Vale Gary Fitzgerald: August 12 1949, Melbourne - December 24 2020, Ballarat
Obituary
Gary Fitzgerald was a gentle, whimsical man who immersed himself in Ballarat's community and civic life after his retirement. He particularly made his presence known to Councillors and visitors to Ballarat through dedicated service to Save Civic Hall, the Australian Labor Party and the Visitor Information Centre.
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His volunteering at the Elizabeth Brown Centre led him to realise how difficult it could be for the aged, infirm and disabled in our community. It was perhaps the catalyst that sparked his drive to try to make a difference when he did not get a satisfactory response from Council.
He was keenly interested in politics and was a candidate for Ballarat Council in the 2008, 2012 and 2016 elections. The Courier called him a 'Council watcher' because he rarely missed a meeting of the City of Ballarat Council. He was amongst large crowds when matters of widespread concern were being discussed and voted on, such as the fate of the Civic Hall, the new CBD parking system, Council flying the LGBTQIA flag, and the lack of an Australian flag at the Eureka Centre. More often than not he was amongst a handful of attendees, sitting at the front, often interjecting and always ready with questions to keep Councillors on their toes.
Gary was keen to see the community retain access and control of the Civic Hall and became a founding member of the Save Civic Hall group. He lodged many of the applications made under Freedom of Information to obtain elusive documents. A ground-breaking coup for the group was his securing, after a year of pursuing through review and appeal, the 2014 Heritage Adviser's Report on the Civic Hall. This proved, contrary to the statements of Councillors and staff of that time, that the Hall was structurally sound and eminently suitable for its original purpose or to be adaptively modified for other uses. Mysteriously, the document could not be made directly available from the City of Ballarat!
'The People's Hall' was the title Gary suggested for the exhibition curated by SCH at Backspace Gallery in 2015. It was a fitting expression of how he saw the Hall, and the term has continued in use today.
Gary was a stalwart participant in Save Civic Hall meetings, fundraisers and other events. When SCH met, it was Gary who brought chocolate treats and he was very proud when SCH won a Ballarat Heritage Award in 2018. He was active in the group until this last year.
Another activity Gary greatly enjoyed was volunteering at the Visitor Information Centre, welcoming and answering the questions of visitors during special events such as the Archibald Prize exhibition and during quieter times.
Gary was also a longstanding member of the Labor Party and an Executive member of Ballarat East ALP.
As a Justice of the Peace Gary particularly worked with youths in trouble with the law. As an ITP (Independent Third Person) he would sit in on interviews when a parent or carer was unavailable, often in the early hours of the morning.
Gary grew up and lived in Melbourne before moving to Ballarat. He worked for Clark's Shoes as a sales representative, often travelling all around Victoria.
Gary was actively involved in Cubs and Scouts, becoming the District Scout Leader for the Caulfield District and enjoying many years of organising activities and camping. He was well respected and always up for a laugh.
Gary enjoyed getting out and about, including eating out - especially when it came to dessert time and he loved his dogs.
As he became more incapacitated with Parkinson's disease, Gary's friends were struck by his determination to continue both his community activities and those things that gave him pleasure.
He spoke up for accessible access at the Ballarat Railway Station as part of the campaign to provide a better result for the community in the Station redevelopment, and still enjoyed attending the monthly lunch at the Ballarat Old Colonists' Club, even if it involved the indignity of crawling up the steps.
He is much missed by everyone who knew him.
A private ceremony will be held to celebrate the life of Gary Fitzgerald. Interested friends should contact Merle Hathaway, 0419 324042.
"A gentleman"
Mr Fitzgerald will be recognised at the first council meeting for 2021 on January 27.
Councillor Samantha McIntosh worked closely with Mr Fitzgerald on a number of projects - one, an audio walking tour of Town Hall which won a prestigious state government award last year, was his brainchild, which he pitched directly to councillors.
She said his contributions were "enormous", as a volunteer and in the council chamber.
"He did it for years and he did it with a smile, he was a charming gentleman who cared so much about Ballarat," she said.
"With the protection and restoration of the Civic Hall, he was a very vocal individual in that space, but he didn't work as an individual, he worked with the community to ensure there was a voice heard.
"People might be concerned, bothered, excited about council issues - whatever it might be, they might not have the confidence to step forward and put their voice on record, and Gary had the confidence to do that every meeting."
Current mayor Daniel Moloney said he was sad to learn of Mr Fitzgerald's passing.
"He kept us to account, but always did it in a very kind and well-meaning way," he said.
"His comments and questions, while quite detailed, were always meant with the best interests of Ballarat in mind."
Cr Moloney said he often shared a whispered conversation with Mr Fitzgerald while at the council table.
"For a big part of the last four years, I sat at the end of the table right where Gary would always be, sometimes we'd exchange comments - he was good fun, and sitting on the end of the table and having whisper chats during the meeting about the proceedings with someone who genuinely cared is important, and I'll miss him."
He added Mr Fitzgerald's strong engagement with council was a "rarity".
"It's sort of a generational change- as councillors, and as a council, we can't expect people to come to us as Gary did, we need to go to where people want to engage," he said.
"He cared that much that he went out of his way to go to every meeting he could attend."
Fellow council-watcher and former councillor John Barnes also paid tribute - Mr Fitzgerald "became something of an institution at question time," he said.
"This was regularly acknowledged when successive mayors routinely called upon him to ask the first question of the night," he said.
"Gary strove to make council more accountable and open. He would be chuffed to think that other citizens might become active in local democracy, following his example."
- with Alex Ford
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