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in Opotiki, he taught himself the basics and later intricacies of our discipline. He always did his homework before attending a field trip by obtaining and reading up on all the available scientific papers he could find. Often he was able to provide the answer to a geological question when the trip leader didn’t know or couldn’t remember. In 2002, Bill was pleased to be able to lead 25 Geoclubbers around the geological features of his Opotiki area, and he was looking forward to this year’s GSNZ Conference coming to his Bay of Plenty patch. Just the weekend before he died, Bill joined Geoclub for a 4 day trip to North Cape geology. He was so keen, that he caught a bus to Auckland and back (nearly a full day trip each way), as Jill had to stay home to help look after the latest grandchild that had just arrived that week. Bill had been researching Northland’s geology and was full of questions and comparing it to his local East Coast area. At the last stop of the trip, Bill was happy to pronounce that Northland’s Runaruna mud volcano was far bigger and better than the many he had visited up and down the East Coast. Bill will be sorely missed by the New Zealand geological community. Those of us in the north will also miss his great company and geological map reading skills. Our sympathies go to Jill and their family. Photo: Bill Wingate explaining the detailed tephra stratigraphy of a grass-covered road cutting, inland Whakatane, April 2002. GSNZ Newsletter 143 (2007) Page 26
John Patrick Anthony O’Brien OBE, ED Geologist – Soldier – Family Man 1942 – 2007 Rick Sibson, Dunedin (with help from J. Ash, J. Ashby, R. Briggs, M. Brown, A. Happy, and K. Stanaway) John O’Brien left us suddenly and without warning on February 14, 2007. To those of us who passed through the University of Auckland Geology Department in the late 1960’s - under the benign sway of Arnold Lillie and Nick Brothers – we had lost our Sergeant Pepper. John’s life and career were hugely influenced by a father he barely knew. A Major in the NZ Army Medical Corps, Desmond O’Brien was killed in Egypt in the last days of World War II. Mother Kitty was a physiotherapist, sister Maureen a doctor who spent many years in Beirut. John was, in a sense, an accidental geologist. His early university life had been driven by a wish to follow the family tradition in medicine, first at Otago University (where he satisfied another personal goal by enlisting as a paramedic in the Territorial Force of the NZ Army) and then in Auckland where he pursued a BSc in Chemistry as an alternative path to Medical School. Geology was taken as a filler but eventually won him over and he went on to complete an MSc with Honours in Geology. As our senior by a few years, John was mentor, advisor about life in general and, to some extent, father confessor. This extended not only to the blokes but also to young women who, much to his exasperation, persisted in regarding him as an entirely trustworthy father figure to whom they could pour out their hearts. An unquenchable party man, he was always good for an argument, rarely making concessions. At a memorable graduate party at the Brothers where pitchers of martini were offered to unsuspecting beer drinkers (Nick had just returned from a Californian sabbatical and thought the department needed toning up) it was only John who was unfazed when Rhoda Lillie swept in declaiming “Well lads, what shall we talk about – religion, politics or sex”. He was game to discuss all three and at great length. His paramedical abilities were also in demand – he was drafted as a field assistant on Geology Department field research in New Caledonia. No band-aid medic, he relishing the prospect of injuries arriving fully armed with splints and tourniquets. Work as an exploration geologist took him first to the Northern Territories of Australia in search of uranium, and then to Thames in Coromandel re-evaluating the Monowai Reef and other gold prospects. It was about that time that he met up with the twin Rowland sisters, recent arrivals from Lebanon, one of whom – Karen became his wife in 1977 and the other, Kate, a lifelong friend. It was also during this period that he developed an enduring professional relationship and friendship with another exploration geologist - Ian Grant – together they went on to establish a consultancy group - Applied Geology Associates (AGA) - which expanded rapidly operating throughout New Zealand, up into the Pacific, and to Southeast Asia. Projects included mineral exploration, rehabilitation of old dredging ground in Malaysia, geotechnical engineering including quarry, landfill, and slope design, and aggregate supply for industrial development in the Auckland area. AGA grew to become one of the leading non-governmental employers of geologists in Australasia but was not immune GSNZ Newsletter 143 (2007) Page 27
Page 1 and 2: GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF NEW ZEALAND (
Page 3 and 4: A Multilayered Society and its Link
Page 5 and 6: GENERAL AWARDS McKay Hammer Award T
Page 7 and 8: Historical and contemporary perspec
Page 9 and 10: 97% methane and 3% carbon dioxide.
Page 11 and 12: which nitrogen fertiliser use is es
Page 13 and 14: Hogg AG, Higham, TFG, Lowe DJ, Palm
Page 15 and 16: The result of all this since 1980 h
Page 17 and 18: Longdill, Peter due Aquaculture (Am
Page 19 and 20: A response to the NZJGG call for pa
Page 21 and 22: THE TERRY LEACH SCHOLARSHIP FOR POS
Page 23 and 24: Obituary: Colin George Vucetich 191
Page 25: Colin was always a field scientist.
Page 29 and 30: Phillip Alan Maxwell, 5 April 1940-
Page 31 and 32: subsample broken down by crystallis
Page 33 and 34: archaic whale (archaeocete) skull f
Page 35 and 36: NEW ZEALAND ROCKS Development of Mu
Page 37 and 38: and their inner slopes (Auckland Do
Page 39 and 40: and widening the Pakuranga-Panmure
Page 41 and 42: www.ausimm.co.nz AUSIMM - NZ BRANCH
Page 43 and 44: 5. No past or present member of Ota
Page 45 and 46: NOTICES OVERSEAS’ THESES ……
Page 47 and 48: officers. I am especially grateful

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