OAM for Peter
Warragul resident Peter Rowse was taken completely by surprise when informed he was to be made a Member of the Order of Australia (OAM).
The award announced in the Queen’s Birthday honours list yesterday was for Mr Rowse’s service to the community through a range of church organisations.
He said it had “come out of left field” and was something he neither sought nor expected.
But Mr Rowse said he would never have been able to do what he did over more than 50 years without the support of his wife Marg.
It was a joint effort, Mr Rowse said, referring the backing he had from his family – his wife and three children – as he devoted large amounts of time spreading the Christian message and working on mission projects, including in Papua New Guinea.
He was a 12 year-old when his father and uncle bought a property at Warragul South to develop as a flower farm – Rowse Bros Pty Ltd – that Mr Rowse managed from 1972.
His local church was St Luke’s at Ellinbank, that closed earlier this year, but where he attended for 55 years and was a lay preacher and volunteer office bearer. But his commitments to church work spread much wider.
Mr Rowse helped establish the Christian Leaders Training College at Banz in the Western Highlands of PNG where he often spent two to three months a year helping the campus to expand, sometimes accompanied by Mrs Rowse and other family members.
He was a member of the college council and, since 1964, of its Australian advisory council and a member and director of Alliance Training Association PNG.
Closer to home but still eating heavily into Mr Rowse’s time away from the flower business for many decades were his memberships of management councils and as an office holder at Belgrave Heights Convention centre for Christian gatherings, the Bible College of Victoria, national and Victorian chair of Outreach and Church Ministries, a council member of Steer Incorporated to which stock and produce are donated to raise funds for ministry projects, and chairman of the Gippsland Christian Farmers Group camp. Mr Rowse remained on the land until 2009. He has also made some major contributions to several organisations outside his church commitments.
He was associated with the Gippsland Field Days for some 35 years as a committee member, director and chairman for three years for which he was awarded life membership, and was a committee member for 10 years and president for four of the Australian International Flower and Garden Show..