March 28, 2025

Dr John - a life well lived

Yesterday was another sharp reminder of the need to finish writing this book about the campaign to stop the pulp mill. Not that I really need a reminder but seeing so many of those who fought the good fight to stop it at John Ball’s funeral certainly brought the growing urgency into focus. John – and his wife Caroline - was another of my interviewees. And the second one who won’t be around to read the finished version. Always assuming I manage to find a publisher willing to publish it of course.


The funeral was a magnificent send-off for a talented man who certainly had lived life to the full, had many interests across multiple disciplines, and had explored, excelled and immersed himself in all of them. Not just his day job as a GP, but John was involved in theatre, choir, travel, (generally the more adventurous and rugged the better), bush walking, environmental conservation, gardening, literature, and social justice. And Caroline was with him all the way during their 62 years together.


John was no shrinking violet, and if you happened to stand next or near to him at a protest rally or march, you not only needed ear plugs, you also needed to be aware of the strong possibility you’d be caught in the media spotlight. John had a voice and he wasn’t afraid to use it. He was loud in his condemnation of whatever the issue involved. Generally this was to do with the protection of Tasmania’s forests, wilderness, and the environment, when I knew him. He was certainly vocal in his criticism of the pulp mill and the Liberal and Labor politicians who against all sense and reason, supported it. More recently, and despite increasingly poor health, he was loud in his support of the 2023 Referendum’s Yes vote, and his objections to the proposed third stadium, and the farmed salmon industry that has dominated Tasmania’s – and the nation’s headlines in the past few weeks.


I suspect that wherever he is, he’ll continue to rail against them!


Funerals are often occasions when we see people we may not have met up with for months or years. And so it was yesterday. There were many people there who campaigned equally hard against the pulp mill – or chemical factory as John often called it – with all of us showing signs of our advancing age.


Wonderful to see so many of them, but also a strong reminder I need to finally get this book written before attending the funeral of anyone else from that time. 

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