Deaths

of Islands People

Mrs M.A. McGowan Mrs Minnie Ada McGowan, a member of the Rosa family, well known in Fiji many years ago, died recently in Suva, aged 94. She married Mr Gordon McGowan, whose family was, and is, equally well-known there. Her husband took over the Rosa family plantation on Laucala Island and ran it for many years, before selling it to Morris Hedstrom, who sold the plantation to American millionaire publisher Malcolm Forbes about two years ago. Mr and Mrs McGowan, after selling the plantation, liv ed in Suva. Mr McGowan died several years ago.

Mr K. Itaia Mr Kiritome Itaia, an assistant educa tion officer in the Gilbert Islands, died suddenly recently, aged 46. Mr Itaia, who eame from Nikunau, joined the teaching service in 1955, and served on a number of auter islands. He leaves a widow and nine children.

Mr A. Tekinaiti Mr Ata Tekinaiti, 47, buying officer for lie Gilbert Islands Co-operative Federa 'ion, died recently after a short illness. He oined the government service after World Var II and in 1959 moved over to the Wholesale Society. When the merchan iising section of the society was ransferred to the Co-operative Federa ion, Mr Tekinaiti joined the federation taff. He leaves a widow and three hildren.

Father L. Joerger The Rev Father Leo Joerger, who spent bout 25 years in Papua New Guinea as a lissionary, died after a road accident near ort Moresby in July. He was 56. Father oerger, a member of the Society of the >ivine Word, a missionary order, went to NG from Illinois, US. He spent 23 years i Chimbu, covering most parts of the

rovince and learning the languages. He

ent to Port Moresby in 1975 to work with himbu people and others in urban ttlements.

Mr N. Weston Mr Norman Weston, who spent 12 :ars in Papua New Guinea from 1930 to >42, died recently. He went to Salamaua 1930 to join his brother, Bert, in a imber of construction contracts. He then ined Guinea Airways at Lae, and helped develop the airfield there, and set up the rlift of dredges to Bulolo. Just before orld War II he helped to erect radio

towers at Port Moresby, and worked on extensions to the Samarai wharf. He then worked in Sydney, helping to produce war equipment, till engaged by W.R.

Carpenter to help to construct a coconut oil plant in Fiji. He was seriously injured in a fall in NSW in 1971, and that put him in hospital for the five years before his death.

Mr H.M. Van Deusen Mr Hobart Merritt Van Deusen, an authority on the taxonomy of the mar supials, monotremes, bats and rodents of Papua New Guinea and Australia, died recently in the United States, aged 65. He was Archbold curator emeritus of the American Museum of Natural History, New York. He took part in several of the museum’s Archbold expeditions to study the geographic distribution and ecology of plant and animal life in PNG, Australia and Indonesia. He was leader of the 7th ex pedition in 1964.

Mr J. Herman Mr John Herman, manager of A.B.

Donald Ltd, at Aitutaki, Cook Islands for 25 years, died recently. He worked for the firm for about 36 years.

Mr E. D. Mallett Mr Evelyn Douglas (Sonny) Mallett, a former resident of Norfolk Island, where he was born in 1897, died at Maitland, NSW, in July. He expected to return to the island in September to celebrate his 80th birthday. His career covered banking in NSW and on Norfolk Island, and postal duties and farming on the island. He serv ed in the armed forces in both world wars, celebrating his 21st birthday in the trenches in France. He is survived by his wife, former Norfolk Islander Mercia (Met) Nobbs.

Lady Ellis

Lady Ellen Brewster Ellis, formerly of Suva, died in London on July 19. Her hus band, Sir Howard Ellis, who predeceased her, was a lawyer in Suva senior partner of the firm of Ellis, Munro and Warren, which later became Munro, Warren, Leys and Kermode, and now Munro and Leys.

Miss Sifaga Esau Miss Sifaga Esau, a highly-respected member of the Samoan community in New Zealand, died recently at Auckland.

She was born at Lotopaga, Western Samoa, in 1903, the daughter of a Methodist minister. She had hundreds of adopted relatives and friends and was known as “mother” to many Samoans in New Zealand. She was a special member of three extended families the Folasas, the Sa’os and the Methodist Avoka Girls’

School, where she was the first Samoan teacher. She adopted many children from her extended families.