AV News 174 - November 2008
I would just like to add my expression of thanks for Ron's life and the effect
he had on so many AV folk in his later years. This site (PTE Forum) gave him
the audience he needed and many appreciated the words he wrote to us
here. I hope we all remember him for many years to come.
Never let age be an issue. The older you get, the more you can draw on a
tremendous wealth of knowledge which you have stored over a lifetime.
Only "fear" of things new and different will prevent you from learning new
things every day. Ron Wilkinson (ronwil), one of our great but now departed
forum members was learning and contributing to our collective knowledge up
until the day he was physically no longer able to visit the forum. Ron passed
away a few months ago, but we will all remember his wit, spunk, common
sense, contibutions and advice. He was thrilled with PTE 5 and was creating
great animated slideshows right up to the end.
So don't let age get in your way of having fun, experimenting and learning
new "tricks" with PTE - it will help keep you sharp!
Ron Croucher ARPS
Peter Harms Mid-Thames AV Group
I am sad to report that Ron Croucher passed away on 12th July after a battle
with cancer.
Born on the 1st July 1928, his early childhood was spent in India and later
did his UK National Service in the RAF. He became a TV engineer and
eventually owned a chain of four shops. He married Jean in 1956 and they
had three sons.
Ron retired in 1981 and became involved in a wide range of activities. He
was a radio ham and kept in touch with a worldwide circle of contacts through
this medium. He had an absorbing interest in natural history and was the
founder secretary of his local group, a post he held since 1979. This brought
him into active contact with many related organisations concerned with
conservation, the community, wildlife and others. A particular interest was
badgers, even staking out their sets at night to photograph and even hand
feeding them! He was also a keen gardener and involved himself with the
Royal Horticultural Society.
Naturally photography played a major part in most of Ron's activities and
he eventually turned to audiovisual. He was a slide worker throughout and
despite his earlier background, never embraced the modern digital approach.
Some of his sequences involved poetry written by himself but he also
appreciated the work of others. Ron was a long-standing member of the
Mid-Thames AV Group during which time he gained his Associate in AV.
Apart from other contributions, he could always be relied upon to provide
effective blackout and light control at the Open Days - a most important task.
He even found time to become fluent in French enabling him and Jean to
spend holidays exploring France and bringing back material for his
sequences.
Ron Croucher was a gentle man with a close, lovin