Neil Baker |
Neal Baker, an adjudicator and debater for the DAV and the Monash Association of Debaters, died in 1998 after a long illness. After his death, the DAV adults debating competition was renamed the Neal Baker Shield. The following tribute was written by Raymond D'Cruz and published in Tirade, the magazine of the Debaters Association of Victoria, Number 5, December 1998.
What struck me most about Neal Baker throughout his life was his sense of optimism. No matter how deeply life tested this sense, Neal was up to the challenge. In the five years that I knew Neal, he could be described as a young man on a mission to serve others. In particular, he was dedicated to the development of young school debaters.
When I was Schools Secretary and I was desperate for an adjudicator, Neal would oblige, despite having to travel considerable distances, and despite not always feeling the best. His view was that six kids should not have to spend so much time preparing a debate to turn up and not have an adjudicator. Debating empowered Neal, because it was a forum where he had an opportunity to use his intelligence and wit; he wanted others to share this.
He loved to teach kids, thriving in the exhibition debate environment. I remember one particular day where he debated in an exhibition debate before a number of schools in the Hobson’s Bay area. The kids were new to debating, and when time came for their assessment of the debate, Neal was unanimously their favourite - everyone else on the other hand received a compehensive rebuke from the young aficionados.
Neal particularly loved the parliamentary style of debating, and, for better or for worse, modelled himself on his hero Paul Keating. Probably this was for the worse, as I remember one speaker giving him a point of information, only to be met with Neal running his finger up and down his lips making that blabbering noise that Paul Keating would make in some of his more unparliamentary performances!
His enthusiasm for debating and adjudicating took him to intervarsity championships, where he represented his university, Monash. I was recently in the company of a number of Filipinos and Malaysian university debaters who were all upset to hear of Neal’s passing. Neal may have only conversed with them a few times before he and his international friends went home, but he made an impact.
He was Monash through and through; he loved the club and was in every activity that the club could arrange. He was intensely proud of the club’s achievements. One year Neal arranged an activity of his own: the MAD footy tipping competition, which he subsequently won. His early lead in the competition met the suspicion of the other participants and by mid-season as Neal had pulled out a handy lead, the accusations of impropriety started flying thick and fast. Of course, the accusers - who shall remain nameless (Dan Celm) - were just trying to wind Neal up, and it worked! The office walls became littered with accusatory and counter-accusatory letters from the organiser and the participants. Neal started publicly announcing his tips and he still ended up winning.
None of us will ever be able to understand how difficult it was to be Neal. I think that in his eulogy Graham Baker hinted that one of the reasons why Neal had such a passion for social justice and empowerment was because he understood what social prejudice and misunderstanding was. What always amazed his friends was both his courage and his passion to create. Neal was not satisfied simply coping with difficulties - including many operations - he went a step further in his life by adding to the lives of others.
Though Neal has passed away, he continues to have an impact on the organisations he put so much into. The Challenge Ladder competition Neal rejuvenated with passion and zeal continues to be the main forum for post-school debaters. Accordingly this competition's shield has now been named in honour of him. Both the DAV and MAD have been enriched with his participation, work and enthusiasm.
And we, his friends, will remain constantly inspired for the rest of our lives by his life.
This is a tribute to Neal as a person and the family that sustained him for 26 years. We thank Graham and Joan (Neal’s parents), Sally (his sister), and his extended family for being a positive and sustaining life force behind a man who has influenced us forever. |
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