Desmond James (Des) O'CONNOR

O'CONNOR, Desmond James

Service Number: VX116593
Enlisted: 26 November 1942
Last Rank: Lieutenant
Last Unit: Not yet discovered
Born: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 23 September 1917
Home Town: Canberra, Australian Capital Territory
Schooling: Christian Bothers College, North Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Occupation: Deputy Secretary Dept of Supply
Died: Natural Causes, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia , 28 September 2015, aged 98 years
Cemetery: Woden (Canberra) Public Cemetery, ACT
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Biography contributed by Alan O'Connor

Extract from the Eulogy for Des O'Connor.

Dad’s parents, Michael and Mary, migrated from Ireland separately in the 1890s. Dad was born in Melbourne in 1917, the youngest of nine children. From all accounts, life was hard, but all the family pulled together to emerge relatively unscathed from the depression years. One of Dad’s jobs was to bring in the cow for milking before going off to school – how times have changed.

 

Dad was the only member of the family fortunate enough to have the opportunity to further his studies and he eventually graduated from university with a degree in commerce and accounting. Education was important to Dad and he encouraged us to pursue our goals.

 

Dad’s memories from the time, however, were not of the hardships but of sport – one of Dad’s enduring passions. As an enthusiastic cricketer himself, Dad, at the age of 11, was on the boundary fence at the MCG to watch Don Bradman score his first test century, and he also bore witness to the infamous 1932 bodyline series. Dad also recalled seeing Kingsford-Smith’s plane flying overhead at the end of another of his many record‑breaking flights.

 

Dad met Mum before the war when they worked in the Post Office, and they married in 1947 after a long courtship. It was a perfect match, and they shared a great love of family, church and friends.  They were wonderful parents who always put their family first and our family has flourished as a result, with 6 children, 13 grandchildren and 10 great‑grandchildren.

 

Dad worked for 43 years in a range of Commonwealth Departments, starting in the Post Office in 1934. In 1942 Dad enlisted to serve in WW11 and was soon driving 3 tonne trucks around the Northern Territory. After a phone call from his boss the Chief Auditor of Victoria, Dad was put on a plane to Port Moresby in 1944 and served for 2 years in Audit there as well as Lae and Rabaul.

 

In 1956, he was promoted into the Department of Supply and worked on a wide range of projects – such as the munitions and aircraft factories, Australia’s Antarctic bases, the Woomera rocket range, the Mirage project, and NASA activities in Australia. One of Dad’s treasured possessions was a wonderful folder of pictures and a certificate signed by the Apollo 11 astronauts. This was presented to him by NASA in recognition of Australia’s assistance in providing the facilities to track the first moon landing.

 

In the early years, the Department of Supply had over 22,000 staff. Dad was mainly responsible for the finances, and, in that role, he became the first public servant to appear before a Senate Estimates Committee when the Estimates process began in 1970. At that time, only one person represented each department – it is a very different story now.

 

Dad acted as Secretary for some months before retiring as Deputy Secretary in 1977 at the age of 60. Following his retirement, he was awarded the OBE for his service. Dad was a very modest man and, although he was justly proud of his achievements, he was not one to talk about them.

 

In retirement Dad was a passionate handyman and supporter of the North Melbourne Football Club since it joined the league in 1925.  He played golf until 90 and became the sole carer for mum when she became ill in her late 80s.

He was a gentleman – and a gentle man with a great sense of humour.  He passed away quietly aged 98 in 2015.

By his children Alan, Patricia, Brian, Philip, Maureen and Anne

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