Who's Who of Southern Africa and the World

My father was featured in Who's Who of Southern Africa 1975 and my sister Judy posted the page on a blog honouring him
http://charleskennethpowrie.blogspot.com/search/label/Who%27s%20Who

Some time ago when I was given a distinguished title of Deputy Director: Information Technology Advisory Services at South African National Biodiversity Institute, I was invited to be featured in Who's Who of the World. I thought that I did not deserve this honour as much as my father did in southern Africa, but I submitted some information anyway. I came to consider afterwards that maybe it was more a vehicle for mobilising invitations to talk at or attend various conferences ranging from agriculture to medicine to engineering to geology and so on... Also, all sorts of new contacts databases seem to link to Who's Who, resulting in my receiving a lot of uninvited e-mails and so forth. I was always amused at the title Deputy Director because, although reflected a rank in the Public Service, I did not direct anyone! We later changed the title to Biodiversity Information Specialist that made much more sense to me.

Well, for what it is worth, here is what I submitted and it appeared for about three years.

 POWRIE, LESLIE WARD, research scientist, deputy director; b. Krugersdorp,

 Gauteng, South Africa, Feb. 23, 1 954; s Charles Kenneth Powrie and Beatrice

 Philippa Dryden Dymond; m., Sally-Ann Barnes Swindell, June 27, 1981; children:

 Shelly Lee Herbert, Colleen Lynn Schwartz. Andrew James, Cindy Jean Wentzel.

 Richard Daniel. BSc with honors, U. Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 1979; MSc, U.

 Cape Town, South Africa, 1986. Lab. technician Cape Provincial Adminstrn.,

 Bellville, Western Cape, South Africa, 1981-82; tchr. Herzlia Mid. Sch., Cape

 Town, Western Cape, 1983–84; scientist, edn. officer, technician South African

 Nat. Biodiversity Inst., Cape Town, 1985–2000, chief info tech. adviser, 2000–11,

 dep. dir., info. tech. adv. svcs., 2011–. Author: (book) Common Names of Karoo

 Plants: Strelitzia 16. Bishop Ch. of Jesus Christ Latter=day Saints, Cape Town,

 1982–83, 2014– clerical mem., 1983–. Cpl. Engrs., 1972–82, Kroonstad.

 Achievements include patents pending for SkyHose, airborne hose for fighting bush

 fires; first to develop combination of various ecological, species distribution and

 gazetteer databases for facilitating georeferencing of biological specimens and

 species Research, Wood Badge, Boy Scouts of South Africa 1993. Office: South

 African Nat Biodiversity Inst Kirstenbosch Rsch Ctr Pvt Bag X7 Claremont Western

 Cape 7735 South Africa Home: 45 D'Urban St Bothasig Western Cape 7441 South

 Africa Home Phone: 27-21-558-4693.  Office Phone: 27-21-799-8703.; Office Fax:

 27-21-797-6903, Home Fax· 27-8319-83579-3933. Business E-Mail:

 l.powrie@sanbi.org.za.

Well, now that I have retired, some of the information like work phone number is no longer valid, but I am still who I am.