Brian Mellar’s faith was a driving force in his life
Brian Mellar, who has died aged 87, was a man who lived his life following a seemingly simple but, in his case, far-reaching Christian principle.
At the time he was awarded in 2007 the Queen’s Service Medal (QSM) for services to his community Brian told the Waikato Times he had, as a youngster, been influenced by a Bible passage in the book of Matthew that described Jesus preaching about feeding the hungry and housing the homeless.
‘‘I tried to model my life on that,’’ he said simply.
Often such life choices can result in little of pragmatic worth to one’s community. However, in Brian’s case, his faith was to have lasting results for many less fortunate than himself.
Born in Waitara, Taranaki, to market gardeners Walter and Sylvia, Brian moved with his family to Hamilton when he was aged about four after his mother inherited a house in Wilson Street in Hamilton East.
Brian started school at St Mary’s in Hamilton, then went to Hamilton East School for about four years, and finally Marist and Hamilton Technical College (Fraser Tech).
Brian’s childhood years were tough – his father Walter suffered a debilitating stroke when Brian was about 11 and, in a pre-DPB world, the family struggled financially.
One result was Brian, who as a boy owned a good raincoat but not too much else, used to prefer his churches cold.
However, daughter Jeni Palmer said the hard times growing up gave Brian his faith and his compassion for people who were worse off.
When Brian left school in 1950, he worked for the State Hydro Electricity Department in Peachgrove Road as a draughtsman.
A keen sportsman, he played senior rugby for Fraser Tech through most of the 1950s and was recognised as a bowler with excellent figures in club cricket.
Brian left his parents’ home in 1960 when he married Opotiki girl Jill Roache, who had moved to Hamilton to train as a nurse at Waikato Hospital.
The couple built a house in Donny Avenue, in the new suburb of Chartwell, and by 1965 they were the proud parents of Robyn, Susan, and Stephen.
In 1966 they moved to Napier on promotion and daughter Jennifer arrived, followed by Greg, who they adopted in 1968. The family moved to Palmerston North in 1970 and son Philip was born.
In 1972 the couple moved to Putaruru where they opted for a more relaxed lifestyle and ran Mellars Nurseries in Overdale Road for 10 years before returning to Hamilton, where Brian returned to his job draughting and Jill went back nursing at Waikato Hospital.
The decision to return to Hamilton was a fortunate one for many in this city as Brian threw himself into active community work for more than 30 years as part of his faith.
During their time in the Catholic
Church Brian was heavily involved in the Society of St Vincent de Paul, an outreach organisation which aims to provide practical help to the needy. Brian began his association with the society in 1964, when still a young man, and rose to be Hamilton District President and a National Councillor for four years in the late 1980s.
During this time, he helped run emergency housing in Hamilton East which provided accommodation for four families and assisted with administration for the Ave Maria House for battered women and children. (The house had previously been a home for Catholic nuns and had 11 bedrooms. Most nights it was full.)
He later assisted with the men’s night shelter in Frankton.
In 1986 he approached the first bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hamilton, Edward Gaines, about using land next to St Matthew’s Church in Silverdale to build affordable housing for the elderly.
The project, called the John Paul Vincentian Trust – Housing for Older People, built 57 mostly one-bedroom units which were made available to all who had few savings, regardless of faith.
In addition, Brian worked as a lay chaplain and visitor at Waikeria Prison.
‘‘It was amazing what a difference that makes, the prisoners have just got someone to talk to,’’ he once told the Waikato Times.
In the early 1990s Brian and Jill moved to the Pentecostal Gateway Church.
The move was to see yet more community outreach work, although this time it was on an international platform.
In 1994 the couple decided to lead a mission to Uganda’s northern Urua region for nine months where Brian worked in horticulture and Jill in healthcare.
The mission was a large one and involved the shipment of three or four shipping containers of materials, including a truck.
They returned to Hamilton for some years before setting off again, in 1999, to the United Kingdom where they worked in the Betel drug and alcohol rehabilitation programme in Birmingham where they lived with 37 male ex-convicts.
They finally settled in Flagstaff where Brian, a great vege gardener, cultivated a legendary patch capable of feeding their now large extended family, which included 20 grandchildren.
Brian was the husband of the late Jill; father of Robyn, Sue and Mike, Steve and Nancy, Jeni and Kevin, Greg and Lynette, and Phil and Bar; and a much loved Poppa of 20 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.