OBITUARYMal a truerural advocateBy BRAD COOPERATRUE champion of rural life and afierce advocate of <strong>Australian</strong> <strong>Lowline</strong>swas lost late last year with the passingof veteran journalist and passionatesmall breeds promoter Malcolm McCosker.Retiring from his post at Queensland CountryLife due to illness in August 2011, just threemonths shy of 50 years’ service to the paper,Malcolm, 73, died in Brisbane on December 4.He left behind his second wife Chrissy, daughtersGabrielle and Danielle, son Malcolm froman earlier marriage, stepchildren Rory andChristina McLeod, and eight grandchildren.Tributes from all corners of rural Queenslandand beyond flowed as news of Malcolm’spassing spread.“He was an enthusiastic and energetic promoterof small cattle breeds – possibly moreso than any journalist in Australia,” saidMargo Hayes, Vitulus <strong>Lowline</strong> Stud, Thornton,Queensland.QCL general manager John Warlters saidMalcolm was positive in his outlook throughouthis battle with cancer.“He was up for the fight and had lost none ofhis sense of humour,” he said. “That’s one ofthe things I loved about him – with a fewquick words he could capture the moment andunselfishly make the other person feel at ease.“It was a knack that endeared him to QCWAladies, showgirls, young judges and youngambassadors alike in his role as a judge,master of ceremonies and awards compere.”John said Malcolm was “an editor’s dream”for his can-do attitude and ability to churnout lively and engaging copy, often underpressure and working to tight deadlines.“Words came easily to Mal. His writingconnected with readers not only because heknew his stuff, but because he was a naturalstoryteller,” he said. “His descriptions ofWestern and North West Queensland wereWilbur Smith-like. The way he saw peoplewas the way he described them in his stories.“They weren’t tall or short, big or small, buthad skin like tanned leather, were whipcordthin and rode bucking four-wheelers.”Current QCL editor Mark Phelps said Malcolmwas a champion of rural Australia, particularlyrural Queensland.16 AUSTRALIAN LOWLINE CATTLE ASSOCIATION JOURNAL <strong>2012</strong>“Mal had an outstanding knowledge– not just of beef, but also ofdairy, pigs and poultry,” Mark said.“He seemed to know about everything. Hecould speak with authority on the behaviour ofwildlife, how to produce honey or what wasinvolved in preparing a prize-winning fruitcakefor the QCWA, or how to snig a log outof the depths of some hidden valley in hisbeloved Sunshine Coast hinterland.“But it was much more than just a broadknowledge – Mal was genuinely passionateabout rural people and had the gift of beingan outstanding storyteller.”Malcolm’s lifetime contribution to rural journalismwas recognised last year when he wasthe inaugural inductee into the QueenslandRural Press Club’s journalism hall of fame.Born at Nambour on the Sunshine Coast onMarch 30, 1938, the second of seven childrenof Edward and Margaret McCosker, Malcolmspent his early childhood on their dairy farmat Mapleton and then up to his teenage yearson a relative’s pineapple farm at Beerwah.He attended Beerwah State School and thenNambour High School, where he completedan agriculture course that helped to inspire hislifelong interest in all things of the land.In 1954 he returned to the family farm atMapleton and became actively involved in theJunior Farmers Organisation, and he representedQueensland as a farm exchangee toNew Zealand for three months in 1959.During that study tour, Malcolm supplied writtenreports of his NZ experiences to his localpaper, the Nambour Chronicle, as well asQCL, a practice that probably helped to honehis later flair for journalism.Seeking a new career, Malcolm applied forand was accepted into the editorial departmentof QCL on November 11, 1961, workingunder legendary editor Wallace Skelsey.In 1975 he was appointed editor.He received the Queen’s Jubilee Medal in1975 and was honoured with the OAM in the1988 Australia Day Order of Australia list forservices to rural industry and rural journalism.Malcolm said it was the unique character ofcountry people, their generosity, honesty andenormous capacity of triumph over adversitythat had remained consistent during his nearhalf-century career. It was that element ofthe job that he said he would miss most.Mal was genuinelypassionate about ‘rural people.’
<strong>2012</strong> AUSTRALIAN LOWLINE CATTLE ASSOCIATION JOURNAL 171576384