It is regret that I have to announce that Pamela Kimber has died. She will have been known by so many of the Members and Friends of the Society. We have known she has been ill for quite some time.
Pamela had been involved with the Society for over fifty years. She stated going to Conferences in the 1960’s. The first was held Sydney Australia in 1963.
Pamela was always thinking of how she could get the youth involved with the Society. With the backing of the Trustees she put a small group from parts of the Commonwealth together and they were called the Young Generation and for a number of years Pamela helped with them.
With the support of Philip Bruem a more formal youth forum was included as part of the Albury, NSW conference in 2004 and the name was changed to the RASC Next Generation. The Next Generation has gone from strength to strength and at the last Conference in Brisbane they had over 60 delegates.
When you saw Pamela at Agricultural Shows she was always asking you how the Next Generation were getting on.
Pamela was so pleased that they had organized a Mission of Understanding and Assistance to help others in the less developed Countries. A group is just taking off to Papua New Guinea in the next few weeks. A Mission was there last in 2009. We wish them well.
Pamela’s great love was Africa and especially Uganda Malawi and Zambia. She would love to go out and see all her friends and especially Anna in Zambia. When Pamela was at the Conference in Zambia in 2012 she was so delighted to be able to go to Anna’s Village. All the Delegates went to Anna’s Village on the Pre Tour and had a very happy time. Anna learnt so much by coming as a Delegate to past Conferences.
Pamela will be sadly missed by all. Rest in Peace.
Andrew Gilmour
A farmer’s daughter from Buckinghamshire Pamela Kimber trained as a radiographer in London, qualifying from Kings College Hospital in 1955. After a year in the USA she returned to the UK to the Ratcliffe Infirmary in Oxford to continue her career in Radiography for which she was recognised both nationally and internationally. In 1965 she was appointed Superintendent Radiographer of the Wessex Neurological Centre in Southampton where she remained until her retirement in 1997.
Pamela’s interest in agriculture never waned. She joined the Wycombe YFC’s when she was 10 and so began a livelong interest in young people in agriculture. The Kimber family had been supporters of RASC from its inception and Pamela became involved in RASC in 1973. This allowed her to travel to all parts of the Commonwealth promoting the involvement of the Younger Generation in Agriculture. In her latter years her travels gave her the opportunity to promote the role of women in Agriculture especially in Africa.
In 1998 she was asked to look after some young people attending the RASC Conference in Darwin Australia. Her enthusiasm grew and in the Durban Conference in 2001 the concept of The Next Generation was born. She was literally the rock on which the NG section evolved, becoming the first NG Facilitator.
At each of the following RASC Conferences the NG section grew in number from about 20 in Calgary in 2006 to over 70 in Edinburgh in 2010.
In 2010 Pamela passed the reigns of NG Facilitator over to to John Bennett an NG from NSW Australia, but she never lost her passion for the NG’s and always kept o close eye on their progress.
Sadly cancer was to catch up with Pamela and she attended her last RASC Conference in her beloved Zambia in 2012, enthusiastic as ever and encouraging them in new ventures. Pamela passed away on the 24 September 2015. RASC lost a true friend.
Michael Lambert