Educator, environmentalist always guided by his conscience
George Eugene Lusty, 1948–2022
The 2020 lockdown posed a challenge for George Lusty. As an educator and a man of deep intelligence he was no habitual law breaker, yet George also had a lifelong social conscience. Of the generation that actively protested against the Vietnam War, he joined the Values Party in the early 1970s, a reflection of his commitment to the environment.
‘‘There was nothing plain or usual about Dad’’, says youngest son Giles about a father who was ‘‘unequivocally enthusiastic and undauntingly free from embarrassment’’.
The Mangaonua Esplanade, a gully in Silverdale, Hamilton, was the focus of George’s passion in 2020. It had been for several years and was to be until his dying day. Restoring native forest, weeding, planting, fixing fences, maintaining the path and clearing the gully of the huge amounts of rubbish that had been dumped by the unthinking over a long period of time, this was the project that drove him in his retirement. George was the leader of the Friends of Mangaonua, a small but dedicated team which met every Thursday, to work on the site. Additionally, he took on all the administrative work, liaising with Hamilton City Council, creating reports and buying tools and had recently established the group as a formal charity.
George’s personal labours in the gully went far beyond Thursdays. In the summer months he would transport water containers in the boot of his car, trek down to the gully and carefully water the new plants. When lockdown restrictions prescribed that all such activity must stop, he considered his options then kept on with work he thought vital and in the national interest.
A natural orator, no stranger to debate or articulating a position, George was well equipped to deal with the constabulary when they happened upon the Mangaonua Esplanade and demanded an explanation. No charges were laid.
George Eugene Lusty was born on December 29, 1948 in Hamilton, the first of three children of Keith Bevan Lusty, a returned soldier and salesman and Sheila Ruth Lusty (ne´ e Egan). His beginning was less than auspicious: en route to Waikato Hospital with his wife in labour, Keith ran over a black cat.
George took pride in his mixed, European ancestry, particularly his family’s Scottish and Irish heritage.
When George was in infancy the Lustys shifted to Ō torohanga. Living conditions in a transit camp proved a challenge for a growing family, with shared toilets and a lack of adequate sanitation. Things improved with a later relocation to a house in Pine St, from where George attended primary school.
The family shifted again, this time to Raglan. If the new school, like the previous, was staffed by the under-qualified, George nevertheless excelled, enjoying his first exposure to te reo and learning to swim. Returning to Ō torohanga, he completed his primary education and thereafter distinguished himself at Ō torohanga College, displaying particular aptitude in languages.
Enrolling at Auckland University, George pursued a youthful dream of becoming a marine biologist before embracing his natural strengths and completing a bachelor of arts degree, majoring in English. He was proud of the fact that he was in the first intake of students to learn te reo at the institution and drew particular satisfaction from visits to marae, listening to kuia and kaumā tua who had themselves never spoken English.
Towards the end of his life, George combined two of his grand passions, education and the environment, teaching a very hands-on course on ‘‘gully restoration’’ for the newly established adult-education school EarthDiverse.
While at teachers’ training college, George’s activism in the anti-Vietnam War movement extended to him showing up to a formal meeting at the United States embassy with the stars and stripes flag neatly stitched into the backside of his jeans, symbolism whose meaning was transparent.
George’s first teaching position at a coastal high school saw him adopt an innovative methodology, taking his English class for unauthorised trips to the beach, using a stick in the sand to teach the nuances of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. He subsequently taught English and social studies at his alma mater, Ō torohanga College, then at Te Awamutu High School before resuming tertiary study in Wellington. At Victoria University he enrolled in graduate courses concerned with the teaching of English as a second language, graduating with a master of arts with 2nd class honours.
Back in Te Awamutu, George met Patricia (Trish) Benge. They married and then travelled extensively, visiting the United Kingdom, Ireland and Mexico, with
George exploring his ancestral roots.
In March 1985, George began what was to be a 32-year career at Wintec, initially teaching in the field of general studies, which later became part of the School of Design and Communication, then Communication and Media Arts. In the words of colleague Cate Prestidge, he made ‘‘an important contribution academically, collegially, and culturally’’. George’s ‘‘fine academic brain’’ and attention to detail were complemented by an affinity with students and advocacy for inclusive education and the promotion of teo reo Mā ori, which, Prestidge says, ‘‘he spoke with both fluency and modesty’’.
In his capacity as programme manager George mentored and advised thousands of students, supported colleagues and provided academic rigour to programme committees and curriculum development. Holding the institution ‘‘to account over Mā ori and Pasifika learners’’ he influenced ‘‘every module descriptor in the school with the inclusion of LO (learning outcomes) related to Te Tiriti’’.
George and Trish had three children, whom they raised on a lifestyle block in Tauwhare, complete with a multitude of animals and carefully cultivated flora. ‘‘Family’’, says Giles, ‘‘was . . . Dad’s everything and we are blessed that he made sure that we knew it’’. In recent years, he and partner Maxine Fraser dined every Wednesday night with his daughter Lillian, revelling in the company of a beloved grandchild, the party often swelling to include Lillian’s siblings.
On the Te Iti o Hauā marae at Tauwhare, where George was respected for his command of te reo and informally adopted, he was known as a quiet man, more inclined to smile than to laugh. Elsewhere, especially in the company of family, his oratorical skills knew few bounds. Fond of telling stories and imparting knowledge, all occasions, grand or small, were favoured with wellchosen words, so much so that his preliminary body language and opening remarks became the stuff of ritual. Family history, Ireland, gullies and his children counted as his favourite topics.
Towards the end of his life, George combined two of his grand passions, education and the environment, teaching a very hands-on course on ‘‘gully restoration’’ for newly established adult education school EarthDiverse.
If George’s sudden and wholly unexpected death has robbed his current students of a mentor, expressions of respect and admiration were no less apparent from those whose lives he shaped at the secondary and tertiary level. One message perhaps encapsulated his success as an educator: ‘‘He was an incredible and knowledgeable man who inspired me and made me and made every single one of his students work and strive to achieve their best.’’
George Eugene Lusty died on May 25, 2022. He is survived by his children Lillian, Thomas and Giles, grandson Cliff and partner Maxine.