John Kitto College in Plymouth. Chairman of governors John Stevens said: ?It is often said of Churchill in the war that he was the right man at the right time. ?Chris was exactly the right man at the right time for this college. It was a huge privilege to work with a man of his stature. His loss will be very deeply felt by all of us for a long time to come. ?He leaves a huge legacy and all of us are committed to carrying on his work.? Daryl Chapman said there was l Continued from page 1 a ?genuine feeling of loss and bewilderment? within the college. He said: ?Everyone is showing a lot of resolve and determination. The students have been magnificent. ?We pride ourselves at Okehampton College on looking out for each other and we have seen plenty of evidence of that. ?Chris made an enormous contribution to this college. He always put the youngsters at the forefront of his thinking.? Mr Powell?s concern for students was evident last Monday when he told town councillors he was worried by the health and safety posed by some dogs on the college playing fields. His comments were front page news in last week?s Times ? the paper was printed in the early hours of Wednesday morning, before news of his death was made public. Okehampton?s County Councillor Christine Marsh said Mr Powell had a ?vision and a drive? and fought hard to get the college where it is now. ?It has been a privilege to have known and worked with him. He has left such a foundation at the college for students and teachers to build upon and has left a vision for us to complete.? Teachers from feeder primary schools added their tributes. Brian Cunningham, head of Okehampton Primary, said he was going to miss working with a man he described as a ?great colleague?. He said he had worked closely with Mr Powell on the campaign to gain fairer Government funding for Devon schools. He said: ?I can still picture us outside the door of Number 10 for the fair funding campaign. It was a very successful campaign, much of that was down to his energy and determination. ?There is no doubt about the legacy he will have left the college. The work he did to achieve technology college status was incredible and our children have benefitted enormously from that too.? Hatherleigh Primary headteacher Linda Mitchell said: ?Chris was the first headteacher to offer me his support when I took up my post here nearly four years ago, and he will be very much missed. ?Our sympathy goes out to his family, friends and colleagues and, of course, the pupils at his school.? Devon?s director of education, Phil Norrey, said: ?He will be very sorely missed, not only by his colleagues, students and parents in the Okehampton area, but by all of us in the wider education community in Devon. ?Unassuming and often quiet, Chris had great resolve and determination which he demonstrated in the many ways in which he led the improvements at Okehampton College. ?Chris was very clear his work at Okehampton College was not finished but his legacy is obvious in the huge impact he made on the lives of hundreds of children.? Former West Devon and Torridge MP John Burnett said Mr Powell was a ?dedicated, far-sighted and extremely conscientious man?. ?I was very sad indeed to hear of his death,? said Mr Burnett. ?He will be sorely missed ? we owe him so much.?