VALE TIM FISCHER AC
Delivered by Kevin Sheehan, President Rotary Melbourne on the 28th August 2019
As we lament the passing last Wednesday of our Honorary Member, The Honourable Timothy Andrew (Tim) Fischer AC, we can reflect on some of the many things he said to us at Rotary Melbourne over the years.
Tim was particularly proud that we had made him an Honorary Member on 1st April 2015 as conferred by then President Peter Bearsley.
In his lifetime commitment to serving our Nation through politics, & community involvement, Tim demonstrated exactly the same characteristics of Leadership, Integrity and Service as that of his hero General Sir John Monash - which is why he was awarded honorary membership of the Rotary Melbourne.
His acceptance address gave us an enthralling pathway to the early career of Monash and his achievements on the field of battle. Tim advocated the view that Monash’s outstanding characteristics together with his brilliant military career was more than sufficient to elevate General Sir John Monash to Field Marshall Sir John Monash.
You would recall that Tim was a master at laying down a challenge and so on that occasion he challenged all present to hassle their local member of parliament to achieve this posthumous recognition. You would also recall that not once, but three times during his address Tim challenged the members of the Rotary Melbourne to celebrate the Club’s centenary with an open-air meeting on the Morell Anderson Street Bridge which in Tim’s view was one of Monash’s outstanding structures.
On returning home, Tim wrote to President Peter and said: “My sincere thanks for the hospitality today and the Rotary Lunch was a buzz. I appreciate the Honorary Membership now of two Clubs, the oldest Downunder and also from the most outback or Upover in one sense, Rotary Club of Corowa. Keep up the good work and Melbourne Rotary, when turning a 100 in just a few short years’ time will be a great occasion”.
After his retirement as Ambassador to the Holy See at the Vatican, Tim returned to farming and intensified his involvement in charity work, assisting organisations such as the St Vincent de Paul Society and the Fred Hollows Foundation. With Autism New South Wales, he worked tirelessly to improve support for autism, a condition he and his son Harrison had to cope with.
Much has been said in recent days about Tim. He was doting dad and parent-carer. He was a BIG Australian in every sense of the word who cast a big shadow on our nation, always curious, generous & enthusiastic especially about trains & John Monash. He is well remembered for his courageous stance supporting Prime Minister John Howard in the gun control laws. Tim was recognised by District 9790 as a Paul Harris Fellow in 1999 and was made a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) in the 2005 Australia Day Honours.
I have a lasting memory, as Tim stood and chatted with me on the 6th March this year when we bumped into each other at Southern Cross Station and he wanted to visit our Club and talk about his new book on Steam Trains. He asked me to pass onto Mark Pinoli that a reply email was on its way.
Importantly to Rotary Melbourne, Tim was the 9th recipient of our Monash Medal in 2018 as presented by President Robert Fisher and 0808 Chair Peter Davis and remained a stalwart advocate for the posthumous recognition of our founding member, Sir John Monash.
Today our sympathy is with his wife Judy & their sons Harrison & Dominic.
