OBITUARIES
of his PhD , he served in post-doctoral positions at the Courant Institute at New York University ( NYU ), then as an associate professor at Stanford University in California , before moving back to Australia in 1985 .
Rob held positions at the Australian National University ( ANU ), University of NSW , University of New England and the University of Canberra , as well as visiting positions in Hong Kong , Taiwan , Austria , Germany , the United States and France . He was elected as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science in 2004 .
Rob was diagnosed with Parkinson ' s disease in early 2001 but kept himself busy lecturing and writing papers , travelling all over the world to collaborate on maths projects until his retirement in 2016 . He never felt sorry for himself or complained , but just got on with life as best he could . He died at Blackburn South on 12 November 2022 , surrounded by family , and is survived by his wife and two daughters .
CLARKE , Roger Stuart (‘ 65 ) Roger ’ s brother , Geoff (’ 64 ), wrote :
Roger was born at Toorak on 22 October 1948 , the son of Dr James Eric Clarke ( born 23.5.1911 , SC 1927-28 , died 2.4.1995 ) and his wife Elizabeth Josephine ‘ Beth ’ ( nee Kinross ). Roger attended Deepdene State School in 1954 and then Scotch from 1955 to 1966 .
Always a high achieving student , Roger played many sports , including being a member of the Swimming team from 1962 to 1966 , and of the 1966 2nd XV . As a Scotch Scout he developed a lifelong love of the Australian bush . Matriculating in 1965 , Roger returned in 1966 to broaden his studies , and became Dux of Scotch . He was a 1966 Prefect and Co-Editor of Satura . Roger received a Gowrie Scholarship , a Senior Government Scholarship , and a Senior Ormond Residential Scholarship .
Roger ’ s many Scotch relations included his brothers Geoff ( SC 1955-65 ) and David ( SC 1964-69 ), cousins Jonathan Ernest Murray Clarke ( born 5.5.1948 , SC 1954-65 , died 12.2.2020 ) and Simon Clarke ( SC 1968-72 ), uncle Stuart Noel Clarke ( born 24.12.1913 , SC 1927-30 , died 4.4.1996 ), nephews David ( SC 1986-97 ) and Peter Wilson ( SC 1989-2001 ), and members of the Buxton , Clayton , Edwards and McCracken families .
Roger resided at Ormond College and graduated with a BSc in Physics and Mathematics from Melbourne University . He worked at the T & G Mutual Life Assurance Society during his actuarial studies with the London-based Institute of Actuaries . Following admission as a Fellow of the Institute , Roger worked for the Noble Lowndes Pension Service . He then set up his own firm , Superannuation Managers Australia ( SMA ), which was later sold .
On 20 December 1972 Roger married Nancy Patricia ( Pat ) Martin at Sassafras . Their daughters Louisa and Ellen were followed by three grandchildren .
Roger ’ s passions included golf at Peninsula , Heidelberg , and Little Frankston Golf Clubs . Woodwork classes in Junior School gave him a lifelong love of wood , and he was a talented whittler . His combined loves of wood and the Australian bush led Roger to restore a cottage at Three Bridges in the Yarra Ranges . In retirement , Roger enjoyed happy bush weekends there with his two grandsons .
Roger died unexpectedly on 26 May 2023 while out walking with a friend .
FERGUSON , David George (’ 56 ) David ’ s son , Marcus (’ 90 ), wrote :
David was born on 4 December 1939 at St George ’ s Hospital , Kew . He attended Mont Albert Central School from 1951 to 1952 . David won 1953 Minor Junior Entrance and Junior Government Scholarships to attend Scotch from 1953 to 1956 as a member of Gardiner House ( which became Gilray during 1953 ). He was a Cadet and played in the 1956 2nd Basketball team .
Scotch relatives include his cousins Graeme Ahlston Ferguson ( born 29.7.1929 , SC 1939-46 , died 14.8.2009 ) and Ian
McIntosh ( SC 1950-60 ), uncle John Hector Macdonald Ferguson ( born 10.12.1899 , SC 1914-17 , died 2.9.1961 ) and his two sons Tim ( SC 1983-88 ; now Tim Roberts-Ferguson ) and Marcus ( SC 1985-90 ).
Graduating in Civil Engineering from Melbourne University ( 1960 ), David began working at the Country Roads Board ’ s ( CRB , now VicRoads ) Bridge Design Division . Promoted in 1963 , he worked on the Melbourne Metropolitan Transport Study , analysing Melbourne ’ s transport needs and proposing infrastructure to cope with increasing traffic .
The study and subsequent design work took three years and involved a four-week trip to Columbia , South Carolina and multiple Adelaide trips to use the Department of Defence ’ s IBM 7090 computer . David worked in transport planning / travel forecasting until 1993 when he resigned from VicRoads , but continued as a consultant for several years .
David became involved in motorsport when the CRB Car Club was formed in 1962 . Initially participating mostly in car rallies , on joining the Melbourne University Car Club he became involved with motor race timekeeping , and was eventually Chief Timekeeper at Sandown Park , Winton and Hume Weir . The club timed several motoring record attempts , the ultimate being Donald Campbell ’ s land speed record on Lake Eyre in 1964 . David was one of only four people who saw Bluebird running at 403.1 mph ( 648.7 km / h ).
On 25 January 1969 , David married Lesley Joyce Bate at Sydney .
In April 1984 David joined the Old Scotch Collegians ' Lodge . He became its Master in 1992 and was thrice Director of Ceremonies . David was appointed to the 2006 Grand Lodge Team as Assistant Grand Pursuivant and to the 2008 Team as Grand Pursuivant .
David died on 29 May 2023 at Caritas Christi Hospice , Kew .
102 Great Scot Issue 169 – September 2023