Some superheroes carry cookbooks – and Peter Robinson, the Catering Manager affectionately known as ‘CatMan’ to Newnham College students, is one of them. But after twenty one years in post, Peter Robinson, has closed his cookbooks and is heading back home to Derbyshire, where he takes up a new role at a school.
Peter is treasured in the College, not simply for his warm smile and his delicious catering, but for his email menus, which always include a ‘gem of the day’. From “strive for progress not perfection” to ”when you can’t find the sunshine be the sunshine”, Peter’s sayings are a part of what makes Newnham special.
In his farewell speech, Peter told the College, “I came here as a young man with four young children, and I leave a grandfather. Two of my children were married here. Newnham is part of my family. Newnham has a special spirit about it, and it will go onward and forward in the same spirit it always has.”
In her thanks, the Principal said that not only had Peter coped with every demand that College had thrown at him, but that “you’ve done it all with graciousness, and with a smile on your face.”
The Domestic Bursar, Wendy Evans, recalled some highlights from Peter’s career when he showed his unflappable nature. She particularly appreciated the time when, after a power cut to the kitchens one hour before a Formal Hall, Peter and his colleagues had simply rounded up sufficient barbeques and set to work in the College car park. The diners never suspected their delicious barbeque was anything other than planned.
Goodbye Peter – our super-hero CatMan.