tribute to robert wood
 

Robert Wood 1937-2010.
SSPA President 1975/76, 1976/77, 1977/78, 1978/79

Robert Wood was eight years old and visiting a town near his home when he learnt that he was a ''dwarf'', as he was called by the children who teased and laughed at him. Shrugging off the taunts, he got stuck into everything physical available at his school - cadets, rugby and athletics. As a young adult, he was a popular member of his local rugby club and skied.

Robert Ferguson Wood was born in Colwyn Bay, North Wales. After a few years his family moved to Devon in England where his father took up a teaching post. His grandfather had been a teacher and clergyman in the Punjab during the days of the British Raj. His father was the head mathematics master at St Michael's, a prep school, in Devon. On his mother's side, his great-grandfather had been the first headmaster of Fettes College, Edinburgh, one of Scotland's top schools.

Perhaps this educational background explains why Wood became a wizard at the Herald crossword and was much in demand as a bridge partner. He reached the NSW bridge finals a few times.

In 1972, Wood set off to see the world and arrived in New Zealand, via Thailand and Malaysia. He saw an advertisement for asparagus pickers in NSW so he rounded up a team of New Zealanders (mostly Maoris) and headed over the Tasman. Picking asparagus is back-breaking work but easier for a man of his height. After a month, Wood was the only one of the team left standing. He later went to Sydney and joined the offices of P & O (Containers).

When he was settled he immersed himself in his passion, the plight of other people with disabilities. He married in 1983 but, unfortunately, this lasted only two years.

He became the president of the Little People's Association of Australia and featured in two 60 Minutes programs on the topic. Caroline Jones, of the ABC, interviewed him on radio and later used their conversation in her book The Search for Meaning.

As Bob Debus, the former state and federal politician, said in a message sent to the funeral: ''It is so easy to forget that it was only in the 1980s that we began to treat such simple measures as ramps as a normal part of urban living. Robert's work with the advisory committee of the lord mayor of Sydney in the early 1980s was absolutely crucial to the changes and ease of access that we see in Sydney today.''

After leaving P & O, Wood worked for many TAFE colleges in Sydney, helping people with disabilities in their class work and exams. Golf was another passion.

Many people begged Wood to write his memoirs so he moved to Leura in 1992 to become a writer. He continued with his TAFE work and also assisted the residents of a nursing home in Leura.

He joined a number of bridge schools, was a long-time board member of the Leura Golf Club and edited its newsletter.

When he rented a flat, he said: "I'll just be here for a year to write my memoirs", and stayed 15. Many professionals helped with the autobiography, In Over My Head. He received glowing praise from publishers, but also a kind letter of rejection.

Wood went into a nursing home in early 2007. In December that year he had a stroke that left his right side paralysed, and he lost his power of speech.

A group of 10 volunteers - mainly from Leura Golf Club, and a few bridge partners - tried to teach him to speak again, but with little success.

Robert Wood is survived by his elder brother, Anthony, sisters Penelope, Susan and Elizabeth and their families.

George Mackenzie