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Obituaries Ray Scott by Murray Horton Ray Scott was a CAFCA committee member from 1998-2002 and in that period played a full part in the whole spectrum of CAFCA activities. Ray had a great sense of humour, that innate Irish wit, which made him good fun at meetings and mailouts, etc. I have fond memories of the committee meetings that he regularly hosted in his New Brighton flat, particularly the one where we all turned up only to find that the place was empty. His landlady obligingly rang his favourite haunt, the local club, but he wasn’t there either, so we admitted defeat and hastily relocated the meeting. He shamefacedly told me the next day that he’d forgotten all about it. We only ever knew Ray in a wholly secular context, as a superannuitant who was very active in the Alliance, but he had previously been a Catholic priest for decades. Ray was actually the second current or former priest to serve on the CAFCA committee (first time around, decades ago, we used to hold meetings in the presbytery, complete with a housekeeper who made us supper. Every time I watch “Father Ted” on TV I remember that). Ray was on the committee at the same time as the late Reg Duder, who was a devout Anglican of the same vintage, so they made a couple of hard case old bookends to the rest of us heathens (my obituary of Reg is in Watchdog 117, April 2008, online at http://www.converge.org.nz/watchdog/17/07.htm). Ray was unique in that he invited himself onto the committee, we usually have to chase reluctant recruits. Indeed he joined CAFCA, in his late 60s, at the same time as he joined the committee. His stay with us wasn’t a long one, only four years, and after he left the committee, his membership also lapsed, he didn’t keep us up to date with his address, and we lost all contact with him. The last time I saw Ray was when Becky and I briefly bumped into him in town five years ago. That was it. The next time I saw him was in his coffin. I attended his memorial meeting in my neighbourhood Catholic church (the first time I’ve ever been to anything there, in my 27 years of living in Addington). Speaker after speaker spoke of his great spirituality; of his poetry (he’s the only person who’s ever written me a poem for my birthday); of his active commitment to social justice; of his love of life and specifically of golf and rugby (he died on the stroke of the Eden Park fulltime siren on a Saturday night, having seen the Crusaders safely through to the Super 14 semi-finals – which they lost, so he got out at the right time). And several speakers, including family members, spoke of his truly heroic snoring. One Catholic Worker activist brought the house down when he reported how he cured Ray of that, at least temporarily. Condemned to sharing a room with Ray overnight, he got out of bed, kissed Ray goodnight smack on the lips and had a sound night’s sleep, while Ray stayed awake all night. If only I’d known of that handy tip before I spent two sleepless nights with Ray in a very small hotel room when we went to Blackball for May Day 2000! See you later Ray (but only if you’re right and I’m wrong).
Ray Scott by Jim Consedine Ray Scott, who died of cancer in May 2009 in Christchurch aged 79, was known to many activists for his commitment to social justice. A trained teacher who grew up in Temuka, Ray travelled the world in the 1950s and taught in several countries including England (where he taught in the East End of London), Canada and Australia before returning home and entering a Catholic seminary, at the age of 38, to study for the priesthood. He made an immediate impact with his wide experience and his lively wit. Many a dull lecture was lit up with a Scott witticism to relieve the boredom! After ordination, Ray spent his first appointment as assistant at Sacred Heart parish, Addington, which three decades later hosted his Christchurch funeral. Here, among many other things, he distinguished himself by giving away all the parish money to the poor while the parish priest was on overseas leave for a few months. The latter was not amused! Appointments to other working class parishes included Woolston and Aranui, where he is remembered with great affection even after all these years. A Heart For Social Justice Ray always had a heart for social justice. Sadly, not everyone does. But he certainly did. He was busier than most in 1981 when the Springboks toured. He certainly looked a sight to behold when his five feet nothing tubby frame, dressed in helmet, shorts and sandals, took on the might of the pro-tour forces – week after week. Marching with Ray was always a treat as he joked his way along the roads and footpaths, always with a quick comment and a wide smile. He saw this commitment simply as an act of solidarity with deprived people in South Africa. Like many others, Ray was unsettled after the stresses and social upheaval of 1981. He took time out from the official ministry in 1982 and worked for some time with the Prisoners’ Aid and Rehabilitation Society as a field officer. About this time he teamed up with Marie Venning, who had also been very involved with the anti-tour movement and had also been working in the social justice area for some years. They later married and became an easily recognised couple when they appeared together at protest meetings and social gatherings. About this time, he and Marie joined the Ploughshares Solidarity movement which picketed the US military base at Harewood ( Christchurch Airport) each Friday night for some years during the 1980s. This group also conducted a campaign to close down Addington Remand Prison, and pictures of Ray on the picket line show his choice of fashion had remained constant – shorts and sandals were still standard garb for him. A deeply spiritual person, Ray linked up in 1990 with the Catholic Worker (CW) movement which had established “houses of hospitality” in Addington and which provided him not just with a spiritual framework which made sense to him but also a loose knit community with similar ideals. Ray’s pacifist stance and belief in simple lifestyle also fitted well with the CW. For some years, he was a regular attendee at the CW’s Wednesday night liturgies held in their houses in Addington. He also conducted a scripture study group he called “Ray’s Ramblings” every Friday morning at the CW Cardijn House, which attracted a small but faithful following. He joined the Alliance Party when it hit its hobbles in the 1990s and put in good work with them. Unfortunately his marriage ended in December 1997, after they had briefly moved to Whangarei and returned to Christchurch, and Ray was once again looking at his options. So he decided after some years to return to the official priesthood of the Catholic Church. In this he was encouraged by many of his activist friends, myself included, who sensed in him qualities which could best be expressed by him resuming such a vocation. His questioning mind remained as active as ever, but it was in this resumed role as a pastoral minister from 2001 in the North Island that he felt the best of his talents could be exercised for the benefit of others. A man deeply versed in history, poetry, scripture, theology and literature, he never regretted this decision and found in his last years a sense of fulfilment and peace through this pastoral work, finishing up in Napier (it was his wish to be brought back to Christchurch when he was dying, as he was a Cantabrian). His funeral services at Addington and later in Temuka, where he was buried, were each attended by several hundred people from all walks of life who recognised in him a quality of goodness not always evident in others. This cheerful character will be missed by many. May he rest in peace.
Ian Prior A Long-Term and Dedicated Worker for Disarmament by Nick Wilson Ian Prior was a member of, and an extremely generous annual donor to, CAFCA from 1993-99, and he was also an extremely generous donor to the CAFCA/ABC Organiser Account which provides Murray Horton’s income. He was among the very first to donate when it was set up in 1991 and his most recent donation was in 2004. He was actively involved in a multiplicity of campaigns for decades, some of which involved CAFCA. Nick Wilson is the Chair of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (NZ). This obituary was written for the Anti-Bases Campaign’s newsletter Peace Researcher 38, July 2009 and is also published in IPPNW (NZ)’s June/July 2009 newsletter. Ed. Ian Prior, who was well known to the New Zealand peace movement, died in February 2009, aged 85. Ian regarded the threat of nuclear weapons as a critical public health issue and w ith a group of physician friends he co-founded the New Zealand branch of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW)* in 1981. He played leading roles in the New Zealand branch (including as Chairperson), and provided sustained contributions to the international efforts of the organisation for over two and a half decades. *See “SIS Spied On CAFCA For A Quarter Of A Century”, by Murray Horton, in Watchdog 120, May 2009, online at http://www.converge.org.nz/watchdog/20/06.htm. That details the peace groups that the Director of the Security Intelligence Service has confirmed were the targets of its historic spying. IPPNW (NZ) was one of them. The Director explained that it had been necessary to spy on these groups because they had been infiltrated by “cynical Communists”. Ed. Ian was particularly good at engaging young doctors and medical students (myself included, back in the early 1980s) in a way that made them feel part of an important and worthwhile national and international effort. Another attribute was Ian’s ability to attract key international people to New Zealand to speak publicly on peace issues in well-orchestrated events. At these events it was easy to see what a great networker Ian was and how he engaged with politicians, diplomats, officials, scientists, artists and community leaders, both in New Zealand and internationally. As George Salmond* once wrote: “with great skill and sensitivity, Ian uses his networks to advance the cause of nuclear weapons abolition”. * George Salmond is a long standing member of IPPNW, a long term friend of Ian's and he was a key figure in the World Court Project. He is a former Director General of Health. Together with his late wife Elespie, Ian also provided critical financial resources to help IPPNW, particularly through the IPPNW Education and Research Trust. Elespie also provided strong and sustained emotional support to Ian, and frequently helped host IPPNW meetings at their Wadestown home. Ian contributed to many publications by IPPNW and other peace groups – and helped ensure that these were well produced, launched and distributed. He also contributed to various research projects, including work on the impact of nuclear testing [1] . The contribution that Ian made to nuclear disarmament activities has been well recognised, including in the book “The Health of Pacific Societies – Ian Prior's Life and Work”. George Salmond also spoke eloquently about his important role on National Radio (1/3/09, Radio NZ). Furthermore, IPPNW (NZ) has recently deposited its key documents with the National Archive and this means that future historians will be able to study more closely the contribution that Ian and his colleagues have made in the disarmament field. There was also other public recognition for Ian’s long and varied contributions to disarmament, the environment, to the arts and to advancing public health. In 1988 he was awarded an Honorary DSc. (Victoria University of Wellington) and in 1996 he was inducted as an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM). Various articles expand on Ian’s contributions in these other fields (e.g., [2-5] ), but to me his contributions to advancing public health and disarmament particularly stand out. References 1. Pearce N, Winkelmann R, Kennedy J, Lewis S, Purdie G, Slater T, Prior I, Fraser J: "Further follow-up of New Zealand participants in United Kingdom atmospheric nuclear weapons tests in the Pacific". Cancer Causes Control 1997, 8:139-145. 2. Pearce N: "Ian Prior and epidemiology in New Zealand". J Epidemiol Community Health 2009, (Published online 26/4/09). 3. Salmond G: Ian Ambury Miller Prior [Obituary]. N Z Med J 2009, 122:122-123. 4. Wallace C: Dr Ian Prior: MD2. ECOLink, March/April 2009:11. 5. Kitchin P: "Ian Ambury Miller Prior: Doctor, activist, patron of the arts". Otago Daily Times 2009, (11/4/09).
Dr Ian Prior MD by Cath Wallace This is an extract from Cath Wallace’s obituary of Ian Prior in ECOlink, March/April 2009. Ed. Born in Masterton in 1923, Ian had a distinguished medical career, and was a founder of public health and epidemiology in New Zealand. He was also very generous and energetic, but used sometimes to call himself “MD squared” – a pun on his medical condition (manic depression, now called bipolar disorder. Ed.) and his medical qualifications. He suffered deep bouts of depression with a manic depressive disorder but his upside was organised, energetic, directed, urgent and engaging – hence his extraordinary feats of activism and campaigning on many issues… Ian had an amazing knack for encouraging people, and for getting people to work together. His utterly egalitarian approach was profoundly blind to social status, though he made good use of those with wealth and connection. This was exemplified at his funeral at Old St Pauls in Wellington which was packed with activists, the “great and the good” of Wellington, family, former colleagues and which climaxed in a haka from Black Power and the presence of the Mongrel Mob. His epidemiological work with communities of the Pacific, particularly Tokelau, and Maori, particularly Tuhoe in Ruatahuna and Tikitiki left him with lifelong bonds with those communities… Ian was chairperson of the Environment and Conservation Organisations (ECO) from 1975 to 1982. He was one of the main founders of the Save Manapouri Campaign, the first environmental mass movement campaign that shook the Muldoonist Think Big, energy and capital intensive, environmentally destructive “development” strategy to its roots by challenging the damming of the Manapouri River by the Ministry of Works and Development for hydropower development… Ian’s work for the environment was mentioned only a little at his funeral but it was major. He chaired ECO at a time of campaigning against logging of native forests, damming of our wild and scenic rivers and during the energy and anti-nuclear campaigns. ECO pressed with other groups successfully for the creation of national parks. Ian was one of the founders of ECO and he lent knowledge and expertise to the campaign against nuclear power…For him, peace, environment, health and social justice were all connected… Ian was well aware of the continuing environmental problems, even after he left the helm of ECO. In 2005 he was one of many distinguished and other people to sponsor an appeal to voters to prioritise climate change policies in their voting in the election. Non-Members:
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