Mr Robert Bruce McKay DIGBY (26 March 2003, aged
87 years)
Bruce attended high school in the Newcastle area, then joined Rylands Wiremills
(a subsidiary of BHP) where he trained as a metallurgist and furthered his
studies in engineering. He married Gladys in 1938 and their two children wore
born in Newcastle. After serving in the army in New Guinea and in Celebes, he
returned to Rylands, then in 1949 joined Public Works Dept in Port Moresby as a
mechanical engineer.
In the mid 1960s he joined the Dept of Labour as a safety engineer and in 1969
went to Lae as Regional Labour Officer for the Morobe District. During this time
he became involved with Civil Defence as a regional coordinator. During his term
as safety engineer he was heavily involved in setting up National Weights and
Measures in PNG in preparation for independence. In 1971 he retired from the PNG
Public Service to take up the position of executive officer of the PNG Metric
Conversion Board. He retired from this position on independence and spent 12
months in Canberra. He and his wife then went to Honiara in the Solomon Islands
where he set up National Weights and Measures. The couple remained there until
1981 when they returned to Canberra.
From the early 1950s Bruce was active in church affairs, involving himself in
the construction of the new St. Johns church in Port Moresby and later becoming
a lay reader. In Canberra he continued his involvement with the church. For more
than 20 years he was actively involved with TADACT (Technical Aid for the
Disabled ACT). For most of his adult life he was actively involved with the
Masonic Lodge.
Bruce is survived by his son and daughter, three grandchildren and four great
grandchildren.
Brian Digby (Una Voce - June 2003)
