It is with great sadness that we have been informed of the death of Ken Tate, who died after a lengthy illness on 30 December 2012.
Ken was appointed a Fellow of Camellias Australia in 2005. He joined the St. George and Sutherland Branch of the Australian Camellia Research Society in 1975 and served as Branch President from 1980 -1983. Since joining St. George he has acted as National Councillor, camellia lecturer, show steward, committee member and librarian. In 1992 he was awarded the Esme Pennington Award for outstanding service to the St. George and Sutherland branch.
In 1987 Ken was elected National Editor of ‘Camellia News’ and also appointed National Slide Librarian. He held the position of National Editor for 16 years (1988-2004) and continued to promote camellias as National Slide Librarian. He received the Walter Hazlewood Award in 1993 in recognition of his exceptional service to the society. As a long-time member of the International Camellia Society, Ken has frequently travelled overseas and has made friends with many overseas camellia people, several of whom have become overseas members of Camellia Australia as a result of his friendship.
