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36 - THE OLD VIRGILIANWith Old VirgilianShannon Boyd SVC 1996• Murray Fisher(August 28 1945 – March 3 2015)Some thoughts from John Shaw.Murray Fisher died on March 3 2015.His funeral was held at the Church ofthe Holy Spirit in Sandy Bay on 11March 2015.Murray attended St Virgils CollegeBarrack Street from 1953-1964. Murraywas a good student at St Virgil’s,popular and was always fun to bearound. He was an accomplishedfootballer and was at one time referredto by Br Quilligan as, “gentlemanFisher” for his manner of play.He was proud to be an Old Virgilianand remained active in the OldVirgilians Association, serving on theOVA committee and at times coeditingthe OVA newsletter with BobScanlon and Bob Hamilton.He sailed overseas to the UK soonafter leaving school and spent sometime living in London with fellow oldboys, Jerry Langdale and GerardMcGarry, and the popular Mayor ofBrighton, Tony Foster. Some of hisLondon mates travelled frominterstate to attend his funeral.Besides working overseas in Londonand Toronto, Canada, Murray workedfor over 30 years in the TasmanianState Public Service, covering anumber of Departments includingPremier and Cabinet and Treasury,and he was on the staff of a number ofLabour and Liberal Ministers. Duringthe 1970s he was an adviser to the lateMichael Barnard, the Labour Ministerfor Tourism.A highlight of Murray’s career was histime working for Robin Gray, theLiberal Premier of Tasmania duringmost of the 1980s. When thegovernment changed in 1989 Murrayvery nearly scored a job with theincoming Labour Premier, MichaelField. However, according to Murray,the Greens objected to theappointment. When the Liberals werereturned to office during the 1990s,Murray worked for Liberal PremierRay Groom. I can’t think of anyoneelse who has worked on the staff ofMinisters from both politicalpersuasions. So what does all thisbi-partisanship tell us about MurrayFisher? Well I suggest that it not onlytells us how good he was at his job, butalso how much he was liked bypoliticians on both sides of politics.He was seen as a political asset bymany because of the way he was able toengage with all kinds of people atevery level. He had the ability to bringpeople together. He had a greatsaying which I think helped him dothat. He would often say to peoplewhen talking about his political boss“He thinks very highly of you.” It maynot always have been accurate, but itoften helped in difficult situations.Murray was a great raconteur andstoryteller. I have no reason to doubtany of them. There is one that I canJuly 2015 Vol. 23 No. 33
THE OLD VIRGILIAN - 37recall. It was when Murrayaccompanied former Premier RobinGray to Davos in Switzerland for theannual World Economic Forum.Being a Roman Catholic, Murray wentto Mass on Sunday morning and aftermass met the Federal LabourTreasurer Paul Keating and his wifeAnita. Paul Keating offered Murray alift back to their Hotel. As theyapproached the Hotel, Paul Keatingsaid to Murray “Look there’s Robinpacing outside looking for you. Whydon’t I jump out and open the doorfor you?” Naturally Murray agreed tothis arrangement despite the risks tohis career. So Paul Keating steppedout and opened the door and Murrayalighted from the car grinning fromear to ear, as a surprised Robin Graywatched on. This story almost rivalsthe time in Tokyo when the Japanesemistook him for the Premier andMurray was driven away in a limowaving and smiling whilst Robinhad to be content, following in asmaller vehicle!Murray was highly valued for his abilityto assist with major emergencies inTasmania. He undertook a specialisedtraining course on disasters oremergency management at MtMacedon in Victoria. He was aninvaluable resource in managing thepolitical and social aftermath of fires atZeehan, the mine closures atQueenstown and King Island and anumber of other major emergencies inTasmania over a number of years. Hewas often sent out as the fix-it man onthe spot, representing the government.Murray spent his last years living atCoogee in Sydney. He was immenselyproud of his family, and he is survivedby his former wife Denise, their fourchildren, daughter Mary Rose, sonGeoffrey and Kate and grandsonsThomas and Campbell, daughter Sallyand Matt, daughter Cassandra, andhis brother Paul.• Vale Br Reginald Michael (Colman)Long, Principal of St Virgil’s College1985 - 1990 .Br Reg Long died at the GoodShepherd Home in Abbottsford,Victoria, where he had been since2012. In recent months, Reg had beenslipping and communication wasminimal although, on the other hand,his gentle, almost cheeky smile wouldstill sometimes appear.Reg was born at Knowsley in countryVictoria near Bendigo where hisfather, James, was a farmer, and hismother, Mary, looked after the house.Reg had seven siblings, John, Marie(Kennedy), Ted, Bill, Bernie, (alldeceased) Des and Monsignor Bryan.Reg did his secondary schooling at StPatrick’s College, Ballarat, before heentered the Christian Brothers’Training College in Strathfield inJanuary 1946. When his training wascompleted, he moved to:Jan 49 LeedervilleFeb 56 Moonee PondsJan 65 HeyingtonJan 73 Bundoora ERCJan 75 North Melbourne(Principal)Jan 81 Devonport(Superior/Principal)Jan 84 Box Hill – St Joseph’sJan 85 Hobart (Principal)Jan 91 Ballarat – St Patrick’(Superior& Bursar 1992-2008)2012 Abbotsford, GoodShepherd Aged CareJuly 2015 Vol. 23 No. 33
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