Vale Dr Colin Officer OAM, 1928 — 2017

Dr Colin Officer died in the closing hours of 2017. He was our friend and supporter for thirty years. Colin was the best kind of birdwatcher, that is, a conservationist. There are a number of reserves that Colin was instrumental in creating. The Dr Colin Officer Flora Reserve, a quality remnant bushland at Broadford in Victoria, is recognition of Colin's environmental advocacy. He received an OAM in 2004 for his work as an environmentalist and a medical practitioner in Seymour, Victoria.

An urbane gentleman of the old school, Colin was a bibliophile with an impressive knowledge of military history among myriad topics — not the least, natural history. His uncle was Brigadier Hugh R Officer, author of four books on Australian birds. His aunt Edith and father collected plant specimens, lodged at the NSW Herbarium, from Zara Station, Wanganella, when the Officer family owned Zara in the latter part of the 19th Century and early 20th. Some of these plant species have long been extinct on the Riverine Plain. Like his forebears, Colin understood that knowledge is the foundation stone of conservation.

Colin was one of those unforgettable clients who colour in our lives. His funeral was held at Christ Church in Seymour on Monday, 8 January 2018.