Prime Minister John Key wanted to have the opportunity to pay tribute to Sir Don. As he is currently overseas and can’t be here, he has asked that I read this message from him.
“I’m sorry I can’t be with you today, but it is an honour to send you this message as you mourn and celebrate the life of a famous Cantabrian and one of New Zealand’s great sons.
Professor Sir Don Beaven was a humanitarian, a pioneer in public health, and a medical scientist of the highest order.
In a lifetime of extraordinary achievement he was – among many things – the resident doctor in Karamea, A Fullbright Fellow at Harvard, an author of eight books and many articles, and a ground-breaking grower of grapes and olives.
In his younger days, Sir Don climbed mountains with Edmund Hillary and George Lowe. In his career, he scaled even greater heights.
He was a driving force behind the founding of the Canterbury Medical Research Foundation, the Christchurch Diabetes Association, and the Christchurch School of Medicine. He chaired the Canterbury Area Health Board. And he became a world authority on diabetes. He drove the establishment of diabetes support structures around the country and worked until his last days as an advocate for treatment of the disease.
His awards and honours were many. As a keen socialist and republican, it must have amused Sir Don to be appointed by the Queen a Commander of the British Empire in 1989, and a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2005. In August of this year, it was my great pleasure to attend the ceremony where he received the accolade of knighthood from the Governor-General.
A friend, a teacher, a colleague, and a mentor, Sir Don was an inspiration to many. His heart, his warmth, and his modest determination touched the lives of thousands of New Zealanders and people from around the world.
Today, the nation’s thoughts are with you all – Sir Don’s wife Gillian, his daughters Sarah and Lisa, his brother Bill and sister Betty, his family, his friends, and his colleagues – as you mourn the passing of this great man.
Sir Don may be gone, but his achievements endure. And his spirit will live forever in the many people he touched, the doctors and nurses he trained, and the thousands of patients who benefited from his work, in a lifetime of service to humanity.
I am thankful to have had the opportunity to pay tribute to this great man.”
John Key
Prime Minister of New Zealand |